Terrible odor from battery compartment HELP!!

[Chaplain Kent]

Get those batteries disconnected
I had our classic motor home catch fire from over charged batteries.

[Wazbro]

Originally Posted by Naper

Its not always the converter. We had the same rotten egg smell from one of the two batteries in our last AS. The converter can't fry one battery. If its overcharging one its overcharging both. Anyway I took the battery to our local Interstate outlet for them to look at it. Turns out the battery had a short. I replaced both batteries with deep cycle marine AGM batteries, problem solved.
I think when this happens the converter automatically gets the blame. I am not defending AS for using low end converters but if you replace the converter and the batteries at the same time its difficult to know what failed the converter or the battery.

So true. On one trailer I know the truth about 1 battery had a short so could only get up to about 9.6 volts so with the batteries in parallel the converter tried to get the average to 12.8 volts and boiled what was the good battery.

[tjdonahoe]

My as has the original batteries and controller,never had any problems, just check the water level a couple times a year....

[uncle_bob]

Hi

The idea that the "stock" controller kills batteries is mainly a scare tactic to get people to buy aftermarket controllers. They do fail from time to time and so do the aftermarket units. By far the most common way to get a "boiling battery" is for a cell to short. Neither the stock controller or an aftermarket unit will handle this situation very well. They both will give you the rotten egg / sulfur smell.

Simple answer: Your battery failed, get a new battery. If you have two batteries in parallel (or series) replace them both.

Bob

[dasams]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

The idea that the "stock" controller kills batteries is mainly a scare tactic to get people to buy aftermarket controllers.

Come on Bob, your a smart guy and you should know that pushing 13.7 volts to the batteries 24/7 will kill them. Mine died in six months.

Also, did you know that AS has installed a multistage unit in the 2018's? And that the store/use (now called on/off I think) button will no longer disconnect the batteries from the controller while on shore power? This is AS telling us that they believe the new controller will no longer kill batteries if on shore power 24/7. I'm skeptical and will upgrade the controller when I receive my 2018 later this week.

Here's the quote from the 2018 FC users manual:

When the trailer is plugged into an external AC power source the 12-volt distribution panel will receive power from the converter and the batteries will be charged through the converter charging system regardless of if the battery switch is in the ON/OFF position.

Best, Dave

[delrossa]

I agree that the inverter is bad or a battery is shorted out. When connected to shore power I disconnect the batteries. I purchased a battery disconnect switch from Amazon. I have an old car with the same switch, works great. I have included a picture of the switch. It's simple to install.
If your unit is still under warranty I would have it repaired under warranty. If they replace both batteries for an up charge you could request deep cycle marine batteries and if it's the inverter you get everything new.
With the switch you can regulate when you want to charge the batteries and when your unit is in storage you can disconnect the batteries easily. There is always a parasite draw on the batteries (monitors).
Best of luck. Glad you disconnected to eliminate more issues.

[OTRA15]

Originally Posted by dasams

. . .
. . . you should know that pushing 13.7 volts to the batteries 24/7 will kill them.
. . .

Only if the AS is parked and left alone on shore power, and then only "maybe."

An Airstream trailer which is used actively, and monitored while not in use, can have the OEM batteries and single-stage converter last for many many years. In our 25' in the 90's this was true for 7 years of ownership (and we bought her used). In the new 2014 FC20, we are entering our 3rd year and the batteries are fine. We are lucky to be able to store the AS in the back yard, and we monitor the batteries and shore power constantly.

uncle bob's "scare tactic" term is -- unfortunately -- correct in some instances, as newcomers are often easily swayed by those who appear to have more knowledge. The advice may be well-intentioned, but sometimes it is over-broad IMO.

Cheers,

Peter

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by dasams

Come on Bob, your a smart guy and you should know that pushing 13.7 volts to the batteries 24/7 will kill them. Mine died in six months.

