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Old 06-17-2018, 04:14 PM   #1
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Portable Power

Looking recommendations on a reliable portable power/ charger. We have ‘18 317rlok that is stored in a covered lot a few miles from home. After being in storage for two weeks we went to take it out and discovered the battery was drained. Could not retract front landing gear. Any suggestions on a reliable portable power uni? Also battery was drained after just 15 days in storage from the end of our last trip. I am a newbie here and am learning as I go along. But is 15 days in storage long enough to drain battery? I am 99% sure battery was disconnected by disconnect switch. Thanks
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Old 06-17-2018, 04:25 PM   #2
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That does seem fast drawdown, but you may want to have battery(batteries if two) tested. If you indeed did not use disconnect, then sure, there are a few items drawing on it.
In a couple of instances I've had weak battery and just backed the truck up to it and connected to the powercord, left truck running, to retract slides, or extend landing gear.
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Old 06-17-2018, 04:27 PM   #3
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With a disconnected battery it shouldn't. You can maintain a couple of group 27's with a 30 watt solar power if there is adequate sunshine. Put the panel flat on the roof.
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Old 06-17-2018, 04:45 PM   #4
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Aljo that’s what I ended up doing. Found out the hard way that my ‘17 6.7 F250 needs to have rpm’ s up around 900 to charge 5er battery.
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Old 06-17-2018, 04:48 PM   #5
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Sorry Aljo that reply was for cosmic debris. When using solar panels to charge should battery disconnect bo off or on.
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Old 06-17-2018, 09:54 PM   #6
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291rsts. One year old, my two stock batteries only lasted a couple weeks with battery disconnect switched. Batteries test good and have no problem running furnace on and off overnight during early Spring camping. I’m sure something is drawing juice.
Added a 100 watt solar panel and that keeps them fully charged in storage, uncovered. Since you park covered, you will need to improvise.
I’ll switch to two or 4 6 volts when they get weak.
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Old 06-17-2018, 09:57 PM   #7
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Also, I always take one of those combo jump box with Air compressor units. It works fine to get the gear up or move the slides if batteries are dead.
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Old 06-18-2018, 04:19 AM   #8
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Even if you have a battery disconnect switch from the factory some items are always on. smoke detector, propane detector, electric jacks are possible items.
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Old 06-18-2018, 04:44 AM   #9
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Found out we have a hidden draw on our trailer...... The backup camera is still powered with the battery disconnect set to off. Factory installed camera. There is a switch for it in the wet bay!
Wondered why it had a switch

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Old 06-18-2018, 06:19 AM   #10
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I see you note that you are in a covered storage area, so adding Solar will be out of the question.

I am not particularly familiar with your 5ver. 2-3 weeks is about how long a battery will last with parasite power draws.

A year or two ago, someone posted that their 5ver had a lot of parasite drains when the disconnect switch was thrown. I do not recall everything they found still connected when the switch was thrown, but as I recall the autolever system, the remote slideout and awning where still powered up. I do not recall if there was anything else.

I would contact Jayco with your vin number and ask for the electrical skematic.

Also note, that running the battery down below 12 volts shortens the overall batteries life. A few times will not do to much harm, but repeatedly is really bad for it. These batteries also are not maintenance free, so you will need to check the fluid level every so often.

Good Luck
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Old 06-18-2018, 06:59 AM   #11
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A true disconnect that you install yourself AT the batteries is one solution for storage. I prefer this to the various methods of trickle charging the batteries in storage.
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Old 06-19-2018, 09:07 AM   #12
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Thanks for all of the input. I do have a followup question. When hooked up to campground power should the disconnect switch be on or off? I have gotten multiple answers when asking the question th coworkers. Some say leave on for an hour or so to charge battery, then turn off. Others say always off when hooked up AC. Others say leave on. Thanks.
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Old 06-19-2018, 10:08 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Afrnd2all View Post
Thanks for all of the input. I do have a followup question. When hooked up to campground power should the disconnect switch be on or off? I have gotten multiple answers when asking the question th coworkers. Some say leave on for an hour or so to charge battery, then turn off. Others say always off when hooked up AC. Others say leave on. Thanks.
I leave mine on, although I suppose if you were camping in the same location for weeks, maybe turning it off would be better for the batteries to not be charging that whole time. Also probably depends on the charging algorithm of your trailers power converter. There's more knowledgeable people about that than me though.

Summary: I do the "full" disconnect only between trips.
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Old 06-19-2018, 11:29 AM   #14
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On had our Solar running 3 years. If you do disconnect batteries should cover panels! Thanks
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