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Originally Posted by ecmccarthy
Your suggestion of disconnecting the ground wire on the separator would be the equivalent of "jump starting" the van using the house battery, right?
Thanks again,
Chad
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Not really. The separator (the one SMB used at one time) was a bi-directional unit. If either bank (battery supply) dropped below 12.8v, the thing opens up and separates the systems. But if it sees a voltage that it determines as a charge voltage (around 13.2) it will combined (or close) to connect both battery systems. This happens with the shore charger, solar, and alternator. So as an example, the alternator puts out around 13+ volts. The separator see that voltage on one side of the separator and "closes" the relay. It lets the charge apply to the starting batteries as normal but also supplies a charge to the house system. That fine and the way it works but if there is a large draw from something like a shorted battery, the voltage could continue to drop until it reaches that threshold of 12.8 and then open to separate again. This is what happens when you run the microwave. The alternator can't keep up with the heavy draw and the separator opens. It protects the starting batteries from a load (in this case the microwave) that overwhelms the input charge. A bad battery does the same but just the opposite. Depending on the starting battery's failing state, it can hog several amps. Now the separator is protecting the house system.
Depending on what your charger can put out (in amps) the charger simply supplies what the draw wants. IT FEEDS THE BEAST. The charger cannot tell what system wants a charge. It's the low voltage the separator sees that causes it to open. As long as the charger keeps the voltage up above 12.8 the separator will not open. Some chargers have a programmed cutoff point, some don't. Even a continuous supply of amperage of 10A will cause a faulted battery to heat up over time. Sure it's not as bad as 40 amps and is why you can drive not causing a huge problem. The battery can spew acid and the battery can explode but it's not common. A shore power charger that can supply 50 amps is another issue.
Pulling the ground wire to the separator simply forces the separator to open and disconnect the two banks. It is possible that the separator contacts can fuse together which keeps the battery systems to be constantly connected. It has happened to me but usually a faulty separator "opens" and refuses to close. In that case no charge goes to the house system from the alternator. That is not your situation IMO.
The jump start feature was incorported on several builds and was replaced with a push button switch. The surepower separator was once rigged to "close" when the ignition key was activated. It stayed connected during the vehicle start the returned to normal operation. I don't know how you van is configured.
It comes down to this:
Drop the batteries out and disconnect each from the system. You can isolate the ground while testing but it's better to pull the suspected battery and test it on its own.
If your starting battery is hot while on shore power charge, STOP the charge.
If your starting battery is hot after a drive, replace the battery; preferably both.
I’ve been drinkin tonight…hope I’ve posted the correct info
Go Steelers
[edit] most systems are like this:
note that the solar and inverter/charger are connected the same
Sportsmobile (AKA Money Pit)
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