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k9jackie · 06-29-2015, 09:00 PM

I always read about general issues and complaints in forums but I have something positive to say ... I am amazingly pleased with the battery life on my 2014.5 ext! I mistakenly left the bathroom light on for four days and discovered today when I went to move my AI this evening. ( I have a habit of moving her at least once a week even if I am not taking her out for a trip ) For four days the bathroom light and the isle lights were on but my battery was still at 95% when I checked it. Probably has to do with the fact that they are LED but I still think it's pretty cool

Everything is locked down and turned off now ☺️

73shark · 06-29-2015, 10:55 PM

Plus you have the solar panel that will keep the battery charged up pretty well with light loads like the LED lights.

Boxster1971 · 06-30-2015, 08:09 AM

Jackie - I agree with 73shark about solar. My 2013 AI only had a 50 watt solar panel. It was not enough to keep batteries charged where I parked behind my townhouse since it only got a few hours of direct sunlight. With the 400 watts of solar I installed the batteries stay charged even when I leave the fan on to keep inside temp down. Your AI has a 100 watt panel as I recall and that should keep batteries close to fully charged even with an LED light on. Solar is such a good thing that I think Airstream should add even more.

- - Mike
2013 Interstate Lounge EXT on 2012 Sprinter

UKDUDE · 06-30-2015, 08:42 AM

I agree with all the above. And even with my paltry 50 watt panel, in the direct sun here in Arizona I can run the fridge and the Maxxair fan, and the batteries don't go below 85%.

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lstepp2 · 06-30-2015, 02:05 PM

I know the Golf Cart battery's lead plates are four times thicker that a Marine Deep Cycle battery. Therefore the perform better.

73shark · 06-30-2015, 02:34 PM

Does anyone know how Optima AGMs compare to Lifelines?

Ron_CA · 06-30-2015, 02:40 PM

FWIW 2014.5 has 50W solar

migriffin · 06-30-2015, 08:46 PM

My 2014.5 has a 100W panel and it does a pretty good job keeping things charged up as long as I have the master power switch off. If I have the refrigerator on along with the parasitic draw, we usually get one night and two days before we need to drive again and charge up the batteries.

Ron_CA · 06-30-2015, 09:28 PM

I suppose that is possible if it was a late model run. Airstream increased solar to 100w with the 2015 models.

Sebtown · 07-01-2015, 05:46 PM

I just used a 100w solar suitcase last weekend. My 07 AI only has one wet cell. We were able to go 3 full days which included daily use of the vent fan, night lighting, cpap, and even some music. The Alpine stereo with amplifier is my largest energy hog.

jkinglet · 07-01-2015, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by k9jackie

I always read about general issues and complaints in forums but I have something positive to say ... I am amazingly pleased with the battery life on my 2014.5 ext! I mistakenly left the bathroom light on for four days and discovered today when I went to move my AI this evening. ( I have a habit of moving her at least once a week even if I am not taking her out for a trip ) For four days the bathroom light and the isle lights were on but my battery was still at 95% when I checked it. Probably has to do with the fact that they are LED but I still think it's pretty cool

Everything is locked down and turned off now ☺️

Shame on you! I'm shocked. You left the bathroom light on. I leave it on accidentally a lot, even more than the water pump switch (if you can believe that). Welcome to the leave-the-bathroom-light-switch-on club! That's why we upgraded our 2013 Rear Lounge to 100 watts...just for the bathroom switch.

c21 · 07-01-2015, 07:02 PM

I have a 14 AI with the 50w panel. How difficult (& costly) would it be to upgrade to the 100w panel that comes on the 15's?
Thanks

SafariSS · 07-01-2015, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 73shark

Does anyone know how Optima AGMs compare to Lifelines?

I have a Safari 30 with two 160w panels. First four years I used the blue top optimas with good luck. I have always had great luck with them in my vehicles for starting batteries with getting at least 5 years out of them here in hot Texas.

Then i put two large 6volt Lifelines in and wow what a difference! It all comes down to amp hours...! I could live off solar totally if I had too with the Lifelines. Only drawback is weight and size but I relocated them to the interior aft of the axles so now I have a place for storage where the old batteries went.

