Can anyone list for me the dc electrical items in the mh that would draw current (mini amps) when ignition is off and mh is parked and not being used. I have a manual disconnect switch but leave it on when parked at night. I do not have a swiching relay. I am curious about what I can cut power to (like heaters etc) when dry camping in order to still keep main dc switch on but conserve battery power overnite. thanks

I leave my batts connected at night. The only things that draw are the fridge, an LED night lamp in the bath, the indicator/control panel and the propane alarm. When it's hot, we run a ceiling fan and sometimes the Endless Breeze. The fridge draw depends on whether it is actually cooling or not, but the total would vary with the particular make and model devices installed on each coach. Absent the fans, the total is way under one amp, and is of little consequence when compared to other uses.

I have a 94 Regency with the 300 HP Cummins and recently went through several tests chasing why my house batteries went down so fast when dry camping. My unit requires about 0.8A for all the safty devices with the master switch off and about 1.4A when you add the fridge. Based on some excellent advice on this forum, I replaced the original Marine Starting batteries with deep cycle batteries and cured my short life problem. I have not tested the long life of the new batteries but they don't run down in 4 hours like the old ones. They should last about 4 or 5 days.

Good luck!

I use a TriMetric battery gauge to keep track of battery draw and state of discharge.

This or a similar device can pay for itself in making it easy to use your battery wisely. Otherwise you are ammetering and calculating and hydrometering and so forth.

Bill, what is a "TriMetric battery gauge"? What does it look like and where might I find one?
Thanks

quote:

Originally posted by Frank Strong:
Bill, what is a "TriMetric battery gauge"? What does it look like and where might I find one?
Thanks

HERE is the manufacturer's site.

A quick Froogle search showed Alternative Energy Store to have the best price.

You might also look at the Trace TM500A. It is the Trimetric Meter manufactured for Trace in a special package with fuse and fuse holder. An improved display shows volts, amps, amp-hours and percent without changing mode.

You might also look at an E meter.

$135 might seem expensive for a meter, but I know folks who have spent more than that on batteries in a short time due to poor management. I am on year six or seven of my batteries, and the meter has helped me take care of them.

Oh, BTW, the battery meter lights on the Barth panel bear false witness.

Thanks Bill, I will study the info you sent on the TriMetric meter --- looks promising.

You are right about false witness on the panel voltmeter. I didn't realize (until just recently) that the meter drops to 0 volts when the sun goes down. It paniced me a couple of times until I realized what was going on. More support for something like the TriMetric setup.

Thanks again for you help.

have a question for bill h: did you replace existing Barth battery monitoring panel with the tri-metric? looks like new monitor has a four wire feed from shunt..how did you run this cable? thanks, bob

quote:

Originally posted by beeoh:
have a question for bill h: did you replace existing Barth battery monitoring panel with the tri-metric? looks like new monitor has a four wire feed from shunt..how did you run this cable? thanks, bob

My Barth is a side entry. The Barth panel is above the door. I left it there. I installed the Trimetric panel on the left side of the stairwell, just above floor level in the side of the sink cabinet. My solar panel is there, too. Being so close to the floor, I ran the wires down through the floor and forward to the battery box. The shunt is just outside the battery box to avoid any acid fume corrosion.