charging battery

[Nemesis56]

hey folks;
   would like to know how often you charge your battery during camping season.
  i have a converter so when camping with an electrical site i assume this charges my battery. end of last season my battery was completely dead.

I installed a Centurion 3000 converter in our PUP.  It has Smart Charge.  It only charges as needed.  I leave it plugged in all the time.  It will automatically shut itself off when charged and it actually does.  I checked it with a Fluke and watched it cycle off and on when I'd put a load on the system.

[zamboni]

Wow, I feel cheesy quoting my own post, but I have updated info as I called my converter manufacturer...

However, I am still unsure which option would be better for me - plugging in the Dual-Voltage jack (when needed, unplug when battery is full), or the IQ4.  I want to charge my battery to 100% as quick as possible, since the AGM can handle it.

I talked to the Iota engineers today.  I have the DLS 45 charger in my Jayco hybrid.  It is a mere "single phase" charger - it only puts out a wimpy 13.6V non-stop.

Every 2-or-3 phase charger puts out 14.x for the "charge" phase.

Explaining my situation, I got this:  To maximize charge speed with an AGM battery, I should plug in my dual-stage "over-ride" plug that I found taped to my converter manual.  This will force my charger to output 14.2V non-stop.  It is up to me to remove the plug when my battery is charged.  It also sounds like it will pump much more amps to my battery than running my Honda 2000 generator on the "12 V (8 A)" battery charge option.  This appears it will give more amps to my battery.  I will be able to test it with my trusty "Kill-A-Watt" meter and see how many amps my converter pulls from my generator:


This is what I needed to know.  When running on a generator, with an AGM battery, I wanted to minimize my charge time (it can handle a charge current many TIMES a regular lead-acid).  The engineer does this himself when he dry camps in the desert.

However, when on shore power, you want to use their "IQ4" module.  This will be healthier.  Otherwise, your battery gets a constant 13.6V 24x7x365.  This is not healthy.  With the IQ4, it will periodically discharge and recharge the battery.


Here is my new problem.  My Iota converter is mounted behind a removable wood panel on my back wall.  That means it will be a chore to install and remove the "dual-stage" charger plug!  Wah.  So, I may wire in an external switching unit.

This also explains why my previous deep-cycle marine battery died so fast -- it was never being re-conditioned (which the IQ4 would do).

So, I am now going to see if I can figure out how to wire in an A-B switch, and buy the $30 IQ4 charger.  Then, I can switch to a bulk-charger when running my generator (yay!), and back to the IQ4 for on-battery and shore power situations.