Electrical System in CampLite 2018 CL14DB

[LStreetinMI]

Hi there,
My daughter is boondocking in our new 2018 CL14DB in Yosemite and having issues with battery life.  Trailer came with one battery.  I accidentally purchased a standard 12 volt battery that was not deep cycle and installed it.  The two are connected/parallel.  When leaving the unit for more than 2 days, the batteries are no longer working when she returns.  My past experience with Rving is that two 12 volt deep cycle batteries should hold up for 4-5 days of just having a fridge running and nothing else.  When recharging the batteries with a 2000 Sidekick inverter generator, the batteries return to about 12.4 only.  I am trying to understand why the batteries run down so quickly (phantom draws?) and why they are not charging more than 12.4 when plugged into the generator.  Being more than 2,000 miles away, this is a struggle. Also, the unit is new to us, and we are experienced in motor home systems, but not trailers.

The batteries are connected to a solar trickle charger at all times. Without wiring diagrams of documentation regarding how the converter and power management system works in the unit, it is tough to figure out what is doing on.  My daughter is no pursuing solar options, but we think a better understanding of how the systems in the CL are installed and connected is needed before we spend more money on solar panels and controllers. 

Would appreciate some thoughts from more knowledgeable and experienced CL owners regarding these issues.

We found a few issues with workmanship on the 2018, but were able to make the fixes ourselves.....poor fit and finish mostly on walls, trim and calking. for the most part, my daughter has loved her little trailer (has not experienced driving in heavy rain so no idea if wheel wells will leak, LOL).

Please comment on battery experience and solar ideas!

Thanks,

The Streets in Michigan

[MitchB]

I'm sure you'll get some answers from more electrically educated people than I but I suspect that the 2 different types of batteries is the core of the issue.  I can tell you that on my 2013 13QBB with the fridge as the only draw (the 5cf single door fridge with the electronic controls Dometic RM2554 model) I'm using .4 amps so a single 12v deep cycle battery of 75 Ahrs would run the fridge for 4 or 5 days before I really started to ruin it.  The fact that you only get back to 12.4 volts is telling I think.

[Merlin]

You've asked some complex questions that will take some searching on this site (use the term Solar for information on that, for example) to get started.

As a temporary quick fix to your daughter's problem, I suggest disconnecting the standard battery and running on only the deep cycle battery originally installed. That will eliminate one potential source of the problem and give you ample power for the time between charging with the generator.

The refrigerator should be on propane; running it on 12VDC will pull the battery(s) down very quickly. With only lights and water pump use, the single house battery will last for at least a 2-3 days.

After the incorrect battery has been disconnected, post back on how the system is working. There are electrical experts on here that can trouble-shoot about anything, given enough information.

[charliem]

Two Gp24 12V batteries should last 4-5 days with minimal usage. The CO/LP detector takes ~2.4 Amp-Hours (AH) per day so it will discharge the batteries in a week or two but should not in the few days she is away. The solar trickle charger is probably not doing much for you. If really a trickle charger it is intended to keep a totally disconnected battery topped off. The fridge should be run on propane but it takes a small amount of current to run its control board and the LP valve. Orienting the trailer so the fridge is not exposed to the southern sun is helpful. The furnace should be turned off or set very low, just to prevent freezing. The furnace fan is a big sucker of energy when it's on. Other than that make sure all lights are off, no small cell phone chargers are left plugged in, the TV booster is turned off, the radio is turned off and the clock display is turned off, and the water heater and water pump are turned off. Also unplug the tow vehicle (TV) from the trailer jut to make sure is disconnects when not running.  Ultimately you should replace the batteries with a pair of GC2 six volt golf cart batteries.

Most people underestimate overestimate the charging capability of a generator. If using the onboard converter with the generator it can take overnight to fully recharge the batteries. A few hours a day will keep you operational but not fully recharge the batteries.

