|
|
Post Reply 
|
| Author |
 Share Topic Printable Version Google Delicious Digg StumbleUpon Windows Live Yahoo Bookmarks reddit Facebook MySpace Newsvine Furl Topic Search  Topic Options
|
dogsintow 
Newbie 
Joined: 30 Sep 2015 Location: Pacific NW Online Status: Offline Posts: 31 |
 Topic: Weak Battery?? Newbie questionPosted: 09 Mar 2016 at 2:05pm |
|
I've taken my 2011 177 out on two weekends now since I bought it in September and love it! But I think my battery is weak. I kept it charged over the winter with plugging it into my home.
This past weekend I took it out for the first time since being winterized. I was connected to shore power. I got home Sunday evening and it sat unplugged until Tuesday evening. Before I plugged it into my home, I checked the battery because I was curious. It had dropped one level and when I held down the battery button, the red lights were not strong and flickered, however the indicator lights were bright enough for me to clearly see it dropped one level. Is that normal-- for the battery to drain that much in less than 48 hours with nothing running except the LP detector? I did not get a new battery when I purchased my Pod. It very well could be the original the previous owners got when they purchased the pod new. This is my first travel trailer and I'm still trying to figure out what's normal and what's not right since I bought used-- and whether I should start this season fresh with a new battery. Thanks so much!!
|
|
|
2011 R-Pod 177 aka The Pawd Pad
2002 Chevy Tahoe 2 happy dogs |
|
 |
|
|
john in idaho
Senior Member 
Joined: 04 Nov 2014 Location: Eagle Idaho Online Status: Offline Posts: 611 |
Posted: 09 Mar 2016 at 2:15pm |
|
Get a digital voltmeter. 12.6 v is fully charged. Is the water level OK? Most auto parts stores will do a "load Test" on your battery. Seems like I was buying a new "deep cycle" battery ever few years with my tent trailer. I got 2 6v golf cart batteries in our new Rpod 1-1/2 yrs ago. They perform better.
|
|
|
|
|
StephenH
podders Helping podders - pHp
Joined: 29 Nov 2015 Location: Wake Forest, NC Online Status: Offline Posts: 6327 |
Posted: 09 Mar 2016 at 2:21pm |
|
Probably the best way to determine the condition of your battery is to take it out and take it to a place that can test it for you.
Otherwise, take the caps off and see if there is electrolyte covering all the plates. If so, fine. If not, fill the cells but not above the split ring if there is one. Use distilled water only. If you have a voltmeter, take a reading at the battery terminals. That will be better than the lights on the panel. Also, you can take a reading between cells. If you have a dead or weak cell, the voltage for that cell will be less than for the other cells. CAUTION! Battery Acid is very corrosive. Use protective gloves and eyewear when working around batteries. |
|
|
StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
|
|
|
|
dogsintow
Newbie
Joined: 30 Sep 2015 Location: Pacific NW Online Status: Offline Posts: 31 |
Posted: 09 Mar 2016 at 4:20pm |
|
is there a volt meter you recommend? Amazon seems to have a lot to choose from.
|
|
|
2011 R-Pod 177 aka The Pawd Pad
2002 Chevy Tahoe 2 happy dogs |
|
|
|
|
jato
Senior Member
Joined: 23 Feb 2012 Location: Kewadin, MI Online Status: Offline Posts: 3257 |
Posted: 09 Mar 2016 at 5:10pm |
|
We also own a 2011 model 177, picked it up in March 2011. Our 2 12v deep cycle batteries (purchased with the pod) still perform well, but have been maintained also. We expect to get 4 days or more per battery. 4 days is our limit if we are using the furnace a lot. In your case, you have no idea how the battery was maintained before you took ownership. You will know what course to take after getting it load tested or after you test it yourself and look at electrolyte levels, ect. It is very important to not run the battery down too far when dry camping or boondocking. Once our battery shows it at 1/3 of full charge I change it over to the other battery.
|
|
|
God's pod
'11 model 177 '17 Ford F-150 4WD 3.5 Ecoboost Jim and Diane by beautiful Torch Lake "...and you will know the Truth and the Truth will set you free." |
|
|
|
|
techntrek
Admin Group - pHp 
Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Location: MD Online Status: Offline Posts: 9062 |
Posted: 09 Mar 2016 at 7:42pm |
|
Since it likely came with a cheap battery, it is now 5 years old which often is end-of-life. But, the load test and using a voltmeter (after the battery has sat unhooked for 3 hours) as suggested above will help determine if that is true.
|
|
|
|
|
StephenH
podders Helping podders - pHp
Joined: 29 Nov 2015 Location: Wake Forest, NC Online Status: Offline Posts: 6327 |
Posted: 09 Mar 2016 at 9:54pm |
The one I use is a cheap digital volt meter I got at Harbor Freight. http://www.harborfreight.com/7-function-multimeter-98025.html It might not be the best one around, but it works well enough for my purposes.  |
|
|
StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
|
|
|
|
Post Reply
|
| Forum Jump | Forum Permissions You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot create polls in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum |
Weak Battery?? Newbie question