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Old 01-27-2016, 11:57 AM   #21
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As mentioned in an earlier post, you should not let your battery drop below the 50% level (aprox12.00VDC). Most TT's have the light bar battery status monitor in them, they are pretty much useless. It was also recommended that you get a digital voltage meter, like one that plugs into the 12VDC accessory receptacle in the TT. There are a lot of them on Amazon that you can pick up for a decent price and are pretty accurate. These will keep you informed as to how your battery is doing. You can always give the battery(s) a little boost (with the TV) at the end of the day before calling it a night. That should help you make it through the night (unless you are using the TT's heating system).

There are 2 examples below. The easy one that plugs into the 12VDC accessory plug and the second one you need to wire in. Not sure of your mechanical/electrical skills.

Don
Okay so today I checked my battery at the TT storage location not Hooke to car, it read 12.2. I will be towing for about 30 minutes to camp ground. Any idea what it might read afterwards?
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Old 01-27-2016, 12:06 PM   #22
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If your TV 7-Way connector is wired correctly you should be very close to the same. Your TV will keep a charge on your TT's battery. Again, as long as it's wired correctly.
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Old 01-27-2016, 12:35 PM   #23
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If you measured 12.2 volts with virtually no draws on your TT battery, then the battery is at around 50-60% of being fully charged.

Your TV will charge your battery during your 30 minute drive, but the current will be too low and the time too short to help your TT battery very much. If you measure your TT voltage when you stop, initially it probably will look higher than 12.2 volts. BUT that is what is called a 'surface charge.' A short time after drawing power from the battery, the voltage will quickly drop down, probably to the 12.2 volts again.

To fully charge the TT battery, it will need to be charged with a battery charger, or through a TT converter, at a higher current (amperage) and for a greater length of time.
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Old 01-27-2016, 02:49 PM   #24
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If you measured 12.2 volts with virtually no draws on your TT battery, then the battery is at around 50-60% of being fully charged.

Your TV will charge your battery during your 30 minute drive, but the current will be too low and the time too short to help your TT battery very much. If you measure your TT voltage when you stop, initially it probably will look higher than 12.2 volts. BUT that is what is called a 'surface charge.' A short time after drawing power from the battery, the voltage will quickly drop down, probably to the 12.2 volts again.

To fully charge the TT battery, it will need to be charged with a battery charger, or through a TT converter, at a higher current (amperage) and for a greater length of time.
From my experience, you can get a full charge from driving, but it takes hours. It seams like you need a minimum of 4 hours to get a decent charge from driving. 30 minutes just gives it a small trickle of a charge.
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Old 01-28-2016, 05:13 PM   #25
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A voltmeter only shows volts. And, as Don said, the voltmeter should not go lower than 12 volts when nothing is drawing off the battery.

If you have the voltmeter plugged into a 12 volt outlet, the voltage can be lower than 12 volts while 12 volt items (lights, water pump, etc.) are drawing current. When all those items are off, you want the voltmeter to show 12 volts or more.

In reality, you cannot easily shut off ALL 12 volt items - items like the propane detector and refrigerator running on propane - but those are very low current draw so I ignore them. Just shut off all the items you can switch off and see what the voltmeter shows.

Plus, when you are plugged into shore power, you will see the converter charging the battery and voltmeter will read in the 13 volt range.
So I had my battery charged today, it reads 12.5 (up from 12.2, it actually read 12.7 at first but mow is a steady 12.5. My rv storage guy says these batteries only last about 12-24 months, and I should gay a new one fairly soon before this dies on me while I'm camping. What is your experience with battery life? Thamks
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Old 01-28-2016, 05:50 PM   #26
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So can you tell me what I should be able to see on this voltmeter "number wise" since you said not to let it get below 50%,ie. 12VDC? What sort of number should I see when nothing is drawing off the battery? Will I see amps or voltage? I am clueless as to what number is okay.
Here's a chart that shows how much reserve your battery has.
As others have said, you do not want to drop below 50 percent discharge as it will shorten your battery life. When fully charged, the battery should have voltage near the top of this chart. Every battery is a bit different, but as you can see, one tenth of a volt can actually make a big difference.

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Old 01-28-2016, 05:59 PM   #27
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I have little first hand experience with RV battery life. The vast majority of what I have learned is on the JOF pages and other internet sources. There several members that have had RVs for a long time, and learned from their mistakes, and are willing to share information on what works and what does not.

Your RV storage guy may be correct in that RV batteries don't last very long, but my reading leads me to believe that the reason for that is the vast majority of RV owners treat their batteries VERY BADLY. Given proper care, RV batteries can last many years.

