Lost 12 volt power

[tcradiodj]

I haven't checked battery voltage yet as i don't think the problem is with the batteries. We did have fridge power for some time because, once we got to the sticks & bricks, the food was still cold and the beer was still tolerable. Something happened during our drive back. Lord knows the Mass Pike is not the smoothest road. I did check all breakers I know of, shutting them off & turning them on again. I pulled all fuses and put them back. They all looked good. I did shut off the mains and powered them up again. Nothing changed. I do think, after 20 years, with the rough roads we have subjected this poor bus to, all points to the converter crapping out. I hope someone tells me different because I am out of ideas.

What is a salesman switch?

Its the master switch.  There are two of them in most cases.  One for the coach and the other for the engine.

 

[Lou Schneider]

To answer your other question about the two sets of battery wires on the 9260, it supports two separate battery banks. That's handy in coaches that don't have the circuitry to charge the chassis battery from shore power - just replace the converter and run a second set of wires to the chassis battery(s).  Or to keep a back-up battery fully charged.  I

Not really.  Yes, it will CHARGE two sets of batteries simultaneously, but so will every other well regulated charger.

The problem is there's no logic in the converter to keep the two banks seperate.  An ohmmeter will show both sets of terminals are in parallel, so if you connect the converter to both the house and chassis batteries, they become a single battery bank and both batteries will DISCHARGE equally as you use power when the converter is off. 

You'll need an external smart device to disconnect the chassis battery from the converter when it's off or you'll drain it when boondocking.

 

[mudshark]

All great replies and I thank you all for your input!
I am happy with the 9260. I checked the voltage this morning on all three batteries and they are at 14.4 VDC up from 12.2 yesterday before I found the breakers tripped out. Everything in the coach is now working and we are cleaning up as our lives were completely disrupted by the recent events. Luckily we were able to get back to the sticks & bricks before the food went bad. Now we just have to get the transmission fixed and we are off again to explore the southeast USA.

 

[Larry N.]

What is a salesman switch?

Its the master switch.  There are two of them in most cases.  One for the coach and the other for the engine.

A lot of that depends on the specific coach. In my Beaver, there was the ubiquitous "salesman switch" near the door which turned off the 12V stuff for most of the interior, but the "master" switch came as a heavy duty pair, in a rear battery compartment, with one for the engine/chassis and one for the coach stuff, even disabling the steps. None of those three affected the 120V AC stuff.

Other coaches are, of course, often wired in a different fashion.

 

[tcradiodj]

Hi All
The PD9260 I bought has no paperwork in the box. I was able to get the install instructions online.
Why are there two pos/neg connectors for the battery wires. The defunct PD9155 only had one set. Why did they put in two? The install says to use the two on the right.

I just got the same one also with no manual.  I have to swap out my 1989 pace arrow converter and i'm not sure exactly how to do it either.  I have watched a few youtube vids and that helped some but I still don't feel great about doing this.

 

[mudshark]

Hi tcradiodj
There is really nothing to it. Turn off the power, undo the wires and swap out the unit. I went on their website and read the install instructions. The problem I had is they put the grounding lug on the opposite side from mine. I had to route the wire over the top. And no indication on which set of red/black holes to use.

Once it was installed I was impressed! I tested the batteries and got 14.4 volts the following morning, up from 12.2 the day before.

 

[ChasA]

Mudshark, the 14.4 volts you saw was a sign that the converter was still working on charging your batteries. Once it determines that the batteries are charged,  it will lower its output to around 13.5 volts (float voltage) to maintain the charge.

 

[mudshark]

Hi ChasA
Yes, I understand and am glad it is doing so. It reinforces my thoughts that the old converter was in its way out.

 

[John From Detroit]

. The problem I had is they put the grounding lug on the opposite side from mine. I had to route the wire over the top. And no indication on which set of red/black holes to use.

Most folks do not knwo this but batteries come in basically 3 (times a bunch) Flavors for this post

One time

{- -}  The - indicate the terminals

._
{  _} is another (note the terminals  are in the corners

and there is always { _ _ }  (Both terminals on one edge  Or the front

These can be "R" or "F"  (ie Group 24 F..  The R or F indicates which is the Positive
R is of course the REVERSE. .So what ever terminal is on a FORWARD will be on teh other end on an R. 

IE {+ -} and { - +}

Of course if they are corner mounted or center mounted.. YOu just turn the battery around.

 

[mudshark]

Confusing!

 

[Old_Crow]

Confusing!

He's talking about batteries, not the converter.  :

I always thought the "F" stood for Ford.  They were always the old cars that took the reversed terminal configuration.

 

[mudshark]

Hi Wally
Our Bounder is in Aamco Transmission for that stupid "service engine soon" light. It comes on all the time now. They found a bad coil on cylinder three and replaced it. Test drive had the light come on again. They are puzzled and are doing diagnostics. Still standing by for a solution.

 

[mudshark]

Sorry...didn't mean to go off topic.

 

[John From Detroit]

Confusing!

Not at all. every terminal has either a + or - next to it. If they are along the same edge of the battery you need to make sure the polarity letter (F or R) is the same. else you have to cross the leads but that's all.  Really very easy.

 

[mudshark]

The only question I was asking was why there were two + and two - on the side of the new converter when the one I took out had one each.
Gary RV Wizard explained that the second set is for a second bank of batteries it the coach is set up for them.