SWharton Posted September 27, 2017 Author Report Share Posted September 27, 2017 Yes, we are getting the BMK battery monitor. We have the Magnum MS2000 inverter. I spoke to tech support at Magnum yesterday and we are good to go. We have an appt with West RV in Livingston and will get the batteries installed, our broken window has been shipped and will be there in time to get it installed and will get the battery monitor installed. All the timing is working out so we are very happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWharton Posted October 14, 2017 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2017 OK. We now have everything installed and hopefully one last question. We are trying to determine if we have something installed slightly wrong. Today we drove 200 miles and I noticed that the SOC was at 86%. I didn't think to look at the house battery bank numbers. I assumed it was down due to our leveling and putting out the slides even though we keep the MH running when we do this. Is this a correct assumption? I know I should have researched it further but we had a rough day with crosswinds and weren't thinking too clearly. Our expectation was th SOC would be 100% after driving and we have confirmed the batteries are being charged when driving. SOC went to 100% after being plugged in a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted October 14, 2017 Report Share Posted October 14, 2017 I believe your slides and jacks are powered by the chassis battery. To be sure, set your battery monitor to the "amps" setting and bring your slide in an inch or so and see if the amps on the house battery changes. Bump the jacks a look to see if the amps change. At least on my 2006 Sightseer they are. Your RV is much newer than my so Winnebago could have changed the set up. BTW, the alternator's main function is to charge the chassis battery. The alternator doesn't do nearly as well at charging the house batteries as the three stage charger does from the generator/shore power. The next time you are traveling and stopping for lunch or bathroom break, turn off the engine. When you get ready to go look at the "voltage" on the battery monitor to see what it goes to right after the engine starts. If it goes to something like 14.x and then tapers off in a few minutes, you are seeing the alternator charging the chassis battery. The voltage from the chassis battery may be detected at the alternator so it feels the battery is charged. Also check the voltage at the house batteries while you are traveling to see just how high the voltage is coming from the alternator. Additionally switch to the amps on the monitor to see exactly how many amps are going in while traveling. I don't mean while you are driving, just when you stop and before you turn the engine off. I guessing that after the engine has been running for 10-15 minutes the voltage to the house battery will be around 13.2-13.5V (float voltage) and the amps going in will be fairly low. Also try to remember to check what the SOC of the house battery is before leaving for a day travel and then when you get to your destination. Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWharton Posted October 14, 2017 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2017 Thanks Al. We were planning to do most of what you recommended but you added to our list. This switching from a 5th to a MH and learning how everything works is a steep learning curve. We will get it figured out. Hopefully soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al F Posted October 15, 2017 Report Share Posted October 15, 2017 5 hours ago, SWharton said: Thanks Al. We were planning to do most of what you recommended but you added to our list. This switching from a 5th to a MH and learning how everything works is a steep learning curve. We will get it figured out. Hopefully soon. It is really handy having the battery monitor. You can KNOW what is going on, rather that guessing or speculating. Al & Sharon 2006 Winnebago Journey 36G 2020 Chevy Colorado Toad San Antonio, TX http://downtheroadaroundthebend.blogspot.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWharton Posted October 23, 2017 Author Report Share Posted October 23, 2017 OK we had everything installed and life is much better. Still some confusion but everything is working. We have 3 meters that show us the voltage in the battery. 2 generally read the same but the 3rd is always lower(the Magnum remote). Also we need to understand the SOC from Magnum better. We are progressing though. For now the question is charging the batteries. We feel via the batteries aren't charging fast enough for us. Can we add an additional battery charger that we have plugged in when the generator is running. Would this charge the batteries faster? If OK to do is there anything special about the charger? Our boondocking days are coming to an end for this year as we approach our winter location. Thank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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