It is unlikely your battery will fail without warning. If you have a voltmeter to check your RV battery state of charge, you will be able to see the changes while you are camping.
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Old 01-28-2016, 06:09 PM   #28
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So I had my battery charged today, it reads 12.5 (up from 12.2, it actually read 12.7 at first but mow is a steady 12.5. My rv storage guy says these batteries only last about 12-24 months, and I should gay a new one fairly soon before this dies on me while I'm camping. What is your experience with battery life? Thamks
How old is your battery?
What size and type is your battery?
I wouldn't be too quick to automatically replace it.
When you had it charged, how long was it charged? Who charged it and what kind of charger did they use? Sometimes it takes a very long time to fully charge up a battery (long time on float charge to get those last couple of tenths of volts up there).
Battery life is variable depending upon type and brand of battery, how often it was discharged below 50%, and sometime just dumb luck. Really a battery should certainly last more than 12 months if it is not abused. Two years at a minimum and several years is what I think many people experience.
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Old 01-28-2016, 06:19 PM   #29
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I have a dual purpose battery from Interstate and granted I don't do a lot of boondocking, but so far it has lasted four years and is still going strong.
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Old 01-29-2016, 08:21 AM   #30
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I have 2 12v RV/Marine batteries in the slide-in camper and they are going on year 8. Camper is always plugged in when at home and we always boondock. We have had a powered site maybe twice since we bought her. TT has dual 12v RV/Marine batteries as well and so far 2 yrs with no trouble. It is also plugged in when not in use.
Happy Camping
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Old 01-31-2016, 03:19 PM   #31
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Back from weekend: thanks everyone

Using everyone's advice and tricks, our first boo docking went off without a problem! I'm loving dry camping now! Thanks everyone.
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Old 01-31-2016, 03:28 PM   #32
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We love boondocking, too. It requires some planning and care regarding water (in and out) and electrical use (and storage). BUT it opens up a whole new realm of camping possibilities and experiences.
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Old 01-31-2016, 06:29 PM   #33
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Using everyone's advice and tricks, our first boo docking went off without a problem! I'm loving dry camping now! Thanks everyone.
Where did you go?
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Old 01-31-2016, 06:57 PM   #34
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I have one of this on my boat.
It's not precise for it measures volt but it helps to have an idea of battery state of charge.
It's cheap and easy to install and have settings for different types of battery.
https://www.emarineinc.com/Midnite-S...attery-Monitor

R
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Old 02-01-2016, 09:09 AM   #35
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Where did you go?
Pace Bend Park on Lake Travis, Austin
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Old 02-01-2016, 09:19 AM   #36
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Pace Bend Park on Lake Travis, Austin
I've been thinking of going there myself, but not for dry camping. My wife likes full hookups. However the LCRA web site for the park says that they have water, electric, and sewer hookups, while the Travis county web site for the park says they have water and electric only. Do you know which is correct?
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Old 02-01-2016, 09:26 AM   #37
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I've been thinking of going there myself, but not for dry camping. My wife likes full hookups. However the LCRA web site for the park says that they have water, electric, and sewer hookups, while the Travis county web site for the park says they have water and electric only. Do you know which is correct?
Where I went, it's a county park. They do have limited # of RV hookups (I think 20?), electric and water in one location. ie, RV's are all together. We drove by them, they are close together but not horrible. You can get reservations by going downtown, or first come first serve is spots are available.
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Old 02-03-2016, 11:23 AM   #38
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Dry camping at lake pleasant, az

We are going dry camping tomorrow at Lake Pleasant, AZ with our RV group. Should be fun but a little cold in the AM. We often dry camp with the group as they mostly have big 5th wheels and/or motor homes and don't want to pay the price for full hookups (which we prefer). Our biggest issue has been the noise from the rest of the group when we want to go to bed. We are going to try to only open one of the pop outs and see if this helps.
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Old 03-01-2016, 08:51 AM   #39
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Very awesome thread. Ashmanbrian, how did your battery perform? You mentioned it was 12.5V before your trip. How did it do once you got back and did you buy a voltmeter?
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Old 03-01-2016, 09:47 AM   #40
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If you want to learn all about maintaining and getting the most out of your battery read this....
https://handybobsolar.wordpress.com/...ging-puzzle-2/

In between all the rants is a lot of good information.

Normal life for a battery should be 6-8 years if properly maintained. Undercharging or overdischarging will shorten life and capacity fairly quickly. And I would guess most people do both. I certainly did when I started out.

Your tow vehicle will take hours to fully charge a battery. I have noted on one 3 hour trip that we got about 10Ah back into the battery during the trip home. This was on a battery around 90% charge and the last 10% is the hardest to get back in the battery and takes the longest, but it is also the most important.

Same goes for the trailer converter. It can take days being plugged in to fully charge the battery. They drop into float (~13.2volts) after a set voltage or predetermined time too early and don't get a full charge back into the battery. They are really designed to maintain a battery while being plugged in not to efficiently charge one.

Cheers
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