Power Converter

[waldreps]

I have a MagneTek 6345 Power Converter with battery charger in my 1998 Dutchmen Aristocrat. Are these bad about overcharging batteries? I just bought it last year and purchased a deep cycle battery for it. We ended up only using it once last year but I left it plugged in at the house for a few months. I checked the electrolyte level in the battery several times and added a little bit of distilled water once. I took the battery into the garage for the winter and this spring it wouldn't hold a charge. I took it back to where I bought it and got a free replacement but I'm wondering if my converter overcharged it or somehow damaged it or if it was just a bad battery? Any thoughts?

Thanks,
Stacy

[hddecker]

Welcome to the forum, Stacy.

Good bet that's what happened. The RV industry is not known for using anything more than base model equipment.

[waldreps]

Thanks. I'm thinking that's what happened too. I think I'll get a battery quick disconnect so that I can keep the battery disconnected most of the time it's plugged in and only connect it to charge it for a short period.

[hddecker]

Originally Posted by waldreps

Thanks. I'm thinking that's what happened too. I think I'll get a battery quick disconnect so that I can keep the battery disconnected most of the time it's plugged in and only connect it to charge it for a short period.

I use a portable solar panel for mine over the winter. The charge controller sticks to the side of the battery case with velcro, a two pin quick connect is wired to the battery.

Got tired of packing and unpacking it, so I installed a solar panel on the roof. Now it's just my winter battery maintainer.

[ewarnerusa]

Originally Posted by waldreps

Thanks. I'm thinking that's what happened too. I think I'll get a battery quick disconnect so that I can keep the battery disconnected most of the time it's plugged in and only connect it to charge it for a short period.

Undercharging and overcharging are bad news for batteries. Your suggestion sounds like it will chronically undercharge your batteries. Usually a converter needs a full day or so to fully top off a battery. A smart charger with multi-stage capacity can do it quicker because it starts with a boost/bulk mode that puts 14.4+ volts into the batteries.

It sounds like you have an older single stage converter. I would replace that with a newer smart charger that uses multiple stages. Then you can theoretically leave it plugged in all the time. Progressive Dynamics seems to have a strong following. Avoid the WFCO, they are known to never actually go into boost/bulk mode even though they claim to have that feature.

BestConverter - Converters, Inverters, Electrical Supplies, Electronics
Progressive Dynamics Converters

Or go solar.

[wahoonc]

Originally Posted by ewarnerusa

Undercharging and overcharging are bad news for batteries. Your suggestion sounds like it will chronically undercharge your batteries. Usually a converter needs a full day or so to fully top off a battery. A smart charger with multi-stage capacity can do it quicker because it starts with a boost/bulk mode that puts 14.4+ volts into the batteries.

It sounds like you have an older single stage converter. I would replace that with a newer smart charger that uses multiple stages. Then you can theoretically leave it plugged in all the time. Progressive Dynamics seems to have a strong following. Avoid the WFCO, they are known to never actually go into boost/bulk mode even though they claim to have that feature.

BestConverter - Converters, Inverters, Electrical Supplies, Electronics
Progressive Dynamics Converters

Or go solar.

Amen!

I have a WFCO on my Concord. I swapped the one that was in my Coleman out for a PD when the WFCO went Tango Uniform. I am going to be swapping in the Powermax Boondocker board on the Concord, mainly because I don't trust WFCO and the known charging issues.

Aaron