Help On the Road - Battery Problems - Montana Owners Club

oldgeezor · 06-26-2012, 12:39 PM

I am having battery problems where my battery is not charging. I left Jasper/Alberta this morning and the battery was 3/4 just got my slides in. Arrived at Lake Louise/Alberta about 4 hours latter and tried the slides...nothing. Checked the battery and it was 2.2 volts (I have a battery charger and am charging externally now). I managed to open my slides by hooking up to RV power. Any ideas whats draing my battery and why I am not charging on the road? Thanks

Drifty1 · 06-26-2012, 12:53 PM

Sounds like your inverter/charger is having issues. I do not remember if that is a fused system but am sure someone will be along with more info shortly as there are a lot of smart folks on this site!!

camper4 · 06-26-2012, 01:02 PM

The truck should charge while towing. The inverter/converter works when hooked up to 110volts.
Sounds like you have a large load, in your Montana, on the 12 volt system. Or a bad battery. Your battery should not have totally discharged in 4 hours without a large draw on it.

oldgeezor · 06-26-2012, 01:12 PM

The battery is brand new from Walmart when we crossed over from the states into Canada. I have been plugged in at most stops, however, we did overnight at a couple of Walmarts along the way. Soemthing must be drawing power from the battery even when driving??

camper4 · 06-26-2012, 01:13 PM

Actually the converter works when hooked up to 110volts to convert to 12 volts dc. if you have an inverter, that changes 12 volts dc into 110 volts Ac.
If you have an inverter hooked to your battery, that is the type of load that could drain a battery quickly.

camper4 · 06-26-2012, 01:17 PM

Yea. Something could be drawing a large load. Something that is overpowering the truck input and the battery.
I have not heard of a truck drawing power from the camper. Not saying its impossible but not likely, especially if your truck starts okay.

Drifty1 · 06-26-2012, 01:20 PM

I do not know what model converter you have but you should be able to find the troubleshooting manual online. I have a Magnetek in my Montana and there site is located at this link. http://www.parallaxpower.com/ESM%20tech.htm
Camper4 brings up a lot of good points. Do you know if your battery was up before you left on your trip? Or are you like me and most of the time one of the last things I so while hooking up is to disconnect the power from the house or post at the camping spot.

camper4 · 06-26-2012, 01:32 PM

Another thought. If you traveled with trailer running lights on and your truck is not charging, you could draw your battery down. I believe you traveled during the day but some people turn lights on while traveling. There is a fuse somewhere in the trucks charging circuit that goes to the camper. That info is in your truck manual.

bw2 · 06-26-2012, 01:33 PM

By chance are the 12v lights dim? Or as you turn on a two or three of the 12v lights they dim? Make sure the converter is working. There are two fuses on my 2006 and if one of those is "blown" then I have had problems with the 12v system.

oldgeezor · 06-26-2012, 02:00 PM

I have 2 batteries in my diesel truck, so battery on the truck side should not be an issue. I will check any fuses going to the wiring on the trailer to see if there is a problem there.As BW2 indicated, I will check the fuses for the 12v lighting to see if any of these are out.I am not sure what type of converter I have in my 2007 Monty and I don't even know where it is...I have to come into town to check my internet so I will be signing off and check any comments tommorrow..thanks

kdeiss · 06-26-2012, 03:47 PM

You need to get a volt meter. Chek volts on truck then start tuck you should get a higher reading then you know alternator is working

on trailer disconnect term

on battery check volts then connect to pos and neg leads to battery if you get 12v + your converter is working

**Carl n Susan** · 06-26-2012, 03:50 PM

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by oldgeezor

I am having battery problems where my battery is not charging. I left Jasper/Alberta this morning and the battery was 3/4 just got my slides in.

When you say 3/4, does that mean you were at 12.0V or close? Were you plugged into AC during your stay?

Quote:

quote:
Arrived at Lake Louise/Alberta about 4 hours latter and tried the slides...nothing. Checked the battery and it was 2.2 volts (I have a battery charger and am charging externally now).

I assume this is the total reading for the battery (six cells) and not an individual cell reading.

Quote:

quote:
I managed to open my slides by hooking up to RV power.

I understand this to say you plugged the RV power cord into a 120V AC outlet and then your slides would extend.

Quote:

quote:
Any ideas whats draing my battery and why I am not charging on the road? Thanks

Given the above, I believe your converter is fine.

