I think that spring has finally arrived here in Ohio. It seemed for a while that winter would never end as the cold weather continued almost through May. However, it has been in the high 80s and low 90s with lots of sunshine, and what else do you need to get your camping fever going.
Since we are all planning a lot of RV trips this summer, this might be a good time to make sure our RV batteries are ready also. I only mention this because when I checked mine today, that was not the case. I figured I would check the water level and that would be it. Instead it turned into a major project that took most of the afternoon. I don’t have photos of my batteries, but this is an example of what I saw when I looked into the battery compartment:
The white, or green corrosion is a chemical reaction caused by the sulphuric acid in the battery. It is dangerous, and can deteriorate the battery, the connectors, and the hold down bracket. All in all, corrosion should be taken care of pronto.
In my motorhome I have a total of 6 batteries. There are four 6VDC batteries which provide power for the coach facilities such as lights and entertainment. In addition there are two 12VDC batteries which provide power to start the engine. The coach batteries had several corroded connections and the battery hold down bracket was also corroded.
I took the whole mess apart, took the four coach batteries out and cleaned up the floor plate which holds them. I also washed off the four batteries, cleaned up the connecting cables and the hold down bracket and then painted the bracket to help protect it from future corrosion. In order to accomplish this I used copious amounts of baking soda dissolved in water. I stuck the corroded connectors into the solution and the chemical reaction with the baking soda neutralized the corrosion and removed it from the connectors. I also used baking soda to clean the tops of the batteries and to clean up the floor plate.
After doing all the necessary cleaning and painting, I reassembled the system using a corrosion inhibiting grease on all the connections in order to minimize future corrosion. If you decide to clean up your RV battery compartment, it is best to disconnect the negative terminal first, then the positive terminal. When reassembling, reverse the proceedure and connect the positive first, then the negative terminal. The reason for this is that the negative terminal is connected to ground and if you leave it connected, all the metal “stuff” around the battery is also connected to the negative terminal. If you use a wrench to disconnect the positive terminal first, and you accidently touch any metal part, you will create a dead short through the wrench, which will cause a large arc and maybe a fire. Best to disconnect the negative terminal first.
When I got finished with my project, I had a nice, clean battery compartment, ready to go camping.
Hopefully you are all inspired to get out there and get your batteries cleaned up. If so, tell us about your experiences.
larrycad
Donna, by my count, you only got about 2 years use out of your battery. That is not a lot. First, the easy question: yes, you must keep water in your battery. From your question, I would speculate that you have been losing water? Is that correct? If so, you might consider that the charger in your RV is not, how shall we say this, the best quality. Unfortunately, RV manufacturers cut the cost of making our rolling homes by installing a cheap battery charger. The effect of this is that the charger tends to overcharge the battery and boil the water out. You MUST watch this and keep water in the cells to keep the battery from burning up.
Next question: where can I get good batteries? This is a chevy/ford thing. Different folks have different opinions about different batteries. Generally, you get what you pay for. I would definately look for a battery with a high “amp/hour” rating. This means the battery has more capacity to run your “stuff”! Higher amp/hour ratings cost more money, but it is worth it. With the charger you have in your RV, I would stick with a standard lead/acid battery with high capacity, and then make sure the water level stays up there.
Sometime in the future, if you want to upgrade your RV, you might want to consider adding a high quality combination battery charger/inverter. You will have a lot less maintenance on your batteries and they will last longer.
Larry
Donna Kutz
We have a 30″ Fleetwood travel trailer (2002) with a slide out. We had to replace our battery back in March 2006. We purchased DC24 battery for $134.00. This battery is now not holding a charge…we have taken it back to the battery dealer that we purchased it from and he placed it on his charge and it charged but does not hold the charge.
Can anyone recommend a good battery? Also do you have to keep water in the battery cells? Thanks
Sandy
I have a question concerning batteries? My battery that powers the coach for lights,and etc. wont keep a charge.it’s a brand new battery and everytime we go to use it it’s dead. and we have also been having troubles with the battery that starts the rv. My better half took the cables off and used baking soda and water to clean them. What could be causing the battery to go down. passed month and half we have been using it ever weekend. we also had to replace the 175 amp fuse. what could be wrong. any suggestions would be great.
Tom H.
Larry,
You can buy it at West Marine, Sears(in the tool dept) Woodcraft Supply Stores,or you can buy it on line direct from the company. http://www.boeshield.com
Larry Cad
The vent hoses are there to allow the corrosive gases to get out of the compartment. The typical electrolyte in a lead acid battery is sulphuric acid. A by-product of charge and discharge is a release of hydrogen gas, which is potentially explosive. Having a way to vent these gases is a good thing. I would leave the vents where they are and go to the trouble you have to go to, to check your batteries.
Jere Jarrell
Question on covering batteries: My coach batteries are in the basement under the bedroom. I currently have covers on the batteries with venting hoses to the outside. Is this necessary? Would be a lot easier to maintain the batteries if I did not have to remove the cover to get to them. What do you think?
Larry Cad
Lug, I agree that AGM batteries are great as long as you have the special charger you need to keep them charged properly. The typical “buzz box” charger in most RVs will just burn up an AGM battery.
Larry Cad
Tom, question is, where do I get this stuff??? Don’t be keeping secrets from us like that.
Larry
Tom H.
Larry,
I have a product that would definately solve your battery corrosion problem. Its called Boeshield T-9. It was developed by The Boeing Co. It has been used extensively in the marine industry for more than 25 years for corrosion protection on all metals and electrical conections. Boeshield T-9 is also an excellent lubricant.
Lug_Nut
Larry, I have 10 batteries. 8 house 6 volts and 2 start 12 volts. I’ve never had an issue keeping the batteries clean and full until this one. I even put the mineral oil in them asnd still terrible. I replaced the 8 house with AGM’s and problem solved. I guess the problem is using leads acid batteries in an all electric coach. I see now most all electric coaches now come, or offer, AGM’s.