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07-14-2021, 10:01 AM #1
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Battery Slowly losing voltage while on shore power
GD Reflection 150 295RL 5er.
New RV not even a month. Hooked up to 30A shore power. Battery keeps slowly discharging - I put a monitor on it and from full charge at around 13.7V it slowly decreases to around 11.5 or less, I get nervous and put it on a smart trickler where it gets full voltage again. I've gone through at least 3 cycles of this.
Destroyed one battery already with an improperly wired pedestal - it's fixed and now tests clean all around - 121V.
Next new battery bought is the one above.
Isn't the converter supposed to keep the battery charged on shore power? Is there an on/off switch on it? Is it located under the pass-through wall and are we supposed to mess with it?
Breaker is working, no fuse that I can identify in panel.
Any advice would be much appreciated. If the answer is "check your converter for ..." please give more detailed instructions or a link to view as I'm really new at servicing RV's.
Thanks.Ram 2500 Hemi V8 6.4L Long Bed
2021 Reflection 150 295RL
"If you're going to shoot, SHOOT. Don't talk."
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07-14-2021, 10:26 AM #2
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Is your battery switch "On" (can't remove the red handle)? If the red handle can be removed, your batteries won't charge.
I'm not familiar with the converter/charger on your Reflection but others here have said there are fuses on the converter itself (aside from the breaker in the electrical panel). My understanding is if the battery cables were ever reversed, it can blow a fuse on the converter.Brian & Kellie
2020 Solitude 310GK-R, FBP, 1,460w solar, 540ah BBGC3, MORryde IS w/disc brakes
2020 F-350 Platinum SRW Powerstroke Tremor, 60g TF fuel tank, Hensley BD3-F air bag hitch
Previous setups:
2019 Solitude 373FB-R, 2019 F-350 Platinum DRW Powerstroke, Hensley BD5 air bag hitch
2016 Reflection 318RST, 2016 GMC 3500 Denali SRW Duramax, Hensley BD3 air bag hitch
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07-14-2021, 10:29 AM #3
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The converter should be outputting 13 to 14 vdc to keep battery charged. You should also be able to run your lights with battery disconnected. There are fuses on the Converter output, but they are for protection if battery is hooked up wrong or a short on output. Since you said you had a wiring problem on shore power I'd suspect a bad breaker for Converter or the Converter was damaged from the miss wired receptacle. First thing is check for 121 vac at the input of Converter. If that's ok then check the output fuses. You didn't specify how it was wired wrong, but if it was for a 240vac 30amp outlet, the Converter is probably bad.
2020 Chevy Crew Cab RST
2020 Transend 30RBS
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07-14-2021, 11:40 AM #4
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The pedestal was wired 110V but with the wires switched / polarity reversed. This has now been fixed.
"You should also be able to run your lights with battery disconnected." - With the battery disconnected, none of the lights work. Battery engaged, they do.
"First thing is check for 121 vac at the input of Converter." I'm sorry but where? How? I'm not even certain where the converter is located.
Any details would be greatly appreciated.Ram 2500 Hemi V8 6.4L Long Bed
2021 Reflection 150 295RL
"If you're going to shoot, SHOOT. Don't talk."
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07-14-2021, 12:28 PM #5
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No lights or 12vdc with battery disconnected indicates the Converter has no output. This could be because AC Breaker is not supplying power to Converter, fuses for output of Converter are bad or Converter is bad. Not familiar with your unit but on mine the Converter is behind the Breaker/Fuse panel. The converter looks similar to this.
Or it's combined with panel like this.
The input and output can be checked on unit and also the fuses are there too.Last edited by Bookumdanno; 07-14-2021 at 12:35 PM.
2020 Chevy Crew Cab RST
2020 Transend 30RBS
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07-14-2021, 01:41 PM #6
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OK I found the converter behind the south pass through panel. The converter electrical plug is buried behind a giant mess of cabling and plumbing 3 feet in but I think with some contortions I could get to it. If I remove the bottom drawer next to the service panel inside the RV I think I could get to the plug area as well, but I'd be feeling for it blind.
The converter makes no noise at all with the power on - no fan of any kind. The breaker is on and seems good. The fuses seem intact - grey automotive 35A ea. There is 0 VDC coming from the battery cable connections.
So I guess I dumb-luck fixed the immediate problem by trickle charging the battery from my 110 pedestal outlet - everything seems to still work OK.
Is there anything else to check before declaring this converter unit dead and getting a new one? The OEM unit is ~200.00USD on Amazon - should I stick with it?
Thanks.Ram 2500 Hemi V8 6.4L Long Bed
2021 Reflection 150 295RL
"If you're going to shoot, SHOOT. Don't talk."
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07-14-2021, 02:22 PM #7
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The converter makes no noise at all with the power on - no fan of any kind. The breaker is on and seems good. The fuses seem intact - grey automotive 35A ea. There is 0 VDC coming from the battery cable connections.
Are your sure the fuses are good? Have you pulled them out and checked. If they're blown the Converter will not sense a battery and not try to charge. The fan runs when the unit gets hot from charging or large 12vdc load.
So I guess I dumb-luck fixed the immediate problem by trickle charging the battery from my 110 pedestal outlet - everything seems to still work OK.
Yes the charger replaced the Converter/Charger
Is there anything else to check before declaring this converter unit dead and getting a new one? The OEM unit is ~200.00USD on Amazon - should I stick with it?
The only other way to check is to remove the Converter and bench check it. ie hook 120vac to input and check output and use a meter to check fuses. One of the better Converters is the Intellipower 9200 Series. They use a charge wizard to maintain the battery. Can also install a remote monitor to see what its doing. The charge output should stay the same as what your original Converter output was. They come in 45, 60, 70 and 80 amp charge rates.
Thanks.[/QUOTE]2020 Chevy Crew Cab RST
2020 Transend 30RBS
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07-14-2021, 02:29 PM #8
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Ram 2500 Hemi V8 6.4L Long Bed
2021 Reflection 150 295RL
"If you're going to shoot, SHOOT. Don't talk."
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07-14-2021, 05:18 PM #9
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07-16-2021, 12:53 PM #10
I agree that at this point it might be easier to just remove the converter from the trailer and bench test using the info provided. If the fuses are good, and you are not getting 12vdc output, then the next step is to get to the AC plug the converter is hooked to and make sure you are getting 120vac to the converter. If you are going to replace the converter you are going to have to wiggle your way back to the AC plug anyway.
I would really advise against replacing the converter with the WFCO converter that comes with the trailer. These do not have a good float/maintenance charge system and they are tough on maintaining batteries long term. I pulled my working WFCO converter out of my new Reflection and replaced it with a Progressive Dynamics 9200.
A suggestion would be to make a call to www.bestconverter.com. Randy is great at giving help on converters, as well as having good pricing on new converters.2020 Reflection 273MK
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