Battery Tenders

superdav · 10-18-2018, 06:52 PM

Hello everyone....it has been a while. I hope everyone is enjoying Redwood RVing! Got a question about Battery Tenders. We are going to have to store our Redwood 36FL for the winter. May be up to 6 months. It will be in a storage unit with a (I think) 15 amp plug. I have been told I should put the Batteries on a Tender....I have no idea what I should get....any ideas?

I guess...alternatively....should I even worry about the batteries?

Thanks!

Andrew · 10-19-2018, 01:41 AM

I have a 2012 36rl that put I into service on 8/26/2011. I'm on my second pair of wet cell battries that I put in 3 or 4 years ago. The rv is either plugged into shore power, my truck or genny. I have never added water to either set of batteries.I personally see no need for it in IMHO

XCMARK · 10-19-2018, 01:58 AM

you can set up the inverter to trickle charge and float charge. I use the 90amp converter to charge while we are in it and need big power for slides or leveling. most of the time the 90 amp converter is off , the inverter is set for 15 amp max charge rate.

**hoosierguy** · 10-19-2018, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew

I have a 2012 36rl that put I into service on 8/26/2011. I'm on my second pair of wet cell battries that I put in 3 or 4 years ago. The rv is either plugged into shore power, my truck or genny. I have never added water to either set of batteries.I personally see no need for it in IMHO

Andrew,

Same here........ You put your unit ito service a month before I did. We have a 2012 36RL (built in August 2011) that we placed into service in September 2011. The coach has always been connected to power since then. The first set of batteries lasted for 5 years. I have only ever had to add water to the original batteries at year 4. I now have 2 Interstate, group 29, Marine/RV batteries. I just checked my current batteries water level and they are fine. The converter has maintained the batteries quite well.

I use a Battery Tender on my tractor battery during the winter months when we go south.

Guy

Ford truck guy · 10-19-2018, 02:46 PM

I use a NOCO G7200.....

When I called Lifeline, they highly recommended me to use the NOCO brand...

Just got a new apple macbook air and cannot figure out how to copy and paste the link....

on edit... thanks google search ! - https://no.co/g7200

https://no.co/g7200

markw · 10-19-2018, 06:50 PM

I don't have an inverter and it's plugged in year round. My batteries are 5 year old maintenance free Interstates.

Mark

superdav · 10-19-2018, 07:19 PM

Thanks! I will be meeting with the Storage Unit manager on Tuesday...I believe it has a 15 amp outlet inside. If that is the case, I'm guessing it would be better to just plug it in using my regular power cord reduced down to a 15 amp plug?

xtasee · 10-19-2018, 09:33 PM

Yes that is what I would do. The newer chargers are automatic and should float while you are in storage

travelin' texans · 10-19-2018, 11:32 PM

What are you guys do differently, my originals lasted 5+ years of fulltiming, but I had to add water, about a 1/2 gallon to do both, a couple times a year.
Now for the 1st time it's in a storage lot with no power available, I disconnected the negative cable & purchased a 2 amp solar charger that hangs nicely on the propane door, new batteries were at 12.9 volts when disconnected, after 30+ days they are at 12.7.

mhs4771 · 10-20-2018, 12:11 AM

Danny, I was wondering that too. I check and add water twice a year to my 4 batteries and our unit is either connected to the TV or shore power.

atom ant · 10-20-2018, 05:14 PM

I stored our Redwood for 4 years in the coldest of Colorado inside a storage garage by just disconnecting the batteries. Montanas the same way 10 years before that. I never had a dead battery in the spring. They always had enough charge to run slides, jacks, etc.

If you do decide to use the storage area outlet - don't set yourself up to fail. Their outlet could trip at any time and go unnoticed for months. It may be a GFI, and you don't really know what else is on it. A guy may pull up and try to run a space heater on one in the same circuit. Put a battery tender on the batteries, but still disconnect the batteries so if the outlet does trip your batteries won't be on a drain.

Because its too complicated to disconnect batteries now on our motorhome, I had to go to something different. The 15A storage unit outlet won't power our unit (trips the GFI), so I shut off the masters and use BatteryMinder brand chargers. They have worked great for us. If the breaker trips, My batteries will survive a few months without charge, but not much longer because the cables are connected.

You may also like: