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Old 11-01-2010, 06:47 AM   #1
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Dead Battery= New Battery?

I bought a new AMG battery this past April and low and behold, I forgot to pull my fuses so the battery wouldn't drain while it sat for a few months. I plugged in to shore power, but it won't hold a charge. Well technically, it will last for about 2 minutes as I watch the meter slide down quickly. Does that mean my battery is shot and I have to fork over another $400+?
Thanks,
Jeff

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Old 11-01-2010, 10:54 AM   #2
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

Your shore power might not be charging it. Because the voltage is so low, the charge brain won't charge it for whatever reason. I've had this problem and driving around until the separator closes, then pulling in and putting the van on shore power while running seemed to work:

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=4832&hilit=battery+charge

Of course I've had my share of batt problems, so what I recommend is not necessarily the best care.
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Old 11-01-2010, 01:35 PM   #3
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

Here's a forum link on the topic of bringing dead batteries back to life:

http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/vie...battery#p44836

No promise this is safe or effective. You need to read the entire post.

I had a battery disconnect switch (manual circuit breaker) installed so that I wouldn't have to remove the detector fuses. No gaurantee you can't forget to turn this off, but it seems to help me remember the power shut down routine each time I leave the camp site.
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Old 11-01-2010, 03:56 PM   #4
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

How long did you let it charge before you unplugged it and watched the voltage drop? A completely dead battery need a long tome to recharge, like overnight or longer, specially from a converter. Actually my experience is that converters are poor chargers. Spend $80 on a decent charger at Wal Mart, then Google: "12 Volt Side of Life".
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Old 11-02-2010, 08:58 PM   #5
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

I charged it overnight and still no good. Once I would unplug it from shore power, it took about 2 minutes with a light on to drain it. I'll see what I can do to trick the system as Jage mentioned. If that doesn't work, I may have to see if a dealer can charge it or something. It seems like I'd have to spend a good amount for a decent charger. Any chance it would be under warranty?
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Old 11-05-2010, 05:09 PM   #6
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

I installed a new 4D AGM this summer and the charge wizard code shows a trickle but it will not go above 12.69. There is no way to put a trickle charger onto the battery posts since it is tucked up into the bottom of the van. Has anyone used a trickle charger connected through the seperator or other means to attach it to the battery?
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Old 11-05-2010, 05:11 PM   #7
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

Quote:
Originally Posted by patrick51
I installed a new 4D AGM this summer and the charge wizard code shows a trickle but it will not go above 12.69. There is no way to put a trickle charger onto the battery posts since it is tucked up into the bottom of the van. Has anyone used a trickle charger connected through the seperator or other means to attach it to the battery?
And what is the problem? That is a huge battery and I wouldn't expect a trickle charge to raise the voltage much above 12.6V.

Mike
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Old 11-05-2010, 06:07 PM   #8
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

Looking to get the full charge of 12.8 before the real cold weather hits. It seems like the battery is draining withoout the detectors , just over time [of
nonuse of the alternator. Guess I will have to camp more into the winter.
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Old 11-05-2010, 09:48 PM   #9
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

The panel itself that I use to read my voltage (BlueSky) puts a draw on my batteries, so I installed a switch in the wall for that too.
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Old 11-06-2010, 09:03 PM   #10
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Re: Dead Battery= New Battery?

Deka estimates normal battery loss at 0.004 amp-hours. That adds up to 2.88 amps in one month. If that was the only drain, you should be able to sit through an Alaskan winter and still find a charge when summer comes around... 100 amp-hour battery at 12.8V down to 50 amp-hours at 12.2V.
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