Dead battery

[mrtgraz]

i just purchased a 2011 montana 5th wheeler, we took it for its 1st trip , dry camping no electric. well in one night the battery went dead so i charged it up and in one night its dead again. then i noticed with everything turned off, i was still getting a load arc when i go to install the charged battery, does anybody know why? Is there something in the refer or what?

[NCFischers]

There is a low voltage circuit in the refer. The battery shouldn't drain that fast though.

[bncinwv]

You also have a draw for the remote control systems. I believe that is what makes the battery go dead. There is a way to disable the remote board in the battery compartment which should help some. My solution (mine also goes dead) will be to add another battery (Optima) with a switch. I will use the Optima for off grid power and reserve the other battery for starting the generator when I need to charge the batteries. Most people who drycamp change to a bank of 6V golf cart batteries or carry a small generator for battery charging. There are also other loads such as the propane and CO detectors. There are other solutions available and there are many experienced drycampers (boondockers) here on the forum who can give more specific recommendations (solar, generator, battery choices, etc.)
Bingo

[Jolu]

The battery should not go dead over night. There are a lot of factors that could cause it.
A thought is other than normal use, was the battery not fully charged from the start. Usually with a new battery you can put a demand on it under normal overnight use and it will not go dead.
Another thought is did you get a new fully charged battery from the dealer when you picked up your rig. From what I have noticed at dealers they take batteries out of rigs and they get swapped around. You may have not received the new battery from the dealer.
As mentioned there are a lot of things using power that we do not think of. But not go dead overnight.
Joe

[jimcol]

I notice you are from NJ and it has been cold overnite in parts of the state. If you were using the furnace very much it pulls the battery down pretty quick. Couple that with all the other draws mentioned in this thread as well as DC lighting and a battery won't last long with out being recharged. Jim

[tspoon]

Check the date code on the battery.

[kdeiss]

I had the same problem in my 2002 bad battery dealer replaced has lasted since 2003 I am going to replace in May. Just thinking this may be your problem

[kingdaddy]

My H.C. came with a pair of Interstate Deep Cycle 12v batteries. May change them out to Optima Blue Tops in the future or if we do some dry camping 6v multiple battery bank.
Looking at solar systems to help maintain the battery and provide some additional capacity for lighting etc.

[Farmhawk]

I could be that the battery is sulfated by being plugged into shore power for an extended period. The battery will need to be equalized. My solar panel converter does it for my batteries, I also have a "smart" battery charger that does the same thing. If neither of these options are available you will need to cycle the battery through an extend charge/discharge cycles to break up sulfur deposits that build up on the plates and reduce the efficiency of the batteries.

[Exnavydiver]

It also may be that the dealer took his most useless, overcharded piece of crap battery and tossed it in your rig. They pulled that on us when we bought our Jayco. I got that fixed within a week. I now have two 6 volt Trojan golf cart batteries and they will keep us running for 4 days with any problem...