Also, did you know that AS has installed a multistage unit in the 2018's? And that the store/use (now called on/off I think) button will no longer disconnect the batteries from the controller while on shore power? This is AS telling us that they believe the new controller will no longer kill batteries if on shore power 24/7. I'm skeptical and will upgrade the controller when I receive my 2018 later this week.

Here's the quote from the 2018 FC users manual:

When the trailer is plugged into an external AC power source the 12-volt distribution panel will receive power from the converter and the batteries will be charged through the converter charging system regardless of if the battery switch is in the ON/OFF position.

Best, Dave

Hi

You might want to dig a bit more into what AS actually *is* putting into the 2018's. Your batteries may well have died in six months, stuff happens. That's not solely because they were on a 13.7V "charger". The biggest thing you can do to "improve" the charge setup is to add a temperature probe. Without that, any charger is just guessing at what it's doing.

Bob

[Boxite]

Welll.. there's some terminology-errors going on here we should probably address.

I'm thinking of the recent post which refers to the "inverter" when it is meant is "converter". (A converter is what all Airstreams come with... a unit which will convert the 120V AC shore power to 12V DC Power for those 12V items on the trailer such as lights and battery-charging. An "inverter" will invert the 12V DC power (usually from a battery source) into 120V AC power for those items which normally run on "household current".)

I'm thinking of the latest argument inferring that batteries which receive 13.7V continuously will "burn up".... when what is actually more correct....the 13.7 volts 24/7 is nothing wrong or bad at all. What is bad is too many AMPS at 13.7V for a long time. A converter with multi-stage charging (also often referred to as "self-regulating" will always supply 13.7V or thereabouts...but will taper the amount of AMPS pushed to the battery down to a "trickle" or to an intermittent, low-Amp 13.7V "top" charge.

(Stepping down now from my know-it-all soapbox.)

[bibbs]

I find it very miserly that AS's have such ridiculously high prices, for what is a "quality" product and they are to stingy to provide a modern charger!

[on the fly]

http://www.progressivedyn.com/rv/pow...r-4600-series/

is this the right one?

which one of these would i buy to upgrade? 55 Amp (PD4655V), 45 Amp (PD4645V) and 35 Amp (PD4635V) models available.

[on the fly]

Originally Posted by dasams

Lots of info on this.

We also have a 2017 FC25 with the single stage Parallax controller. This is a 'dumb' controller that pushes 13.7 volts to the batteries at all times. Check your battery button above your stove when on shore power.

It isn't designed to know when your batteries are fully charged so that it can back off the voltage. Old school trickle chargers did the same thing but modern battery tenders measure the battery's voltage and drop the voltage (and even pull current) when they are fully charged. Perhaps AS wants you to hit the battery disconnect button every time you are on shore power but who does that?

How do I know this? We bought our new FC last Aug that had batteries with a May 2016 date stamp. We hit the road and stayed in RV parks so that we were on shore power every night. In Sept, we also had the rotten egg smell and found an Interstate dealer down the road. He replaced the fried battery under warranty but I still didn't know what caused the issue.

In Feb, we went to Baja and camped on the beach. Guess what? We were the only rig with a 9 volt battery output in the morning. We were screwed. So I called AS who claimed that the controller wasn't the issue but they also offered to pay for new batteries.

When I got home, I did my research and bought a PD4655 from BestConverter.com. It was an easy install and is a four stage controller. No more issues for my.

BTW, if you buy a 2018 AS, you'll get a new multi stage controller. But AS still claims there are no issues with last year's single stage unit

Let me know what I can do to help, Dave

http://www.progressivedyn.com/rv/pow...r-4600-series/

is this the right one?

which one of these would i buy to upgrade? 55 Amp (PD4655V), 45 Amp (PD4645V) and 35 Amp (PD4635V) models available.

