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Post by bc75 on Jan 10, 2018 10:25:29 GMT -5
Does anyone know if my tow vehicle will charge my camper when hooked up and going down the road. Or if it will power it. Im taking a 10hr trip i will be running my refrigerator i don't want it to run my battery down.
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Post by lynnmor on Jan 10, 2018 11:53:12 GMT -5
Some vehicles need to have a fuse installed to activate the charge line at the trailer plug. Best test is to put a voltmeter on the battery with the trailer plug disconnected. With the engine running, plug in the trailer and see if the voltage jumps up. It should read under 13 volts disconnected and over 13 plugged in. If you don't have a voltmeter, get one, they are cheap and sometimes free at Harbor Freight.
You need to understand that the tow vehicle will do a poor job of charging a battery due to the long thin wires from the fuse block in the truck all the way to the RV battery. The tow vehicle will give a bit of charge and will at least maintain the battery as you travel.
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Post by doublewa on Jan 10, 2018 12:15:11 GMT -5
Some vehicles need to have a fuse installed to activate the charge line at the trailer plug. Best test is to put a voltmeter on the battery with the trailer plug disconnected. With the engine running, plug in the trailer and see if the voltage jumps up. It should read under 13 volts disconnected and over 13 plugged in. If you don't have a voltmeter, get one, they are cheap and sometimes free at Harbor Freight. You need to understand that the tow vehicle will do a poor job of charging a battery due to the long thin wires from the fuse block in the truck all the way to the RV battery. The tow vehicle will give a bit of charge and will at least maintain the battery as you travel. Lynnmoor, thanks for posting this. In my debacle with the Furrion Camera prep wires (I'm sure you've seen my thread in this section) I was wondering if, since the camera has no power, is my tow vehicle battery connected to my trailer when hooked up and how would I find out? I now have my answer on how to find out. Here's a question for you sir: I have the 10amp Solar Prep also on my camper. When I purchase a portable solar panel, how would I check to ensure that the solar prep is actually wired? I'm hoping I won't run into anyof my current debacle with that. |
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Post by lynnmor on Jan 10, 2018 15:15:46 GMT -5
I have the 10amp Solar Prep also on my camper. When I purchase a portable solar panel, how would I check to ensure that the solar prep is actually wired? I'm hoping I won't run into anyof my current debacle with that. I'm not sure what solar prep you have now. KZ quotes the solar prep package, but they don't explain what they provide. It probably means you have a pair of wires run from the roof to a storage area, is that the case? Are there additional wires run to the converter and/or battery? Is there a control panel or connection point installed? Since you mentioned a portable panel, I'm not sure if you have roof wiring. As you see, solar prep can mean anything, it's like asking how long is a rope. If you can find and identify the components that KZ installed, we can take it from there. |
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Post by doublewa on Jan 10, 2018 16:16:53 GMT -5
What I have is a 10 AMP port on the passenger side of my RV. Supposedly, I guess there are wires behind thing this that go to my converter. If the front of my Fiver is North, then the converter sits just North of this solar port underneath my fridge next to my water heater. I can't tell how it's wired from the port to the converter (that's in the wall), but I assume that another set of wires carries the charge from the converter to the battery. I'm not an electrician or anything close, nor do I understand electrical current more than I understand Chinese, so please bear with me. Here's a video of what my port looks like (I just can't see the back of it): www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxYGaQX5GSQ&t=178s |
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Post by bc75 on Jan 10, 2018 16:51:00 GMT -5
Thank you i checked my tow vehicle there is a relay missing.
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Post by lynnmor on Jan 10, 2018 16:58:35 GMT -5
Hopefully that relay will do the job. Here is a video about solar prep. I guess that many RV builders use this as a sales gimmick. In the video, not all of the information is correct, for example the nonsense about over-charging. At least if you only have the port on the side of the RV, you need to listen about it being just as useful as a pair of alligator clips. Video |
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Post by doublewa on Jan 10, 2018 17:22:40 GMT -5
Hopefully that relay will do the job. Here is a video about solar prep. I guess that many RV builders use this as a sales gimmick. In the video, not all of the information is correct, for example the nonsense about over-charging. At least if you only have the port on the side of the RV, you need to listen about it being just as useful as a pair of alligator clips. VideoYup, saw this video when I wanted to see what the whole "Solar Prep" thing was. and I'm fine with that. I'd rather have a port to plug in a portable panel than have to hook alligator clips up all the time to the battery in the basement. I have one 12v battery now and I'm planning on adding a 2nd for more power and using the Solar Panel to assist in keeping them charged during the day. I only plan on boondocking up to 4 days at a time (5 absolute max). I'm just looking to have something so that I don't have to run my generator constantly. I just want to figure out how I can tell if these solar prep wires that were run are hooked up and transferring power. I don't know how to check that. |
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Post by todtex on Jan 10, 2018 20:31:56 GMT -5
Doublewa- I have 2018 Connect 241RLK and the solar receptacle is hooked up on it. I purchased the male plug to run a 12v pump using the installed solar receptacle. Works fine.
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Post by bc75 on Jan 20, 2018 19:25:17 GMT -5
The relay worked. Now I'm ready for warmer weather.Cant wait to get back on the road.
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