Possible dead battery 2015 Flying Cloud

[chekmate99]

Hi all,

Well this past weekend I checked in on my 2015 Flying Cloud and noticed that there is no battery power. I'm somewhat of a new Airstream owner and still learning the in/outs - please bear with me...

After checking few things I noticed that the black (negative) battery cable was unhooked from the battery. Most likely this was done by the owner of the RV storage lot as they moved my trailer from one spot to another earlier this year.

After hooking this cable back to the battery there was still no power after turning on the Battery Disconnect switch.

The power jack is also dead which leads me to believe the batteries are dead.

Few questions:

1) is there a relatively easy way to test or verify if the battery is dead without hooking or taking the Airstream to dealership?

2) if the batteries are dead, I assume I'll have to manually hook the Airstream to the towing vehicle (I'll call my dealership for this as I don't recall the steps for this) OR replace the batteries in place at the RV storage lot.

3) in the Airstream manual it indicates that the battery is replenished when connected to the towing vehicle (7-way connector). I take it that this will not help if the batteries are dead?

Any feedback or suggestions is much appreciated.

Thanks,

Chris.

[Al and Missy]

How long was it since you used it last? A good battery will self-discharge over time, taking on the order of 90 days to be dead. A bad battery can self discharge overnight.

Your storage yard may have noticed that you hadn't been around and disconnected your battery cable to eliminate parasitic drains which are caused by the STORE/USE switch (newer trailers), propane detector, and perhaps some other things that are not disconnected by the STORE/USE switch. In my 2001 Safari 25 the only parasitic drain was the propane detector. I moved its power lead to the trailer side of the battery disconnect switch to eliminate it except when the trailer was in use. If you are going to leave the trailer for long periods of time it is advisable to remove the batteries and take them home where you can charge them periodically or keep them on a battery minder. I routinely leave mine for a month or more with no problems just turning off the battery disconnect switch. The newer trailers with their electronic STORE/USE switches drain batteries faster than the old trailers, I think.

Your tow vehicle will not fully charge your trailer batteries. The best bet now is to remove them and take them to an auto parts place or big box store like Walmart, Sam's, or Costco. They can check them, but you may have to leave them for a while to be charged enough to test. If the batteries have been dead for a month or so, the best bet is probably to just buy some new ones. They don't like to be left discharged.

Al

[chekmate99]

Hi Al,

Thanks for the reply - it's been sitting for about 5 months.

Lesson learned - I'll replace them and keep up on the battery maintenance; another thing to add to the checklist.

Thanks,

Chris.

[SteveSueMac]

Chris - I noticed some white powder - acid? - on your batteries and a chunk of it under the wing nut holder that has rusted it out a bit. Not sure why that would have happened. My trailer batteries have never had this (though I've had car batteries do it...). You may want to check in to the cause of that and also replace that wing nut tie down.

[ATownTX]

I learned the same hard lesson. It doesn't take long for them to go bad, and there are many things to watch out for. Apparently the built in AS battery charger can ruin your batteries if they are left on the charger too long. I think that boiled some of my electrolyte away. That and I let it sit for two months. Fortunately for me Interstate replaced them with no question asked. I brought the batteries to them fully expecting to pay for new ones but they just switched them out. You may try that if they are still under warranty.

The bright side it that you will learn how to remove and replace your batteries and get a better understanding of how to maintain them at the same time. You really need to know how to remove the batteries in order to service them properly.

[chekmate99]

Thanks SteveSueMac, ATownTX and Al for the feedback.

will keep you all posted on how it goes...

Chris.

[Wconley]

Others that have more experience may know the answer to this but if you back your tow vehicle up to the trailer close enough to connect the trailer wiring to the TV, I wonder if the TV will provide power needed to operate the jack and raise the trailer to connect to the hitch. This might save you having to do it manually. Hopefully your batteries will recover.

This last winter (my first winter with our Airstream) I fought a losing battle trying to keep the batteries charged while in the trailer. Finally I removed them to charge them in my garage. Overall a much easier task than dealing with them in the trailer - lesson learned for next year.

[Rocinante]

Originally Posted by Wconley

Others that have more experience may know the answer to this but if you back your tow vehicle up to the trailer close enough to connect the trailer wiring to the TV, I wonder if the TV will provide power needed to operate the jack and raise the trailer to connect to the hitch.

Yes, this would most likely work, though its probably best to have the TV engine running when you do so. This will not charge your trailer's batteries, but it will enable you to get hitched up (and un-hitched if necessary) with minimum drama if you want to do so before charging or replacing the batteries.

Don't ask me how I know this.

[Caffeinated]

You need a decent multi meter to see your battery level. Those are probably rthe original batteries, with a one year warrantee so if they are toast, you will need to spring for new batteries.

First thing I'd suggest is to read the many many battery threads in the repair section of this forum and get a understanding of how your batteries work and what you need to do to keep them in good shape.

Second thing, buy a multi meter on Amazon if you don't already have one.

Third, pull your batteries, take them to a battery shop and have them tested. If they are dead as I suspect, you can buy new ones and install them having taken the precautions you have learned about from reading the threads.

Mike

[Mattirs]

Also, if you have a Ford truck you may need to install a relay and fuse in the fuse box before there is power to the trailer. That happened to me, luckily I was at the AS dealer and they had one in stock. If not the Ford dealership should know what you need and have one.

