Propane Heater issues....please help

[Spr]

The fridge is a norcold DC/AC.
The noise definitely doesn't sound like an electrical fan. Sounds more like a growl. Will head there shortly with hopes of a photo/possibly a you tube video of the noise.

Located in Northern Illinois. Will update profile

[86Scotty]

Originally Posted by Spr

Thanks 86Scotty.
A new LP detector, thermostat, smoke detector are all on the way.

Regarding the battery, I have a solar panel with the digital display above the fridge. At full charge I sit around 12.8. When plugged in it has been as high as 14.4 when charging.
The night we ran out of battery power it was down to 7.8ish

Oh NO! 7.8 is very bad. You either have a bad battery or a loose connection. Your battery should never ever be that low. Deep cell (RV and marine) batteries are built to take some abuse but 7.8 is not low, it's dead. As in, dead and ain't coming back. I'm starting to think your issues may just be related to the battery. I was just working on Glider's 2006 van with two original Lifline AGM batteries that were toast and they were causing all kinds of issues, not just the ones you would expect like dim lights etc. This van has a transfer switch, generator and Danhard AC and really crazy stuff was happening with the dead batteries, even on shore power. The only way anything would operate normally (before I swapped the batteries) was when the van was running supplying straight reliable DC power to them.

When you price AGM 4d batteries you may want to come back here for support.

[Spr]

Yup, unless I was dreaming I'm pretty sure I saw a 7 on the meter. At the very least I know I have seen it in the 10's when running multiple lights and the radio on house battery power. I just looked at a couple battery voltage charts and.....yeah.... looks like im buying a new battery. Any suggestions on which ones?

[86Scotty]

For comparison of an SMB with with a robust electrical system and new batteries. I spent about 6 hours working on this van with every light inside it on (some LED bulbs, some fluorescents) and the voltage dropped from 13.0 to 12.6. As soon as I switched off all the lights it went right back to 12.8 You should never see below 12.0 or you are pushing your luck.......or you just have bad batteries.

Lifeline
Trojan
Deka (East Penn) makes great AGMs

This van and my personal van have deep cell lead acid Duracell Pro's from Batteries Plus and they are made by East Penn. Avoid the cheapos from auto parts stores unless you can find out who makes them. Some of the better parts store batteries are East Penn/Deka.

You could read forever on this subject. I'm sure others will chime in with ideas and links.

[Spr]

The plot thickens.
First off, I really hope this is all battery related. I went to the van which has been plugged in for 24 hours now and turned on all the lights and the fridge. Not quite a proper load test, but the voltage was initially 13.4 after unplugged then dropped to 11.8 with everything on, and rebounded to 12.4 with everything off again.

Cool, battery sounds like its toast (and I am just learning all this)

Here is the messed up part. With the van on battery power: propane on and and the heater 'off' I plugged in the 15 amp furnace fuse and the bam, the furnace fan turns on before ever touching the thermostat.....

Now even weirder:
With the van plugged into shore power: propane on, thermostat "off", I turned the thermostat "heat" to replicate the sound and sure enough it happened. It looks to be the Danhard condenser fan running wich is rattling up a storm???? I attached the image of this fan to verify.

Man,
I hope a new battery fixes all this.

Thanks again for all the help today



*

[Glider]

The cool thing is that you are narrowing things down. For me, troubleshooting often is a matter of isolating and engaging in a process of elimination. Once you have a new battery in place (make sure it is fully charged), it eliminates the battery as an issue. Once you either replace the thermostat or pull the wires and manually connect and disconnect them, it eliminates the thermostat as an issue. If the issue goes away, problem solved. If it persists, then the next items on the list are probably your wiring, the Danhard, and your heater.

If you do not already have a battery monitor, it is a good thing to have. You can go as simple as one of these:
https://www.amazon.com/INNOVA-3721-B...ds=INNOVA+3721

or as high-tech as one of these:
https://www.solar-electric.com/bogar...y-monitor.html

The idea is to get to know your battery's ups and downs, and to always keep it within the manufacturer's specified range for maximum life.

[1der]

The battery test you did does not really give you an idea of the state of the battery. Let it rest now for six hours or so (best over night), with no loads, and measure it again. If it is still around 12.4, then the battery is probably okay.if it drops to below 12, it is probably toast. One caveat - what is the ambient temp right now? That will also have an effect on voltage.

Disconnect wires at thermostat and see if the "plug the 15amp fuse" problem goes away - then thermostat is likely culprit. If not, then some wires are shorted, or heater controller is suspect.

Is your thermostat controlling both heating and cooling? Could be the common problem.

[Spr]

Yup, The thermostat controls both Heat and AC.

[patrick51]

Once you get a new battery Deka, keep it on shore power at home to keep it charged properly or you will buy another. when we are cold weather camping, the blower is the biggest user of power, so keep dressed in warm gear until in the sack. We use only enough light for the task, and let it warm-up and cool down, so the battery has enough time to reenergize. Our fridge goes off as early in the eve as possible, that way the battery has its job to keep up with heating,(blower ) and lighting as needed. Sit or find a way to eye the voltage meter above the refridg. don't let it get below 12.4 or 12.5
turn off whatever you can to preserve battery power as it will recharge. If you find you usage gettting below 12.4, start the engine for a short while to charge the house battery. Be midfull of the wind outside and carbon monoxide inside. If you are on shore power the usage is not a problem, but in the pucker brush you have to limit your usage. Its a SMB not a winnebago. Best luck

[rallypanam]

Battery is definitely toast. Replace that before troubleshooting anything else, as it will cause weird issues.

When you replace it make sure the wires are all clean and well connecting, including the ground.

Then start troubleshooting again.