54fuselage · 07-01-2015, 11:00 PM

Do a careful search on Optima performance reviews. More recent ones on Amazon and different places are reporting a drastic drop in quality from what used to be available. The company apparently sold out for cheaper manufacturing.

lewster · 07-01-2015, 11:43 PM

Optimas in the Group 24 size typically have a 55 amp/hour capacity. Compare this to a Lifeline GPL-24T which has an 80 amp/hour capacity and you can see where the differences begin. A pair of Lifeline golf cart 6VDC batteries (GPL-4CT) have the same footprint as a group 24 battery but being taller, have a 220 amp/hour capacity. Plates on a golf cart style battery are twice the thickness as a group 24, which is where the extra durability is realized.

Lifelines are heavier (more lead), have larger plate surface areas (solid rectangular plates vs. the '6 pack' Optimas) and have a 5 year pro-rated warranty. They are also available in a variety of sizes and voltages.

Boxster1971 · 07-02-2015, 04:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by c21bill

I have a 14 AI with the 50w panel. How difficult (& costly) would it be to upgrade to the 100w panel that comes on the 15's?
Thanks

That should be an easy straight forward upgrade. You can likely stay with the same wiring and controller as I'm sure that is what Airstream did.

- - Mike
2013 Interstate Lounge EXT on 2012 Sprinter

73shark · 07-02-2015, 04:51 PM

Might want to verify that the existing wire gauge is sufficient to handle the increased current.

You could also speak w/ Robert Kendall (800-261-3602) at Atkinson Electronics that makes the solar controller and display.

jerhofer · 07-02-2015, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lewster

Lifelines are heavier (more lead), have larger plate surface areas (solid rectangular plates vs. the '6 pack' Optimas) and have a 5 year pro-rated warranty. They are also available in a variety of sizes and voltages.

I have suspected for some time that my batteries have not been holding a charge. When we recently returned from an overnight camping trip, the batteries were completely charged. I turned off the power and did not plug in just to see what would happen. Less than 24 hours later, they were down to a little over 10 volts.

I found a distributor less than 20 miles away so I removed the batteries. This was a bit more complicated for me as I had to remove the cabinet I had installed on that side. After unloading the cabinet, I removed six screws to unfasten it. I was able to slide it over far enough to get to the battery box.

On the battery box is a sticker warning about live voltage and a recommendation to unhook the ground from the van battery and to unhook the ground wire next to the gas pedal.

The batteries are in a tray. I had a bit of trouble pulling the tray out because the batteries were bulged out on the sides.

The distributor checked the batteries and found one to be down to a little over 9 volts while the other one was a little over 10. They called the Lifeline rep and told them that I had a 2013 AI. They put me on the phone with the rep whose first question was, "Do you always have the motor home plugged in when you are not using it?" When I answered yes, he asked again to be sure. He then proceeded to tell me that Lifeline was somewhat unhappy that Airstream wired the inverter/charger outside the cutoff switch circuit. So the charger is always on and will run down the batteries. Having the AI plugged in all the time was the answer he was looking for. He then said he would ship two new batteries to my house and charge me $139.95 each. I thought that was very fair. I had them the next day.

The rest of the story is that when I bought the AI used the house batteries and the truck battery were both dead. Mercedes replaced the truck battery but the dealer told me that since the house batteries were deep cycle batteries, they would be fine once charged. Also, to complicate matters, I later discovered that the alternator was not charging the house batteries while I was driving due to a blown fuse. If I had known then what I know now, I would have insisted that the dealer replace the house batteries.

My unit is an early 2013 so it has the Tripp Lite inverter. After my conversation with the Lifeline rep, I called Tripp Lite to ask if it was OK to always have the AI plugged in while in storage. They said it would be fine to do that as it has a sensor so keep if from overcharging. That goes against some of the things I have read here. I am assuming the factory knows their equipment well enough to give me a straight answer. I did not tell them what had prompted the call.

73shark · 07-02-2015, 05:31 PM

Make sure the A1 dip switch is in the up position for AGM batteries.

So the 2013 has moved the batteries out of the hole and put them on the floor level? Did they remove the battery box?

lewster · 07-02-2015, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 73shark

Make sure the A1 dip switch is in the up position for AGM batteries.

So the 2013 has moved the batteries out of the hole and put them on the floor level? Did they remove the battery box?

Nope,

The black steel battery box is still there.....vented thru the sidewall of the van. I typically remove it, as it allows for the installation of larger AGMs with no issues. You will have to elevate the space in the floor that accommodated the steel box....... and don't forget that your generator positive cable runs thru the floor in the same location and IS NOT MARKED.

PS: if you upgrade to the Magnum MMS-1012, you won't have to worry about leaving in plugged in 24/7/365, as it's charging section is a lot smarter than the TrippLite's.