Charging batterys

[stans02]

I converted my 02 26ss to two 6 v batteries. I will be leaving in 6 days for a short trip. If I plug in my shore 110 v now, will my batteries be at full charge in 6 days? When the shore power is going through the coach charger will it decrease charging when full battery charge is obtained? I don't want to over charge my batteries. Thanks for any info. Stan

[Big Sky]

What is in your TT for charging the batteries?

Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, however I don't believe it is possible for you to overcharge your batteries with the stock converter/charger. You'll be fine.

[RoyBraddy]

I had similar worries with my 2008 model OFF-ROAD POPUP Camper that had a single mode converter/charger installed that always put out 13.6VDC. I had to watch my batteries like a hawk with that situation when camping off the power grid. After I lost one of my batteries due to boiling out battery fluids I changed over to a good quality smart mode PD9260C Converter/charger and although I am continually checking my batteries I do not see any boiling out of fluids anymore.

The smart mode converter/chargers almost take care of my batteries automatically.

I keep a close watch of the battery voltage for my battery bank when camping off the power grid and do not ever let them drop below 12.0VDC which is close to being the 50% charge status. When they drop to that level I will initiate a smart mode charge as soon as I can using my 2KW Generator connected to the 30AMP Trailer Shore Power Cable using a RV30A-15A long 'DOGBONE' type Adapter (WALMART) and keep my batteries up to their 90% charge as much as possible when camping off the power grid.

Starting out each day/night charge state at the 90% charge status allows me to make it through the night so I can re-charge again the next morning and do it all over again.

This is the way we take care of the battery bank situation when camping off the power grid.

Roy Ken

[Big Sky]

You don't have to be concerned about the system continuously feeding 13.6 Volts, the issue is how many amps are being sent over with that voltage. The smart mode chargers that Roy is referring to will allow the charger to detect and understand the charging state of the batteries and adjust the amperage accordingly. In my TT the original stock converter would never send more than 2-3 amps. If I depended on that to recharge to a full state it would take 3 weeks or so. Since we camp more than twice a month during the season, overcharging was never a concern. When I had that older system I would remove my batteries from the TT and place them on a battery tender for the Winter to keep them safely charged. If camping off the grid is something you'll do routinely you really need to look into what Roy is talking about and find a more efficient charging method for the battery bank. The stock set up in most TT are designed for folks to either camp in RV parks or camp 1-2 nights max before their batteries are in need and hopefully not drained by more than the 50% mark Roy mentioned.

For now, enjoy you new 6 volt set up!

[Mustang65]

The current sent from the TT's battery charge controller is determined by the battery(s) needs, the battery will only take the amps it needs. If your TT has a 10 amp battery charge controller and the battery only needs .5 amps, all the battery will draw is .5 amps from the controller.

The voltage going to the batteries from the TT's battery charger is determined by the TT's battery charger (13.2 - 14.? VDC). They have an algorithm programmed into it (newer models) that monitors the battery voltage, the amps that the battery is drawing from the TT's charge controller, the time that it has been charging and it adjusts the voltage accordingly.

If your batteries need a full charge they will take up to what ever they need, based on what your TT's charge controller max is. If your battery is near dead, you may have to use an external battery charger as the battery may try to draw more current than your TT's charge controller can produce.

The problem comes in when it is not a new TT battery charge controller (old ones) and it continues to send more than the 13.2 VDC (Float voltage) to maintain a charge. This causes the battery to heat up and boils the water and kills the battery, or worse..

Check to see what your TT's charge controller is, # of stages and what its specifications are.

Google model and user manual and you should get it.

Just my thoughts,
Don