[Lumatic]

Originally Posted by on the fly

http://www.progressivedyn.com/rv/pow...r-4600-series/

is this the right one?

which one of these would i buy to upgrade? 55 Amp (PD4655V), 45 Amp (PD4645V) and 35 Amp (PD4635V) models available.

I have a 45 amp progressive dynamics which works fine for me, but I don't use a lot of electronics. If in doubt go to the 55. I also like the progressive dynamics charging wizard add on which allows you to change the charging mode.

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by Mollysdad

Hydrogen sulfide gas smells like rotten eggs.
Off gassed by batteries.
Unplug, walk away. remove battery later.

I see you have a 2017 FC.
I'm picking one up next week.
When I looked at the batteries they were Interstate Batteries 6v. (2) Not sure about the battery caps for wet cell, they looked sealed. I'll ask.
When stored, I'm either disconnecting the batteries or using a Battery Tender.
In 2018 Airstream installed a four stage charger, maybe better. It wasn't worth ordering a 2018 to get that for me.

Can the experts chime in....can I plug the unit in and still leave the batteries disconnected? Run off the converter?

6 volt?
Most have (2) 12 volt batteries wired in series.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by m.hony

6 volt?
Most have (2) 12 volt batteries wired in series.

Hi

Stock AS setups have two 12V batteries wired in parallel. If you have six volt batteries you would wire them in series. There is a slight advantage in terms of charge balancing with a series setup. 12V batteries are a lot easier to find out in the middle of nowhere.

Bob

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by bibbs

I find it very miserly that AS's have such ridiculously high prices, for what is a "quality" product and they are to stingy to provide a modern charger!

Hi

Having seen a number of "modern" charger designs that *do* boil batteries (by putting 18V on them) I'm glad that AS didn't jump on that bandwagon.

Bob

[dasams]

Originally Posted by on the fly

is this the right one?

which one of these would i buy to upgrade? 55 Amp (PD4655V), 45 Amp (PD4645V) and 35 Amp (PD4635V) models available.

I bought the PD4655V and pendent from bestcharger.com. The inexpensive pendent shows the current charging state as is a nice feature. If you use the pendent, then you can retain the stock fuse board which made the installation a piece of cake. Randy was also very helpful in walking me through it. Dave

[dasams]

Originally Posted by Boxite

I'm thinking of the latest argument inferring that batteries which receive 13.7V continuously will "burn up".... when what is actually more correct....the 13.7 volts 24/7 is nothing wrong or bad at all. What is bad is too many AMPS at 13.7V for a long time. A converter with multi-stage charging (also often referred to as "self-regulating" will always supply 13.7V or thereabouts...but will taper the amount of AMPS pushed to the battery down to a "trickle" or to an intermittent, low-Amp 13.7V "top" charge.

I have no expertise in this area but I learned Ohm's law in freshman physics that current is voltage divided by resistance. So I don't understand how a controller can vary the current without changing the voltage or resistance.

One other point is that my PD4655V charges at 13.1 V when in maintain mode vs 13.7 of the OEM unit.

I'm here to learn, Dave

[m.hony]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

Stock AS setups have two 12V batteries wired in parallel. If you have six volt batteries you would wire them in series. There is a slight advantage in terms of charge balancing with a series setup. 12V batteries are a lot easier to find out in the middle of nowhere.

Bob

Oops.
My bad.
I meant parallel.
(2) 12 volts in parallel = 12 volts
(2) 12 volts in series would be 24 volts?
(2) 6 volts in series would be 12 volts?
Same principal in wiring speakers- 8 ohm, 4 ohm, etc. to equal/match the amplifier output impedance.

[on the fly]

Originally Posted by Lumatic

I have a 45 amp progressive dynamics which works fine for me, but I don't use a lot of electronics. If in doubt go to the 55. I also like the progressive dynamics charging wizard add on which allows you to change the charging mode.

Does it matter which one i get? Meaning, the airstream is rated to 30 amps. If i go with a 35 or higher will it affect anything?