Batteries

[Frank Bannert]

My batteries are all dead house and chassis. I had a so called Mobile Rv mechanic come out and change the chassis batteries and when he installed them the red wire with all the wires got red hot. I don't know if he didn't see it or what but know I have no power. None of the lights will light up on the dash or the starter will not even click. My question is there a reset button ,selenoid or fuse that I can check and where to start. This guy did not know anything. An another question is how do you get the power cord with dead batteries so I can charge them. The reel is a power electric reel.
Thanks for any help you can give.
I have cancer and am limited to some of the work as lifting the batteries.
Frank Bannert
2002 Beaver Patriot
3126 Cat 330hp

[Edward Buker]

Frank,

It looks like he hitched up the batteries and miswired them and you have a short. That needs to be corrected. The wire that got red hot is somehow in the short path so check that. One of the main fuses must have blown and they are in the battery compartment. I think he might have reversed the + and - wiring to the coach. It is serious in that other things may have been damaged depending on the duration and if the short was just within the battery compartment (which is good) or if reverse polarity voltage got to the coach electronics (which is bad). You need to be sure all is connected/wired right before going any further. Worst case scenario can be a battery that explodes acid or a fire so caution is in order.

later Ed

[Karl Welhart]

Frank,

So sorry to hear about your health issue.  Anyway, your problem could be several.  Where are you located and perhaps we can find a good RV tech to help you?  The most likely problem is a main fuse blown above the batteries.  If you can check them, that would be the first step.

[David T. Richelderfer]

Without the proper electrical tools and the knowledge to use them, it simply makes one feel helpless.  I am slowly learning some of this stuff but am still years away from what I would call "adequate knowledge."

First I would ask did the mobile mechanic put both or one battery in backwards, or did he hook up one wire to a wrong post?  The wrongdoing will help people reading your postings with places to start looking for problems.  If the mechanic put the batteries in backwards, then, as in my experience, you will have numerous fuses to track down and check.  If memory serves me, I had to replace about half a dozen fuses.  Second, are the batteries now properly installed and hooked up?  Are you sure the batteries are dead, because you may have good batteries, but have blown fuses not allowing power to get on to the engine, transmission, and coach.

Third, when you turn the key to the ON position do you get anything on the transmission keypad left side of the pilot's seat?  The engine will not start if the transmission does not report an "N" for neutral on the keypad.

Where are you located?  Perhaps another Beaver owner is close by and could help.

[Frank Bannert]

I am located in Shiner Tx. There are not any able bodied mechanics that know anything about rv's around here. I will check the fuse and see if that is the problem and I have no lights on anywhere trans or any place else.

[Frank Bannert]

Does anybody know how to get the electric reel with the power cord out when there is no power. Battery or otherwise.

[David T. Richelderfer]

As Mr. Buker advised, you must be sure the batteries are correctly installed before going any further.

The first fuse I found that had blown was a 200 amp blade fuse located behind a door just above the coach batteries.  Behind that door is the Big Boy, the BIRD, and a bunch of blade fuses.  I found a replacement blade fuse at a local automobile stereo installation shop.  These fuses were $40 to $50 at most dealers, but this little stereo shop had them for $10.

If memory serves me, after that 200 amp blade fuse was replaced I had some lights, but don't get excited yet.  There are likely many other fuses to replace.

Does your generator start?

[Dick Simonis]

If it's like mine where the reel just stacks the cord into the bay....just pull and it will slide over the pulley thing.  Might have to lift it a bit gut it will come right out.

[Frank Bannert]

No my gen set will not start everything is dead house batteries. I would like to get the reel out so I can charge the house batteries and work from there. But without the house batteries I have nothing.

Frank

[David T. Richelderfer]

Can you see and reach the head of the power cord inside its access door?  If so, can you connect an extension cord to it?  On my coach the cord's head is readily accessible inside the access door without pulling the cord out of the coach.

[Karl Welhart]

Frank,

You should be able to just pull gently on the cord and it will come out slowly.  Please keep in mind that you may not be able to charge your batteries with shore power...  It would NOT be a good idea to check the fuses with shore power connected and the charger in the "on" position.

[Edward Buker]

Frank,

You do not want to plug the coach into the 120V power post and enable the charging system until you know that the batteries are properly connected. I would go visit a local garage with a mechanic you trust and tell him that you need someone to look at your batteries to see if they are hitched up properly. Tell him that the starting chassis batteries are two 12V in parallel and the house batteries are 6v batteries run two in series to make 12 V and then paralleled as pairs for extra capacity. Let him know that you had the batteries changed and what happened and which wire got hot. If this note makes sense to him then he will know how to check them for proper wiring. Some diagrams are here..6v batteries wired in series parallel combination is probably what you want.

http://www.atbatt.com/rv-battery/how-to-wire-6v-batteries-in-series-or-parallel-configuration

When that is done if you still have no power then the blade fuses Dave mentioned are next to look at.

Later Ed

[Karl Welhart]

Frank,

Can you take some pictures of the batteries so that we can see how they have been connected together?

[David T. Richelderfer]

From what you described it is not clear to me if the batteries where left connected for an extended period of time after you saw the wires getting red hot.  I would assume the wires got hot immediately - while your RV mechanic was still there tightening the connections.  I would think you or the mechanic would have disconnected the wires in short order after seeing what was happening, and would have diagnosed, and at least attempted to fix the error in connecting the batteries.  Be that as it may be, unless you have checked the batteries directly by touching the posts with a meter, then I would not be so sure the batteries are dead.  In my situation, the coach went dead immediately either when I turned on the master power switches or when I turned the ignition key - no lights, no gauges, no nothing.  At that moment, all those fuses - over a half dozen fuses - were blown because I put the batteries in exactly backwards.

If what your mechanic did was connect one battery backwards, then you may have burned up the batteries by allowing them to "feed" upon themselves like what would happen during a dead short.  In this case, your batteries may have been damaged fatally.  I don't know.  Anyways, in my situation, the batteries were not damaged at all because those several fuses stopped all the power from moving about the coach and engine.  All those fuses saved a lot of equipment - leveling systems, radios, engine brain, transmission brain, generator brain, inverter, etc. -  from reverse polarity and an over-voltage situation.

If you have not checked your batteries directly, then do so.  Once you know they are functioning, then your first priority is to make sure the batteries are connected up properly, then slowly and methodically go about checking the various systems on the coach to determine if they are working properly.  Anything not working - probably not getting power - will likely be due to a blown fuse.  The first fuses to check are those high power blade fuses in the battery bay - in my coach they are behind a small door above the house batteries.

[Karl Welhart]

Frank,

Can you take some pictures of the batteries so that we can see how they have been connected together?