Best battery charger for the money?

[ALANSD]

Thanks John. The charger was putting out 2v until I bypassed the shut off circuitry in it, it now puts out 13.5v.
If the Univolt will not be damaged by disconnecting my ground blades that would be the easiest way for me to stop it from charging when I am hooked up for shore power.
I will investigate where the switches are to shut off the charger also.
Took the motorhome for a cruise yesterday and the batteries came up quite a bit, enought to light all my interior lights by the time I got back home. I will bet though they won't hold that charge. Will check it out after work today.
How is your interior coming? Still on hold for awhile?

[74Argosy24MH]

Early next week I start back on the interior. I need to get a temporary shelter (snow is early this year) built, Thanksgiving, etc. Along with the work here I ended up putting a new leach field in at my parent's house and some other odds and ends there. Sort of like withdrawals walking by and not having the time to do anything but look. Next week!!!!

John

[ALANSD]

great, I and others I am sure look forward to viewing your handiwork- its been impressive so far.

[ralley]

Originally Posted by 74Argosy24MH

Battery Minder is a maintainer not charger, it probably would take a several days to recharge a battery. But if it is sitting for months at a time it will keep the battery charged without overcharging it. If it is on a circuit with power, it will maintain the battery, univolt or not. It probably will not charge a battery overnight if it is deeply discharged.

The engine alternator has a regulator, it will not overcharge the house battery any more than it overcharges the automotive battery. If you are using an isolator it has a loss and the voltage at the batteries will be slightly lower than the alternator output.

I like my StatpowerTruecharge charger (now Xantrex). They are also a float charger so they will not destroy the batteries. They are not cheap, but neither are batteries, and proper charging and maintenance is what determines their life.

John

The direct answer to your question is above--Xantrex, a Canadian Company, makes the best stuff, period. It isn't cheap, but you will get what you pay for. You may be able to save a few $ buying on ebay or other auction sites--some, if not all of the auctioned ones are factory rebuilds, but they come with the same warranty as buying directly from Xantrex if new.

I have a Xantrex battery charger on a sailboat, installed 5 or 6 years ago which is still charging my two battery banks to the battery manufacturer's specs--the batteries went in the same day as the charger.

Rob Alley
1001 AS 350
Thawing out

[BMW Sid]

I replaced my univolt (was only putting out 2V) with a unit from Intelipower,
Intelli-Power PD9145A 45A Electronic RV Converter/Charger
I got a refurbished unit for something like 1/3 the price of a new unit, same warranty. It has a "charge wizard" in it, for smart charging the deep cycle battery.
So far, so good, havn't gotten to use it much yet, just got it hooked up.

[rbestsc]

I bought a model 9200 inteli-power, 9245C 45 amp., to replace my original univolt 45 amp., but this inteli-power only has one positive/negative terminal. My univolt has eight terminals and the camper has a heap of wires that need a connection terminal. How in world do connect all these wires to just two terminals.

[markdoane]

Originally Posted by rbestsc

I bought a model 9200 inteli-power, 9245C 45 amp., to replace my original univolt 45 amp.

It sounds like you bought an Intellipower to replace both a Univolt and the Univolt 12V distribution panel.

There is a kit you can buy to add back (and update) the distribution panel, or I think you can re-use the original fuse panel by cutting the old one loose from the original Univolt.

Here's a link that explains it. There are also tons of information here on the airforums if you are good with using the search function.

[rbestsc]

Thank you very much Mark, this link really helped but most of all I like the idea of cutting away the fuse panel from the univolt.