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  1. #1
    Seasoned Camper
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    Battery storage over winter

    Hello all, does anyone leave the battery(s) in their camper over winter? I was thinking of turning off the disconnect battery switch & leaving the battery in it's box. I still have a/c power to the camper for dehumidifier.

  2. #2
    Rolling Along
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    With ac power hooked up to the unit there’s no need to do anything, the converter will keep the battery fully charged
    Last edited by Bungy; 11-09-2019 at 09:02 AM.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Jerry P View Post
    Hello all, does anyone leave the battery(s) in their camper over winter? I was thinking of turning off the disconnect battery switch & leaving the battery in it's box. I still have a/c power to the camper for dehumidifier.
    DO NOT turn off the battery switch. If you do that, the converter/charger WILL NOT keep a charge on the battery or batteries....whichever the case may be. Leave the shore power on to the camper and leave the battery disconnect on. Make sure that you check the water level in the batteries several times over the winter months. If your water level in the batteries gets too low and the voltage drops as a result of that, the batteries can freeze and crack.....then it's time for new batteries in the spring.
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    Site Sponsor sande005's Avatar
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    Even better - just disconnect the battery, and leave it. Avoids the chance that your converter will overcharge the batteries, or the need to check for water. If you want to be extra cautious, pull the fuse to the converter, but really no need. Battery will be fine for many, many months. And your AC power will be fine for the humidifier. Absolutely no need to keep the battery on any kind of a trickle charge, etc. See my recent posts about self-discharging.
    (Yes, this will kill the lights, or any other 12v items....)
    BTW - as much discussed, the on/off switch does not turn everything off - so you can run down your battery if you just use that.
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  5. #5
    Seasoned Camper
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    Quote Originally Posted by sande005 View Post
    Even better - just disconnect the battery, and leave it. Avoids the chance that your converter will overcharge the batteries, or the need to check for water. If you want to be extra cautious, pull the fuse to the converter, but really no need. Battery will be fine for many, many months. And your AC power will be fine for the humidifier. Absolutely no need to keep the battery on any kind of a trickle charge, etc. See my recent posts about self-discharging.
    (Yes, this will kill the lights, or any other 12v items....)
    BTW - as much discussed, the on/off switch does not turn everything off - so you can run down your battery if you just use that.
    Thanks, I'll just disconnect the battery cable......why doesn't the disconnect turn off charge to the battery & isolate power from the battery??

  6. #6
    Seasoned Camper
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    Quote Originally Posted by xrated View Post
    DO NOT turn off the battery switch. If you do that, the converter/charger WILL NOT keep a charge on the battery or batteries....whichever the case may be. Leave the shore power on to the camper and leave the battery disconnect on. Make sure that you check the water level in the batteries several times over the winter months. If your water level in the batteries gets too low and the voltage drops as a result of that, the batteries can freeze and crack.....then it's time for new batteries in the spring.
    I don't really need to keep charge to the battery over the winter. Thanks for the info.

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    Site Team xrated's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jerry P View Post
    I don't really need to keep charge to the battery over the winter. Thanks for the info.
    OK, if you are going to leave the battery in the trailer, it must be disconnected at the battery then. Failing to do that, even with the battery disconnect turned off, you will have a dead battery in as short as a week or two. The parasitic drain on the battery by things like the CO2 monitor, the stereo, and maybe a few other things will kill the battery, even with the battery disconnect turned off.
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  8. #8
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    I take it another step further: I remove the battery from the camper and store it in my garage to ensure it doesn't freeze.
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  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by xrated View Post
    OK, if you are going to leave the battery in the trailer, it must be disconnected at the battery then. Failing to do that, even with the battery disconnect turned off, you will have a dead battery in as short as a week or two. The parasitic drain on the battery by things like the CO2 monitor, the stereo, and maybe a few other things will kill the battery, even with the battery disconnect turned off.
    I believe there is a bit of an ideal way to manage it versus an okay way. For example, in my boat I disconnect all 3 batteries but leave them in place on the boat, out in the cold. In the spring I charge them if necessary. My good old dad would tell me that I had to bring them into the garage and keep a trickle charger on them over the winter. I have never had a boat battery last less than 8 years, even some as long as 11. It's worked for me so it's what I do.

    I'm struggling with the quoted comment. In my previous campers, I have not disconnected the battery, but I have used the provided disconnect switch. I am a new Grand Design owner, however. What good is a disconnect switch if it keeps things drawing power such as the CO monitor and stereo? Wouldn't that negate the whole purpose of the switch? I would expect it to physically interrupt the connection.
    Last edited by Timmer; 11-10-2019 at 06:28 AM.
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  10. #10
    Seasoned Camper
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    Quote Originally Posted by Timmer View Post
    I believe there is a bit of an ideal way to manage it versus an okay way. For example, in my boat I disconnect all 3 batteries but leave them in place on the boat, out in the cold. In the spring I charge them if necessary. My good old dad would tell me that I had to bring them into the garage and keep a trickle charger on them over the winter. I have never had a boat battery last less than 8 years, even some as long as 11. It's worked for me so it's what I do.

    I'm struggling with the quoted comment. In my previous campers, I have not disconnected the battery, but I have used the provided disconnect switch. I am a new Grand Design owner, however. What good is a disconnect switch if it keeps things drawing power such as the CO monitor and stereo? Wouldn't that negate the whole purpose of the switch? I would expect it to physically interrupt the connection.
    Timmer, I'm with you 100% on the battery disconnect! I am also a new Grand Design owner & I do know by turning the battery disconnect in the off position nothing in the camper including the light in the storage bin where the battery is located will work. So I don't understand how any voltage will "bleed over" the switch. Thanks!

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