2002 Itasca Suncruiser Generator Question

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Conman

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Joined
Jan 1, 2013
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4
Location
Seattle, WA
Hi Folks,

I have a 2002 Itasca Suncruiser and I am having a small issue with starting my generator.

If my house battery is reading anything under 12 volts my generator won't turn over and start, this mainly happens in the morning whilst boon docking. My understanding is that the generator should crank over with at least 6v in the batteries, am I mistaken?

Any thoughts on this issue would be great.
 
A 12v battery is at or below 50% charge at 12.0v (effectively dead), and should never be discharged below that point. Attempting to take a 12v battery down to 6v before recharging would shorten it's life considerably, especially if done repeatedly.  Here is an little chart you might want to use as reference when boondocking. This is the Escapees version ...others are very similar.

- 12.6+ = 100%      - 11.9=40%
- 12.5 = 90%          - 11.75=30%
- 12.40=80%          - 11.58=20%
- 12.32=70%          - 11.31=10%
- 12.20=60%          - 10.5=0%
- 12.06=50%

 
6v is no where near enough to crank a 12v motor, so whoever told you that was wrong.

Most generators start from the chassis batteries, though. Are you sure yours do not?  What is their voltage and how old are they?

Last, try using the Boost (Aux Start) switch, which parallels the house and chassis batteries. That should enable you to start the genset.
 
I would check all the battery connections for the generator. Usually they will start with a little less than 12 volts, but twelve volts is what they are designed for. I would especially check the generator ground connection.
 
You can use the boost switch to start the Generator. I hope you have a good charger or you will have to run the generator a long time to get the batteries up to a 90% charge. Perhaps the reason they are so low is you aren't geting a good charge.
Bill
 
Folks thanks so much for the input so far. Can't quite recall where I got the 6v thing from. Will have a look at the batteries and see how old they are and see what happens.

Basically if I have the gas heater on over night there isn't enough power in the batteries in the morning to kick over the generator.
 
A 12V furnace blower will use up quite a few amps overnight, so if your batteries aren't in good condition, you will likely run them down.  Look for a date code on the batteries - if they are more than about three years old, then you should consider changing them out, or at the very least, have them load tested.

I am a big fan of Lifeline AGM batteries - they take a charge quickly and their self-discharge rate is very low.  If you do replace the house batteries, replace all of them at one time with identical batteries.

Many on the forum (me included) are also into replacing incandescent and florescent 12V lamps for the LED variety - you will save precious amp-hours by converting to LED.

And one more tip - don't discharge the batteries too deeply.  Stay above the 50% discharge level for long-term battery health.
 

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