I bet you are not charging the RV battery while on the road because the 12V Charge line fuse in the truck is blown. You can tell easily by putting a test light or voltage meter on the 7-Pin Plug. The pin you want is at the 1 o'clock position.
http://countrytrailer.com/wndisplayItem.asp?number=8

As for the drain, it is *NOT* the 12V trailer lights as they are powered by the truck and not the RV battery. You have to have a significant load to drain the battery in four hours. I doubt you left all the 12V lights on inside the RV but leaving the heater fan on could suck up that much juice. Especially if you have only one 12V battery.

seanjackmc · 06-27-2012, 03:45 AM

Had the same problem. Turned out it was a fuse in the truck that is inline with the plug near the hitch at the back of the truck. Wasn't getting any charge power although my truck Idid recognize that a trailer was hooked up. I forget which pin it was but I would look in your owners manual and check that fuse. 50 cents for a fuse could save you some trouble. Good luck
Sean

Art-n-Marge · 06-27-2012, 03:58 AM

How many batteries do you have? If your battery is at 2.2 volts it's pretty much dead. A battery should never read below 10v. A battery's normal charge is about 12.7 to 12.9 volts (not 12v). When it's trickle charging it can read 13.8 to 15 volts and this is normal because whatever is doing the charging is providing more than 12.8 volts so that the battery can charge and the battery "stores" this extra voltage in its cells.

A deep cycle or automotive battery below 12v is pretty much a dead battery, so the battery indicator is not measuring 12.8 volts to 0 volts, it's measuring between 12.8 and about 11 or more volts.

When a battery reaches 2.2v it's pretty much toasted and may not be able to be recharged. Other things that can affect a battery indicator is that maybe this battery has been bad for some time so that if you are connected to shore power and the converter is trying to recharge this dead or dying battery, it might read less because it's affecting the 12.8v or more being provided by the converter but a dying battery can cause even this provision to lessen. A bad battery will cause the other 12.8 volt source (converter, a 2nd battery, the TV battery if connected) to suffer and a battery indicator like what's in the rig will be reading less than 100% no matter what's going on.

I just went through all this and found out the hard way that a dying battery will mess things up bad and it's not a 0v to 12v range. When the rig is idle there are things that will trickle drain the battery unless you have a smart charger available for it that turns on when the voltage gets too low and stops the recharging when the battery is full. Recharging a battery too much is also a bad thing which is why a smart charger is recommended. I only have the smart charger available at home when it's being stored, but one thing that drains a rig's batteries is the propane alarm. Some people put a switch to disconnect the alarm when it's in storage to lessen the drain on the battery, but I don't do this because I prefer not to mess with this alarm like forgetting to turn the switch back on when needed.

To me it sounds like you have a bad battery. When measuring voltage make sure you isolate the battery or you'll also be reading another power source that is interconnected like the converter/charger or the TV's battery if you're connected.

oldgeezor · 06-27-2012, 05:28 AM

Back online this morning and back on the road after charging then battery. I beleive I know now what might be casuing my battery to discharge but will only be able to find out at an RV site. I think there is something wrong with my trailer brakes which is causing one or more to lock up and thus draining the battery. This morning while driving it was quite jerky that is why I am thinking these brakes are locked up. I checked the safety switch on the hitch and it was okay (Plugged in)...I think the only other choice is to go to RV center to check brakes?? Thoughts..

c214dick · 06-27-2012, 08:39 AM

I just had the same problem where my truck was not charging the RV battery. The connections got corroded. Once they were cleaned up it charges like it should. Check the fuse also as was recommended.

oldgeezor · 06-27-2012, 09:27 AM

Dick...you are right..it was a 40amp fuse blown in the truck. I was at the chrysler dealer and they found the blown fuse. The truck also appears to have some bad diesel fuel which is making it run rough and jerky. Dealership said 2 options = 1) drop the tank and drain the fuel or dirve with the bad diesel until about 1/2 way and then refill. I am choosing the second option due to the expense of dropping the tank. Mechanic says engine checks out okay and the bad diesel should not bother it until it is burned off..I have now bought additional fuses just in case..

Battery should be charging now but I will check it later on the road..thanks for the comments guy's...

Countryfolks · 06-27-2012, 09:41 AM

I think the wheels would get real hot if the brakes are dragging.
You should be able to hear the magnets click when the brakes are applied. No click could mean an electrical problem, short, open, always energized, or failed unit, or a maybe broken return spring on the bands. Someone else had a short because the wires were inside the axle

and the insulation wore through. We've had several broken springs, mostly they didn't cause a noticeable problem to me. That's one of the reasons we have the bearings repacked every year, to get the brakes checked.
Edit:Too slow again!
Check/watch your fuel filter and water separator also.

oldelmer1 · 06-27-2012, 02:07 PM

Greg,
Do you happen to remember what the number position of the fuse is? Since I have a Dodge too, this would be good to know.

bighornram · 06-27-2012, 02:44 PM

Glad to hear you solved your issue. This is a prime example why an isolator unit is a good idea. While connected to the truck the trailer battery(s) are connected to your TV battery(s). If you are having a problem with low or dead battery(s) disconnect the truck from the trailer when not traveling. This is only applicable when the change pin is hot when the truck is turned off. My ram IS hot while key is off.

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