[Mergatroyd]

My battery went bad on my new Airstream after the first season. The original battery was an unsealed battery which you had to check and refill with distilled water each week. I didn't know they made those anymore. So, I replaced it with a new sealed battery. Make sure you get deep cycle or marine/RV battery. These are meant to discharge completely, as opposed to an automotive starting battery which is usually discharged only a little.

Also, for maximum battery life, make sure you keep it at full charge when being stored. If it runs out and sits there for a long time uncharged it will never be the same.

[Rocinante]

Originally Posted by Mergatroyd

Make sure you get deep cycle or marine/RV battery. These are meant to discharge completely, as opposed to an automotive starting battery which is usually discharged only a little.

Solid advice here regarding the type of battery. However, please know that regardless of type, lead-acid batteries should never be discharged below a charge state of 50%. Every time your batteries drop below 50% charge, some amount of permanent damage is done.

There are plenty of charts that tell you how to know the state of charge for your battery based on the voltage.

Lastly, if you have the old-style flooded lead-acid batteries, you should have a specific gravity tester (very cheap simple device you can get at any auto-parts store) in addition to the good multi-meter suggested above. Once in a while, follow instructions and test specific gravity in each cell, as this is an excellent way to find out whether your batteries have a bad cell or two. This is how I finally figured out that my prior batteries were toast. In each battery, every cell but one was fully charged. That one cell was completely dead, even though the others were fine. As a result, I had to recycle them and get new batteries.

[Gleverett]

I learned the hard way also. Left my batteries connected while in storage and the propane sensor drained them. Fortunately I was able to recharge them but I understand when they have been deep discharged they loose some power. That was 1 1/2 years ago. I now disconnect the batteries when in storage. Picked up the AS this am and reconnected the batteries after 5 months they registered 12.7V. Good luck with yours.

[gypsydad]

We had bad cells on our 2014 when we picked it up, but did not know till Interstate checked them out 4 months later. With their warranty (1 year, I believe), they offered to give us new ones or 100% credit towards the AGM's. We took the AGM's and also installed a manual "cut off" switch on one of the terminals. That was 3 years ago...no issues since.

[dames7]

They are dead, if these are the original to the AS then you need to replace them.

We change ours to LifeLine 6V AGM's with a 4 stage Boondocker BD1260C (60 Amp 4-Stage Converter/Charger) with a Trimetric 2025RV Battery System Monitor and also installed a cut-off at the battery box. No more problems.

There is a lot of ghost in the AS that will just suck the live out of a battery.

[MelGoddard]

I had new Interstate batteries in my 30'FC when I picked it up last Spring.
Having it plugged into my house all the time, with a one hour timer, kept the batteries charged; or so I thought.
Although the Voltage was 12.5, a Specific Gravity check showed all the cells to be way down in the red. I took the timer off, and left it on full time house power for several days. The S.G. was still in the red. This, with an OEM Parallax converter.

Last October, I had CanAm install a PD4655 converter in place of the Parallax.
After several days, the SG was way up there, higher than 1.300 up into the white part of the scale. Voltage was 13.3 under charge, and 12.6 on the battery alone.
I checked the S.G. bimonthly and it was right up in the white. No water was being lost; the level stayed at the bottom of the well, in the circle.
Charge Voltage: 13.3, Battery voltage 12.5.

Today:
While reactivating my FC for summer service, I checked the battery SG, and ALL of the 12 cells were in the red, indicating very low charge.
Voltage after one hour unplugged from the house, was 12.5. Plugging in showed charging at 13.3 V.

So WHAT GIVES???
This PD 4655 cost me over $500 plus labour to install, and it seems to have fallen flat on the job.
Any ideas out there???

[Rocinante]

Originally Posted by dames7

...and also installed a cut-off at the battery box.

What switch did you use to establish the cut-off? So many choices, hard to pick one and I'm pretty sure I want it to fit inside the battery box.

[dames7]

Keep it clean kill switch, under $20, mount it on top of the battery box, then I painted it to match the box and it hard to tell what it is. I put AGM BATTERY LIFELINE 6v and also added a locking system to the box to slow down any one looking to for free batteries, and took the handle off the battery which make it very hard to get them out.

[Caffeinated]

Originally Posted by MelGoddard

So WHAT GIVES???
This PD 4655 cost me over $500 plus labour to install, and it seems to have fallen flat on the job.
Any ideas out there???

CanAm charged you 500 for the converter? The PD 4655 is $215.17 with free shipping from Amazon Prime, and it's not that hard to install.

Also, if the charge voltage is at 13.3 but the batteries are not getting above 12.5, I suspect a battery issue. You might call Progressive Dynamics and tell them what is happening. They have good customer service and stand behind their product. They might have some ideas for you to try, or it's possible there is a issue with your charger. If so, they will make it right.

Mike

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by MelGoddard

. . .
Having it plugged into my house all the time, with a one hour timer, kept the batteries charged; or so I thought.
. . .

Why limit the daily charging to one hour, when you have a new smart charger? You may have actually not been charging the batteries correctly all winter IMO.

Also, your batteries might have been bad when you picked up the trailer, also IMO. Did you or Can Am test the batteries throughly before the 4655 was installed?

In any event, I would get new batteries -- a very small percentage of your overall investment.

The 4655 unit could be bad also. There are threads/posts here on this if you search.

Peter