Shore power plugged in, battery still dies

[CJA12]

Hello,


We have a new '19 X17Z hybrid, the shore power is plugged in and the battery still manages to die, not charged. Any thoughts or ideas?


Thanks!

[JimD]

1. Do the 120 volt items all work inside? If not, the power may not be getting in. Check all breakers.

2. How do you know the battery is dying? Do the lights dim under battery? Do they get brighter when plugged in?

3. To truly know what is happening you need to get a test meter. They are very inexpensive and pretty much a tool to carry with you. Put the meter leads across the battery, measure, then plug in and measure. The voltage should jump up when plugged in. Should be well above 13 volts.

Your rig should have what is called a converter. This changes the 120 volts to 12 volts for operation and battery charging. The shore power should run to this probably through a circuit breaker.

[RogerR]

Start with the easiest to check. With a multimeter see if there is a charging voltage coming to the battery. Put the tester ends against the battery cables while on AC. If no voltage then start working back to the converter. First should be a fuse or breaker located near the battery on the tongue. If it is ok then go back to the converter. It could be bad, it could have a blown fuse or the breaker that it is on is blown.

Make sure your cables are clean, shiny and tight. If you can rotate them on the battery post they are too loose. Check the battery water (you should do this frequently anyway).

If you have 13.5 or 14 volts to the battery and it is connected properly you could have a bad battery. A lot of them are killed on the dealer lot by simply letting them lay dead for a long time. Take to a good battery shop and they will test it for free.

Then do some research and decide what you want to replace it with.

Lots of stuff on this by using the search function above on the yellow bar

Get a battery tender to keep your battery up when not in use and a battery disconnect switch.

[CJA12]

JimD,


120 works, the system shuts down when the battery gets low.. under 11.8 it seems, place my charger and the lights are bright again! My multi meter reads 11.4-11.8 when plugged into shore power. circuits and fuses are all good

[CJA12]

RogerR... new battery, had 13.6V prior to placing it in. The breakers are good. fuses are good. I may be missing something?

[JimD]

Sounds like your converter is not working. It could be bad, not receiving 120 volts in, fuses blown on the converter, or have an output wire connection problem.

I have attached troubleshooting info for a typical power converter. This is the one in my Greyhawk. I followed the troubleshooting steps when mine failed (quit going into boost mode). Hopefully it helps.

You need to get a charger on your battery right away. It may have been permanently damaged by going so low.

Good luck!

[ToppDogg]

Originally Posted by CJA12

JimD,


120 works, the system shuts down when the battery gets low.. under 11.8 it seems, place my charger and the lights are bright again! My multi meter reads 11.4-11.8 when plugged into shore power. circuits and fuses are all good

Sounds like a broken ground to me. look on the RV under the frame for ground lugs, my guess you have one or more ground studs broke. easy way to check, open the load center, take the battery ground on the converter (white wire) and run a lead off that lug, on the converter side, to the steps or frame outside and I bet you will see your battery read 13+ on the meter.

[CJA12]

Thanks you all for the suggestions! Tried everything. Our original dealer gave me a few scenarios to try, the my local dealer had me do 1 test to confirm. The converter is done! That one lasted a long 2 weeks! Good thing for warranty!


Again, thank you all for your help! I love this forum!