Getting frustrated...

[daveb]

Originally Posted by kurtdog

You guys ROCK. Thanks for the push. I'll plug her in for a few days and let you know how it goes.

One more issue / question that may be related...

Yesterday I jumped her. Drove her around. She started up just fine each time. The 12V volt meter in the dash says she's charging fine. BUT... 12 hours later I go to start her up and she won't crank. Had to jump her again this morning.

Isn't the crank battery separated from the others? Shouldn't I be able to go a couple days without her plugged in without having to jump her? How do I tell if I need to replace that battery? And which one is it...? The one under the side door that I jump her from?

Freakin' batteries!!!

Again... thanks for the input... I guess this is probably some kind of right of passage for all new SMB owners.

Cheers,

Kurt

Hopefully one or both your starting batteries aren’t bad. If your SMB is stock, it should have a surepower battery separator and the normal configuration is to jump assist when the key is engaged. A couple things can be happening:
>>>One or more of the batteries are shot and when the house battery system was up, it never showed hard cranking because the separator was supplying the necessary current assisting the engine batteries to start the vehicle. The solution is to pull the small ground wire on the separator or signal wire from the ignition. If the head light quickly pull the starting batteries down, one or more of the starting batteries is bad. A bad connection can also do this so check the connections.
>>>Also if there is enough voltage to signal the separator to close when the ignition is activated, it’s possible that the low house battery is pulling down the starting battery. I doubt this because you claim it will restart after its been running.

>>>If for whatever reason the separator is sticking closed, it’s very possible that the dead house battery is pulling down the starting battery. In that case you should pull one of the battery leads off the separator, tape it up and get a good charge on the starting batteries.

Mind you that the longer you wait to get the house system back to 100% the more it will damaged the house battery.

Never add a new battery to a twin battery system if the other battery is much older. Rule of thumb is to replace the both. Most shops can do a load test but the batteries must be pulled out and checked one at a time.

There might be a couple of other issues going on here but this is a good place to start.

[REF]

I believe both your starting batteries should be underneath mounted up by the side doors, your house batt is underneath as well, towards the rear. If replacing, and it sounds like you need to, go AGM. What daveb said, but I do think its possible your shot house batt could be pulling down your starters, although I have a hunch they're shot too. I had very similar symptoms, I have an '03 with the 7.3, my isolator went bad and stuck open, drew the starters down, replaced it with a new separator, I also popped in new starters and had replaced the aged house batt already, that along with adding a solar panel keeps everything topped off......that is except when I was in Alaska...that sun is really low on the horizon. Zamp portable is now on the list to supplement. Good luck

[kurtdog]

Guys... can't thank you enough for the input here. I'm learning a bunch in this process... but still haven't really figured out what the issue is. Here's some new data points and a couple questions:

1) Plugged her into shore power. Now the three lights on the Tripp-Light are slow flashing which indicates over discharge of the house batteries I think. The 12V volt meter in a back socket is still reading 6.8V. So, yes, it's overly discharged. However, I don't think 110V into the Tripp-Lite is working/charging in this over depleted mode (hence the blinking three lights). The Tripp-Lite manual says to "use an auxiliary charger" to get the battery charged up enough for the Tripp-light to start charging again. One of you guys on the thread seem to think that the alternator alone won't get the house battery back up into the range to allow the Tripp-Light to start working again. The guy at the RV repair place seemed to think my nice house batteries should recover as they are kind of meant to cycle up and down. So, what would an auxiliary charger be? A generator? How is that any different than an alternator? And would this work? Is there another way to charge them up? Should I just go and get all these things load tested?

Seems like there should be a way to charge up the batteries... I've got the thing plugged into 110V... and I still can't charge them (Tripp-Lite not allowing me to). I can't possibly be the first person to let their batteries go dead. And just because they go dead doesn't mean that you need to replace them. Am I missing something here?

