2012 Lounge battery replacement write up

[73shark]

Welcome to the Airforums. Thanks for the write-up.

My antenna works fine. Wonder if the coax got crushed somewhere during fab?

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by EddieTheWire

Thanks, Interstate guys, for posting your experiences with coach battery replacement and solar upgrades....

.... I also installed a second propane solenoid switch in the control panel area, and added a 100W solar panel from AM Solar on the rear roof (ditched that crazy round digital TV antenna - never got more than one or two oddball stations even when parked in large cities!) ......

Thanks again to the many guys who forged ahead before me and shared their hard-won wisdom....

I second the welcome to Airforums. I also get great reception with the Wineguard antenna installed by Airstream.

In addition to the thought of crushed coaxial cable mentioned by 73shark I have another suggestion.

Did you tune the TVs using channel search function in TVs setup menu?

I only mention this as it is something a lot of people forget about. I once parked next to a new monster 40 foot Class-A in a KOA park. After chatting with owner he complained the none of the four TV in his rig could get the local stations in Niagara Falls area. I showed him how to tune his TV and viola - he got over 40 local channels. For home TV you only tune them once on initial set-up but on a mobile platform they have to be tuned each time you move the coach.

[UKDUDE]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

I second the welcome to Airforums. I also get great reception with the Wineguard antenna installed by Airstream.

In addition to the thought of crushed coaxial cable mentioned by 73shark I have another suggestion.

Did you tune the TVs using channel search function in TVs setup menu?

I only mention this as it is something a lot of people forget about. I once parked next to a new monster 40 foot Class-A in a KOA park. After chatting with owner he complained the none of the four TV in his rig could get the local stations in Niagara Falls area. I showed him how to tune his TV and viola - he got over 40 local channels. For home TV you only tune them once on initial set-up but on a mobile platform they have to be tuned each time you move the coach.

I'd like to add to this that the antenna booster needs to be switched on for good reception through the TV antenna; the small button inside the cabinet above the driver should be pressed so the green light is on. When connected to a wired TV system such as a campsite cable TV system, it should be in the off position.

[ben322]

I always wanted two 6v batteries because the two 12v Lifeline 24's only give me limited time without the generator. Reading Rain's post got me thinking about the 6CT Lifelines so today I took out the rear lounge seat and measured the box. Please note that mine is a '09 standard length lounge model. The inside dimensions are 11.25" Wide x 9.25" Deep, (8.375" Deep to clear the turned-in lip), 27" High. Suffice to say that I just ordered two Lifeline GPL-6CT batteries which will fit with room to spare.

[UKDUDE]

Originally Posted by ben322

I always wanted two 6v batteries because the two 12v Lifeline 24's only give me limited time without the generator. Reading Rain's post got me thinking about the 6CT Lifelines so today I took out the rear lounge seat and measured the box. Please note that mine is a '09 standard length lounge model. The inside dimensions are 11.25" Wide x 9.25" Deep, (8.375" Deep to clear the turned-in lip), 27" High. Suffice to say that I just ordered two Lifeline GPL-6CT batteries which will fit with room to spare.

Are there any disadvantages to the 6V Lifelines? If they fit so easily in the standard battery box, then I'm curious to know why Airstream didn't go with them in the first place.

[ben322]

I'm no expert but from what I've read is that with two 12v batteries, you can essentially lose one and still have house power whereas the deterioration of one battery compromises the whole bank because of the series connection.

The advantages of the 6v batteries is the thicker plates which are more forgiving in deep cycle applications and the higher Ah capacity. Granted that I would have preferred to spend less than $100/each at Costco/Sams but the removal of the rear lounge not to mention the stacked position of the batteries makes regular checking of water levels a real pain. If I had a Twin model or one with an easier to check battery box then there are cheaper options.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by ben322

I'm no expert but from what I've read is that with two 12v batteries, you can essentially lose one and still have house power…

Actually a misconception. If you lose one 12v house battery, you can use the other until it's depleted as well, but you can't recharge— because the dead battery still in the system will fool the charger into never shutting off, and you'll cook the good battery until it dies too.

Either way, you've still got to perform some excavation to get to the battery box and replace the dead battery soonest, and it's still a trip ender— or at least a trip interrupter— regardless of which battery voltage you're using.

So you're not really all that much better off with two 12v batteries in parallel than you are with two 6v batteries.

[lewster]

In the real world, I have yet to see a single battery failure in a bank of multiple 6 VDC batteries. OTOH, I have seen repeated failure of low end (read cheap) batteries of both 6 VDC and 12 VDC.

In the end, you get what you pay for. Premium batteries last longer (assuming proper charging, as the wrong charging equipment........ARE YOU LISTENING AIRSTREAM??? will kill any battery prematurely) because they are made with better materials and construction techniques.

Some like to replace cheap batteries often, while others like to invest in a quality battery bank and charging equipment ONCE and forget about them. YMMV, as usual. :-))

[EddieTheWire]

Originally Posted by UKDUDE

Are there any disadvantages to the 6V Lifelines? If they fit so easily in the standard battery box, then I'm curious to know why Airstream didn't go with them in the first place.

I wouldn't say they fit 'easily' into the Lounge battery box, but they do fit, and Airstream could take their quality up a notch by adding Lifelines.