BTW, I disagree that the two different batteries is a problem. Mismatched batteries are not ideal because one will run down faster than the other and they will not charge equally. But two batteries of any type will always store more energy than one. The lower capacity will tend to discharge faster and the non-deep cycle battery will be damaged by deep discharges but the pair will store and deliver more energy than the single battery. You may not get the life you expect out of the pair but they will work. If you're out of battery in 2-3 days something else is the problem.

Another point. Check the high current reversed battery fuse(s) in the power panel. They (or it) are there to protect the converter from a reversed battery and will blow instantaneously if the battery has ever been hooked up backwards. If they are blown the 12V appliances will run from the battery but the converter will not charge the battery. Your 12.4V readings suggest this.

And a last point. What fridge do you have? One or two doors? If you have the 6 cu ft two door fridge there is a frame heater that sucks the battery 24/7. It draws 12 AH/day doing nothing but heating the fridge door frame and sucking down the battery. You must disable this "feature" for boondocking. If you have this fridge we can walk you through the process. The single door fridges don't have this problem.

[DavidM]

In addition to CharileM's excellent advice above, let me expand on the 12.4V generator charging you have measured. That sounds very much like you are using the generator's DC outlet. That is not made for fast battery charging.

A much, much better way is to connect the unit's shore power cord to the generator's AC output by using a 30 amp to 15 amp adapter. These are available at Camping World, Amazon and probably your local big box store.

Then if the other things that Charlie suggested are taken care of, the batteries should charge fast through the converter/charger.

My unit with a single door fridge uses about 12 amp hours in a 24 hour period, which a fully charged, single battery will easily handle for three days.

David

[Merlin]

I wondered if the standard battery had already been damaged by the repeated deep discharges (to "not working" voltage). That would help explain why they couldn't charge to more than 12.4V. It does seem the 12.4V max is a key symptom. Interesting possibility about the reverse polarity fuse.....

Charlie-you probably mean "overestimate" on the generator charging? 

[charliem]

Charlie-you probably mean "overestimate" on the generator charging?

You are correct of course. Early onset Old Timers Disease.

[Diversteve]

We installed these meters on our 14 DBS.
Lots of nice features including the watt hr function.
This will track your power usage for both shore and battery power.

Now let's get out there and go camping.

[DavidM]

That battery meter looks very much like the Drok unit discussed on another thread, although it has a tubular shunt as opposed to one with terminal connections on the Drok. I actually like the tubular shunt better.

I am sure that they are both made by the same Chinese company.

I installed the Drok on our Camplite to measure power usage and it works very well for that.

David

[whitefish]

Lots of great advice so far.  I'll add a few comments:

- Solar Trickle chargers are just that, trickle chargers.  At best they will keep your battery at float, but it depends on how big your battery bank is.  They do a poor job of actually charging, especially if there are loads.

- What converter do you have in your unit?  Most will charge off AC at 45 amps, some at 60 amps+.  Assuming your converter is working properly (check the fuses Charlie pointed out), on a battery below 80% State of Charge you should see fairly high amps going into the battery.  You can check this with a shunt system discussed above, or you can use a clamp type DC amp meter (shunt system is better, but clamp meter will give an idea).

- If you are charging from the DC hookup from your genset, switch to plugging into your 110v AC on the generator. As mentioned, there are adapters for this at the trailer end to use a standard extension cord.  The DC charging circuit on most generators is only 5-10 amps and its unregulated.  Its possible that you may have over charged your batteries using the DC outputs from your generator.

- Older Camplites had a standalone converter (e.g. Progressive Dynamics), newer ones may have a inverter/converter unit.  Understand what you have and that its working

-It does sound like you have damaged one or both of the batteries, since you can't get a final charge above 12.4v.  Even in float, you should be getting well above that. If you can get the batteries tested somewhere, it may be worth doing that.  I did this once car camping with a 12v battery and a 12v cooler.  Destroyed the battery in one day.

-

[LStreetinMI]

Thanks so much to everyone for all the great info!  Lynn