2) With the engine on... house batteries depleted... Tripp-Lite not functioning because the batteries are depleted... should the Starcool work? I hope not... because it's not working.

3) If my destiny is a battery shop... and I'm looking for these fancy AMC's... any recommendations for a shop that could get the truck turned around in a day or two. The RV shops I've visited all have two week waiting lists. Same for the Ford dealership I was just at. I'm supposed to peel out of here, Houston, next wednesday bound for the PNW. Would a typical "tire and battery" shop be able to handle replacing all these?

Wish I could buy you guys virtual beers. Thanks again... RESPECT.

Kurt

[Scalf77]

I would try to charge with alternator to get battery voltage high enough for tripp Lite to work.

When doing this have the tripplite off. You do not need the tripplite on. Also do not worry about air, starcool or the front air until you resolve the low battery issue.

-greg

[daveb]

So no more starting battery issues?

[kurtdog]

OK... So, Update. I'm really about ready to start throwing things now!!

After messing about with it all day... being patient... whatnot. Failing. I decide to go with Greg's input late in the afternoon and just let the alternator do it's thing for the entire evening. See what happens. To remind you.. yesterday, when at idle, I was watching the 12V outlet voltage reader climb at about .5V/hr. It went from 6.8V to 7.3V. Today... I try the same thing... it starts dropping and flatlines at 6.6V. WHAT!?!?!? Everything is turned off. Dash Voltage reads fine when running. It restarted throughout the day... we'll see if it starts in the morning.

Think I've resigned to finding a battery shop that will just swap out the crank and house batteries... all of them. Very frustrating. Such a shiny fancy new toy... and all I can think about is no power, AC or amenities during my up and coming trip into the desert. Neat.

Still looking for some input on a nation wide kind of chain that would do a good job replacing batteries... if you have any.

I'm a little deflated if you can't tell... but still open to ideas...

Thanks again guys...

[BroncoHauler]

Battery separator stuck open, and with bad house batteries may 6.6V is all it can get to?


Herb

[daveb]

If the house battery is so low that the charge voltage is pulled down too low the separator will automatically open and not allow the alternator to charge. In that case the separator will close for a while then open back up and continue to cycle while the engine is running. If the house battery is accepting a charge you will see the voltage jump up. It's possible the house battery is toast and if the charge is constant, the battery should hold the voltage and continue to rise. After the charge is stopped, a voltage that continues to drop means there is a draw on the system, a short or the battery has a bad cell and is shot. If you have a rear power port it should be connected to the house battery system and if the voltage doesn't go higher, the separator isn't connecting. The only way to get a charge to the house battery if the separator is failing to close (connect) is to jumper the separator. That is why the guy said to just use a 10-15 A car charger on the house battery. Clip it on the battery lugs and charge it up. Make sure to watch the charge just in case the battery is bad. If it gets hot stop the charge and have a shop test it. No sense causing more trouble like throwing acid or causing a fire.

[1der]

Maybe a dumb question from someone who does not have the SMB set up:

Is there a remote set of charging points for the house battery?

Dave,, I think this is what you mean by hooking up a regular 10 to 15 Amp Battery charger to the the lugs on the separator? Just wanting to confirm. It seems like the battery terminals on the house batteries are inaccessible when installed, right?

When I installed my house batteries on the frame rail, I made sure to put a charging/jumping set of terminals mounted on the frame as well with easy access so I could hook up a trickle charger to the house batteries, if necessary. Seems like this should be standard SMB set up?

Not my van but used this same approach on ours:

[daveb]

Depends where the battery is located Ray. You can hook to the correct side of the separator and the ground terminal but it's better to hit the battery terminals if you can. My separator was originally mounted in a spot more difficult to reach than the battery. There is a terminal post where the inverter hooks to that would be a good spot to hook to if it's within easy reach. Everybody's build is different.

I also thought of adding a set of capped remote lugs to be able to jump folks in the field w/o fear of messing with my engine electronics. It's a good idea.