2007 Safari- battery charging problem

[mgm]

I have one of the flooded trailers from Georgia and with some nice weather i have been checking some stuff out.

With the batteries (dc power) all the lights and fans have worked just fine. I brought the trailer home and plugged it into my parents garage. And the ac outlets, air conditioning and microwave all checked out.

but I was hoping that the batteries would have charged up, but they are actually going down.

I dont believe i have much turned on in the trailer at all, except for the radio clock and the lp gas detector. I dont believe much else is on.

I have read through the threads and i tested the batteries with a volt meter- which read 12v when i was plugged into shore power, and 12 volts when i unplugged the shore power.

Not sure if i performed that test as i was supposed to. But i cant seem to figure out the problem.

For the record. My control panel does not seem to be reading all that accurately, as the trailer is dry, yet it read the gray water tank as full. So i cant trust that all too much, but the only calculation that seems to fluctuate is my battery power....decreasing.

So i could use some advice....to help me figure out what my problem is. The converter, fuse or other....

anything would help

furthermore. my battery disconnnect switch wont actually swith on or off. The switch moves but it does not stay in either position. And the light is on constantly. I have read that the light always stays one, but should the switch stay on or off?

Any ideas

[HowieE]

Don't get too upset about the control panel. If you had one that worked you would be the first.

As for the battery. Make sure the circuit beaker for the converter is on. Disconnect one of the battery cable from the converter and with your meter test the output of the converter. I suspect if the converter was under water it will not be working.

You should see at least 14 volts if it is working.

[2airishuman]

may be several problems OR a combination of issues.

1. turn OFF the radio, completely. in fact PULL the face plate OFF.

that system uses a LOT of juice even when NOT playing.

2. does the charger/converter WORK?

have you check the OUTPUT voltage from C/C?

the VOLTAGE measured AT the 2 wires LEAVING the converter should be 13.5v-14v NOT 12v...

12v suggests NO charging output.

was the original C/C replaced?

IF your reading is only 12v, well that suggests the batteries are WAY down (like 40-50%)

The 12volt Side of Life (Part 1)

it is hard to imagine the ORIGINAL charger/converter would work AFTER being submerged.

3. as i recall these are NEW batteries? hows the fluid level in them?

4. the micropulse tank info center MAY have issues, but more likely it's the wire/sensor connected to the gray tank...

and while the fluid tank LEVELS are often wrong, the BATTERY status is usually pretty accurate at the panel..

water and electric and lpg aren't really related at the monitor.
____________

i suspect the C/C isn't operating properly...

is it WARM, does the FAN inside it run?

see #2 above.

cheers
2air'

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Originally Posted by mgm

furthermore. my battery disconnnect switch wont actually swith on or off. The switch moves but it does not stay in either position. And the light is on constantly. I have read that the light always stays one, but should the switch stay on or off?

Any ideas

Hi, the red light on the switch panel will stay on while connected to shore power; Unplug the shore power and you will be able to turn it on or off.

[azflycaster]

My trailer does not have a disconnect switch, so please correct me if I am wrong.

If the battery voltage gets too low the relay in the switch will not pick and the converter will not be connected to the batteries. I have read where others have had this same issue and charging the batteries made everything function correctly again.

[2airishuman]

even WITHOUT the disconnect switch,

the p-lax C/C will NOT charge if the batteries are really really low (like <10 ? volts)

but the o.p. reports reading 12v and still having LIGHTS that operate...

cheers
2air'

[Mexray]

I don't believe your converter/charger is operating after being submerged...all those electronic bits inside, circuit boards, computer chips, etc., don't take well to water...

with the AC power OFF - check the voltage at the battery terminals...

now turn on the AC - if the voltage at the battery hasn't changed - the converter/charger is NOT working (or it's AC circuit isn't energized)...

time to call Randy at bestconverter.com

Ray

[Krazyjohnny]

I just replaced my Converter and Randy had what I needed even some really good instructions on his website. Now I have nicely charged batteries and my lights work very nicely.

[mgm]

Well,

i ran a few more tests...

I did test the output at the battery cables and it was the same both before and after i removed the shore power..

Also, not sure if this test is applicable, but i unplugged the batteries to see if the converter would power the dc stuff...and none of the dc stuff seemed to work.

For the record, the Converter was replaced and everything looks new there, so i m hoping it may be something simple.

All the ac outlets and the air conditioner worked fine, and i could hear the fan running on the converter. It just doesnt seem to be charging the batteries or powering any of the dc stuff....

any more thoughts?

Worse case- i really dont have a problem buying a new converter. Just wanted to make sure i didnt miss anything.

[Mexray]

...tough one...are there any internal fuses in your conv/chgr?

You mentioned that you thought the conv/chgr was replaced - any proof? Removing the cover can give you a glimpse inside to see if it's indeed, 'new'...

Perhaps you can take the conv/chgr to a expert to have it bench tested...

good luck on your search...

Ray

[pmclemore]

Originally Posted by mgm

furthermore. my battery disconnnect switch wont actually swith on or off. The switch moves but it does not stay in either position. And the light is on constantly. I have read that the light always stays one, but should the switch stay on or off?

Any ideas

Your disconnect switch may be the indicator you're looking for: I suddenly lost my 12-v lights but the 120 stuff worked fine. In the process of testing everything I could think of, I tried the disconnect switch - which wouldn't stay, as yours won't.

I finally found the problem at my 12-v bus bar - one of the nuts had loosened so that there was a bad connection, which caused an overload. The connection was hot - good that it wasn't touching anything. I disconnected the battery (physically).

So I tightened all the nuts on the bus bar then reconnected the battery cable. Everything worked fine, including the disconnect switch which then worked as it is supposed to.

Pat

[mgm]

I'm still pretty green with some of the lingo and am not real sure where to look for this 12v bus bar. Is it actually near the batteries or back on the converter.

Sorry if this is a dumb question. I just want to check this out, as your symptoms sound the saem and i'm hoping your solution will work.

[2airishuman]

the bus bar is near the charger/converter.

basically some large chunks of copper with wires attached, with NUTs

IF the C/C was replaced, what brand/model was used?

it should have a 2 year warranty, unless the rehab'r put in a USED unit.

there are a LOT of diy installs here and photos and so which may help you find the bits and sort things out.

there are also basic wiring schematics in the owners manual and parts manuals...

this vendor has some nice diy and how2 aids...

BestConverter - Converters, Inverters, Electrical Supplies, Electronics

here's a converter replacement, just exactly the same trailer model (but it IS the oem converter)

also follow the LINKS in the thread...

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f449...rex-50382.html

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f449...wer-44977.html

again LOTs of stuff on this here and on the other slab side rv sites...

cheers
2air'