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Old 06-29-2017, 02:29 PM   #21
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For dry-camping most members use (2) 6 volt batteries in series to give you 12VDC. The difference is that you have about 2x the Ah available for the heater and what ever else you need them for. BUT they will cost you a lot more that their 12Volt counterparts.
Yes for 2-3 nights and if you are using your furnace you will need more battery capacity. Two 12volts in parallel or two 6volts in series should last you if you aren't using a lot of power.

A small solar panel is also a good option and it will maintain your battery while in storage.

Cheers
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Old 06-29-2017, 02:31 PM   #22
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We used a Buddy heater,generally one green can per night!
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Old 06-29-2017, 03:40 PM   #23
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I went ahead and spent the extra money on the two 6 volt Trojan batteries. It added an extra 60 lbs to my tongue weight, but having the extra amp hours is worth the trade-off. I disconnect them and leave them on a battery tender while the trailer is parked.
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Old 06-29-2017, 09:23 PM   #24
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Ok, so for the time being I bought a cheap Duracell Deep Cycle battery from Sam's club, I may look into upgrading at a later time, but for right now, this should serve its purpose.

However, this has led me into another problem/question. Right "out of the box" the battery is reading 12.5V. I hooked it up to the camper and nothing electrical is working. I can get everything to work if I plug the camper into an outlet, but as soon as I unplug it, I loose everything again. I have checked the battery, I did not reverse the polarity. I also checked the inline fuse on the trailer tongue. I am getting constant voltage on both sides of the fuse, but no power in the camper.

I've read about other breakers and fuses, but where do I begin?

Thanks again to everyone for all their helpfulness so far
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Old 06-29-2017, 09:37 PM   #25
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Being a pop up, might it be the switch that is around the counter that prevents lights from staying on when roof is let down?
It should be a limit switch.
Mine got stuck once or went bad. Been awhile.

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Old 06-29-2017, 09:49 PM   #26
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Being a pop up, might it be the switch that is around the counter that prevents lights from staying on when roof is let down?
It should be a limit switch.
Mine got stuck once or went bad. Been awhile.

D.
Is this switch bypassed when running power from the plug as opposed to the battery?
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Old 06-30-2017, 06:04 AM   #27
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Ok, so for the time being I bought a cheap Duracell Deep Cycle battery from Sam's club, I may look into upgrading at a later time, but for right now, this should serve its purpose.
Can you hook up to 120VAC? Pull the fuse by the battery. Hook up to 120VAC check for 12VDC on the TT controller side of the fuse. This will confirm continuity from the fuse to the controller, unless the controller is bad. If no 12VDC at the fuse, go to the TT charge controller and pull the main fuse there. Check for 12VDC in the fuse holder. Check all the 12VDC fuses with a meter.

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Old 06-30-2017, 06:12 AM   #28
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Depending on your usage most any group 24 deep cycle. I used to get a Marine type at an auto store or retailer. 6v will require 2 if you have a place to put them.

You hear all kinds of stories but generally a rv battery will not be dependable after 4-5 years if you don't have a smart charger and most pop ups don't.

The main thing is keep it charged when in storage. Nothing will shorten the life more than letting it sit discharged or low on electrolyte levels.
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Old 07-02-2017, 10:37 AM   #29
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Can you hook up to 120VAC? Pull the fuse by the battery. Hook up to 120VAC check for 12VDC on the TT controller side of the fuse. This will confirm continuity from the fuse to the controller, unless the controller is bad. If no 12VDC at the fuse, go to the TT charge controller and pull the main fuse there. Check for 12VDC in the fuse holder. Check all the 12VDC fuses with a meter.

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Ok, I finally got a chance to do this. I hooked up the 120VAC and pulled the fuse by the battery. I am geting 13.3VDC there. I have 4 fuses inside, pulled all of those and all 4 are also getting voltage, and none of the fuses are blown. The deep cycle battery is reading 12.6VDC. I have not checked the fuses with the 120VAC unplugged, but I'm not sure if that will even tell me anything? It seems weird to me that everything is working when its plugged into 120VAC but shuts down as soon as I pull the plug and try to run off the battery.
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Old 07-02-2017, 11:25 AM   #30
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Did you check for the limit switch somewhere around the counter top?
I believe that controls all your 12V inside the camper.

Worth a try.

Doug
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Old 07-02-2017, 12:13 PM   #31
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Did you check for the limit switch somewhere around the counter top?
I believe that controls all your 12V inside the camper.

Worth a try.

Doug
Yes, I found the limit switch. It's under the sink. With the camper plugged into 120VAC and everything working, if I flip the switch everything inside cuts off, so I'm assuming that its working property.
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Old 07-02-2017, 01:10 PM   #32
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We have a Coleman pup and a TT and I suspect mlambertino's pup doesn't have enough room for 2 batteries and a propane tank - I know our pup doesn't. I could barely get a Group 27 battery to fit next to the tank. We do mainly dry camping so I installed a Trojan T-1275 and it easily lasted 4 days of dry camping using just the lights and not the furnace. T-1275 Plus | Trojan Battery Company

mlambertino, I don't know if anyone mentioned this but I recommend you not get another Marine/deep cycle battery. They don't perform nearly as well as true deep cycle batteries. An easy way to tell if it is a dual purpose battery is to check the brochure to see if it mentions cranking power. If it does it's not a true deep cycle battery and you should avoid it since you don't want/need to start an engine with it.

If you plan to do mostly dry camping a generator is a must. Especially if you plan to use the furnace on those chilly nights and early mornings.

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Old 07-02-2017, 01:25 PM   #33
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@Mustang65, Yes, pop-ups cool off very quickly. Our furnace runs pretty much all the time when it's about 60 degrees outside. It will turn off for a few minutes and then it will kick back on.

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Old 07-02-2017, 07:27 PM   #34
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Ok, I finally got a chance to do this. I hooked up the 120VAC and pulled the fuse by the battery. I am geting 13.3VDC there. I have 4 fuses inside, pulled all of those and all 4 are also getting voltage, and none of the fuses are blown. The deep cycle battery is reading 12.6VDC. I have not checked the fuses with the 120VAC unplugged, but I'm not sure if that will even tell me anything? It seems weird to me that everything is working when its plugged into 120VAC but shuts down as soon as I pull the plug and try to run off the battery.
Can you look at your panel and let me know what type of charger it has? I will find the wiring diagram for it and see what I can figure out.

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Old 07-03-2017, 11:42 PM   #35
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Can you look at your panel and let me know what type of charger it has? I will find the wiring diagram for it and see what I can figure out.

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This is a picture I found on google that looks identical to what is in my camper. Its a Centurion.
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Old 07-09-2017, 01:32 AM   #36
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Solved!

SOLVED!

I feel kind of stupid for not finding this earlier, but I have finally solved the problem, and it was way easier than I ever would have thought.

It was the inline fuse on the battery. I was checking the fuse from the top of the fuse and not the bottom where it plugs in. I pulled the fuse out and the ends were corroded. Cleaned the in-line fuse holder the best I could and scrubbed the ends of the fuse. It worked!!

Thank you everyone who helped!!!
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