Is my solar panel working? And other electrical problems.

[as77]

I have a 2009 22 ft sport FB. If I run the furnace at night (no hook ups) the battery is dead by morning. I have a generator and always charge it up before bed. But I see no evidence that my solar panel is working. So I kind of have two issues here. Any thoughts? I'm a newbie, it was our first season!


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[SteveH]

The furnace fan is a big load on the battery, but it seems it should last thru the night. I would suspect you have a bad battery, and would have it tested.

[eubank]

Depends on the temperature. A furnace does eat a lot of power, so if it's running most of the time, well, your battery, even at full charge, isn't going to last that long. But if it's just running a couple of times for a short time, then look for the cause.

And causes can range pretty far. Could be a rotten battery, of course. From your description, it's doubtful that it's the solar system UNLESS your solar controller is incorrectly allowing the system to run in reverse when it's dark. (Our cheapie does that. It'll not just run down a battery, but kill it dead-dead-dead if left unattended.)


Lynn

[airdreamers]

I am not sure at this point, you have 1 or 2 batteries. If your battery or batteries are fully charged by dark that there should be enough power to last thru the night. Depending on the sun, you should not need your generator. Your controller should tell you if they are fully charged. My controller says 14.05 volts at full charge. Make sure you test the condition of the battery or batteries first.

[idroba]

Sounds like your battery is toast. Especially if it is an original one. I think the sport only has one, right? It won't have a lot of capacity to begin with and if in week condition, may well behave as you see.

Just guessing of course, it is very hard to diagnose electrical issues over the net with only marginal information.

[as77]

I also suspect my battery is toast and yes I just have one. Is it easy to upgrade this model to 2 batteries?


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[mefly2]

What does your solar charge display indicate as the charging rate?

[Greg@AirLA]

You can manage two batteries end to end with a little modification on the box ends, we've managed to find a NOCO box that allow us to install 3 batteries on the 16' & 22' Sport tongues. It's a NOCO model HM408 box.

Greg