Converter or Battery Problem - 2013 Kodiak 279RBSL - Dutchmen Owners
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Old 08-12-2019, 03:48 PM   #1
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Converter or Battery Problem - 2013 Kodiak 279RBSL

Need some help. Trying to figure out if I have a battery problem or a converter problem.
- Battery was replaced with a new Deep Cycle in Sept. of 2016
-Battery disconnect switch is definately on.
- Checked all fuses, circuit breakers, Frame mounted 30A circuit breakers and all are Ok.
-When plugged in and turning on all lights you can hear the fan on the converter come on. So the converter is getting power.
- When plugged in, I am reading about 13.6 volts across the poles of the battery.
- When unplugged, I read about 12 volts at the battery initially, but I can see it dropping on the meter as I hold it on the poles. Drops to about 10.2 volts.
- If I unplug the trailer, turn off all of the lights, then plug the trailer in again, I can hear the converter fan come on, but it turns off after about 20-30 seconds.
Almost like its completed it's charging of the battery.

I'm kind of leaning to thinking it's a battery problem. That it just won't hold a charge, but wanted to ask opinions here.
If you guys think its a converter problem, does anyone know how I access it? In my trailer the fuse/circuit breaker panel is below the Pantry closet and the fan noise from the converter is coming from behind that f/b panel. There are no access panels in the wall behind it. Do I have to remove the fuse/circuit breaker panel to get to it?
Thanks for the help.
Carl
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Old 08-12-2019, 04:36 PM   #2
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The converter is going to put out 13.6ish volts. I would say you have a bad battery.

Just because the fan stops does not mean him that the converter is not still charging.
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Old 08-12-2019, 04:47 PM   #3
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Thanks, I'm thinking your right. Just checked again and after leaving it plugged in for about an hour. Checked the voltage at battery before unplugging and got 13.6V. Unplugged it and it dropped right away to 10.6. Thought I would have gotten more life out of the battery than 3 years. Oh well, guess it's time for another one.

Thanks,
Carl
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Old 08-12-2019, 05:09 PM   #4
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advance auto parts will test the battery for you but three to five years, depending on the temperature, is about all you get. Some of the walmart batteries have a three to five year warranty.
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Old 08-12-2019, 05:14 PM   #5
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Thanks, Heading up to Advance in a few minutes with the old battery. That's where I bought it last time. Need to have it with me for the core charge anyways.
Might as well have them test it before getting a new one.
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Old 08-12-2019, 08:00 PM   #6
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Took it up to Advance. They put their tester on it and said all it showed was that it was at 10.5 volts and was capable of about 50 amps of cranking power and that it needed to be charged. So, went ahead and replaced it. Hopefully that was the problem.
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Old 08-12-2019, 08:49 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sprdoorman View Post
Took it up to Advance. They put their tester on it and said all it showed was that it was at 10.5 volts and was capable of about 50 amps of cranking power and that it needed to be charged. So, went ahead and replaced it. Hopefully that was the problem.
may want to make sure it's charging properly from your equipment in the RV. Did they give any discount since it was "technically" still under warranty?
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Old 08-13-2019, 02:41 PM   #8
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After replacing your battery I would make sure you use that disconnect switch in between trips. I bet your battery was pulled down really low and despite being deep cycle was compromised. Also, double check your water level on the old battery. Unless it is sealed of course.

In my last rig there was a factory installed solar panel on the roof and I eventually figured out that the factory solar controller was never actually stopping the charge so in effect I boiled out all my water very slowly over time. On the replacements I added water every few months and no more issues.

So again I think you either drained your battery too much or over charged it. Or of course maybe you just used it a ton and it lost capacity. Quite a few potential causes for sure.

You seem pretty knowledgeable but just thought I would share those two ideas.
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Old 08-13-2019, 02:51 PM   #9
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3 years seems about right for an auto store deep cycle battery. Battery warranties have the approximate value of a screen door in a submarine.
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Old 08-13-2019, 02:53 PM   #10
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Is the disconnect switch factory, if so it normally does not complete disconnect the battery. If that is the case try one of these. Put it inline on the negative side.
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Old 08-16-2019, 03:42 PM   #11
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How many years is good service life?

I expect much more than three years from my lead acid batteries. Of course it depends on how you use them and how you care for them.

In December of 2017 I replaced my 11 year old folding trailer with a new Kodiak Cub. The folding trailer had two 100 amp hour 10 year old GEL cell batteries. They worked the same as they did when I first installed them.

I now have two 100 amp hour AGM batteries. That makes them about two years old. They work the same as they did when first installed. I expect they will still be working fine when I sell the Cub in 5 to 10 years.

In a week of dry camping the static voltage on my batteries may be down to 11.4 volts. Camping is followed by full 24 hour full charge on shore power.

With this procedure, I should get more than 300 discharge recharge cycles, possibly 400 or 500 because the batteries are AGM. The number of years is not really the limiting factor if the battery is kept fully charged during storage and other maintenance procedures are followed.

If you discharge your battery to 11.4 volts every other day and fully charge (at least 14 hours) afterwards, your batteries would be approaching end of life in two years.

Battery University

https://batteryuniversity.com/
How does the Lead Acid Battery Work? https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/lead_based_batteries
Summary Table of Lead-based Batteries https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/bu_214_summary_table_of_lead_based_batteries
Charging lead acid batteries https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/charging_the_lead_acid_battery
GEL https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/bu_201b_gel_lead_acid_battery
AGM https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/absorbent_glass_mat_agm
Charging with Solar, Turbine https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/charging_with_solar_and_turbine
How to Charge and When to Charge? https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_charge_when_to_charge_table
How to Store Batteries https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_store_batteries
Summary of Do’s and Don’ts https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/do_and_dont_battery_table
What is a Deep Cycle Battery?
https://marinehowto.com/what-is-a-deep-cycle-battery/
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Old 08-17-2019, 11:25 PM   #12
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Did you check fluid levels in your old battery?
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Old 08-18-2019, 12:04 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by chily3 View Post
Is the disconnect switch factory, if so it normally does not complete disconnect the battery. If that is the case try one of these. Put it inline on the negative side.
I have the one in the lower pic, and have it so when it is off EVERYTHING is off
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