Charging the battery

[dwhite1989]

I have a White Hawk Ultra Light trailer and the battery went dead and will not recharge. I was under the impression the battery would recharge when you were connected to shore power or when you were towing.
Am I wrong in assuming this?
Why wont the battery recharge?
Any ideas?

[Mustang65]

Are all the battery cells full of water?
Connections good? None corroded?

When you say the battery went dead do you mean "0" volts? If a battery's voltage is below 10.5 VDC ("0"SG) it is considered a dead battery. It is possible that your battery will no longer hold a charge.

Best bet would be to take it in and have it charged and tested to see if it will hold a charge.

Most smart chargers in TT's will recharge a battery if it's voltage is around the 10.5 VDC level. They are not designed to charge a totally dead battery.
Any lower it may need some help from an external charger. I would suggest that you charge the batteries with an external battery charger (pull the main 30 amp fuse from the battery to the TT). If you use an inexpensive external battery charger, and your battery is below 7VDC, it may think you are trying to charge a 6VDC battery.

One additional item, if you have a 100Ah rated battery and it is discharged below 12.0 VDC, you are slowly reducing that 100Ah rating each time. If it hits 0 VDC it can loose a good portion of its AH rating, and may never hold a charge again.

If you do not already have a Digital Voltage Display like the one below, it will help you monitor the status of our batteries. Just remember that you should disconnect your 12VDC loads when the battery hits 12.0volts when camping.

Don't forget to pull the main 30 amp fuse by the batteries when storing the TT without a shorepower or any 110VAC supply.

Don

[Benno]

You are right in your assumption that the built-in converter in your White Hawk has a built-in 3 stage battery charger, which should charge your battery when the power cord is hooked up. The charger is protected by a circuit breaker located in the converter (Power Center). Make sure you check the breaker. In case the breaker is fine and you have 12 VDC when hooked up and your lights and radio are working indicates that the charger part of the converter is okay, but the battery is not charging then you probably have a faulty battery. I presume your battery is still the standard wet cell battery (Group 24), which came with the trailer perhaps? Have the battery checked out by a shop. In case you face the purchase of a new battery, I recommend you get a deep cycle AGM battery. When a wet cell battery is totally discharged, the battery is generally toast, but a AGM battery can fully recover after a deep discharge.
Regards, Benno
Travel blog: Marlene and Benno's Odysseys on Land and Water

[abarkl]

And I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong but you may need to connect another wire in your tow vehicle connector to trailer harness to allow for charging while towing.

[Benno]

Hi Abarki, our 2016 White hawk 24RKS does get charged from the tow vehicle when hooked to it. I had a look at the wiring and noticed it. Regards, Benno

Travel blog: Marlene and Benno's Odysseys on Land and Water

[dwhite1989]

I did not pull the fuse when stored so I will start with having the battery checked as it is the original battery ad I may have ruined it. Thank you for the detailed responce

[Mustang65]

You did not mention which TV you have. Example... the Ford F150 HD towing package with the 7 Way trailer connector (prior to 2015 or 2016 models) has a relay and fuse that comes with the truck, BUT FORD does not install it. It is up to the owner to install it, no idea as to why!!! Ford F150 also needs to have the ignition in the "ON" position to activate the towing relay that connects the TV battery to the trailer connector at the rear of the truck.

To check for 12VDC leaving the truck's (prior to 2015 or 2016?) trailer connector, start the truck and check for a voltage between pins 4 (+) and pin 1 (-). If no voltage is present, check the fuse/relay in the battery fuse box.

If you have a 2016 Ford truck with HD towing package (7 Way), your battery voltage from the battery to the trailer connector is controlled by a Trailer Module (TRM) that is controlled by the Body Control Module (BCM) and has a microcontroller in it. Checking the TV to see if there is a 12VDC charging voltage may be a little more difficult as the TT's electrical tow cable has to be connected to activate the modules to connect the battery to the connector. ( I am looking at the new wiring diagrams as we speak) I am still waiting for FORD customer service (Eng) to get back to me regarding a few items as far as how these modules work (how they check for a connected TT, my thoughts are that it uses the Brake Control Module senses the presence of a brake resistance and tells the main module that a trailer is present and activates the battery relay.

If you have a 2016 with the HD towing package (computer controlled) you can try this... take the voltage of your TT battery before connecting it to the TV. Connect the TT to the TV. Start the TV (cold engine best as it will have a higher charging voltage at that point) and take the voltage at the TT battery again, it should increase and should be the same voltage as the TV battery. IF not you will need to check the fuse and if that is ok, you will need to look up the instructions as to how you can set up the modules.

Don

[dwhite1989]

Hi Don, I tow with a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee with factory tow package. I just found the battery has a dead cell in it. I just installed a Battery Quick disconnect to solve the problem when I am not using the trailer. Hopefully this will be the end of it. Darrell

[dwhite1989]

Yes it is the factory battery and I found it has a dead cell. So I am replacing it and I have added a Battery Quick disconnect. Thanks