Re-Wiring the converter

[stewartlittle]

I think mine has a centeron 3000 or something like that in it.

I heard that those use more power from the battery than most others,even if nothing is running.It just draws power.

Would it be OK to re-wire it so that when I dry camp it will use power straight from the battery instead of goin thru the converter?

Maybe have a on/off switch that would let me use the converter while plugged to shore power?

[AustinBoston]

I think mine has a centeron 3000 or something like that in it.

I heard that those use more power from the battery than most others,even if nothing is running.It just draws power.

Would it be OK to re-wire it so that when I dry camp it will use power straight from the battery instead of goin thru the converter?

Maybe have a on/off switch that would let me use the converter while plugged to shore power?

How old is it?  Any electronics engineer that can't design a converter that uses only negligible amounts of battery power (single-digit milliamps or less) when idle should find a new career.  That may not have been true 40 years ago, but it is today (and even was 20 years ago).

I know my converter uses so little power when idle that the propane detector completely overshadows anything the converter might use.

Austin

[stewartlittle]

It's a '99 Jayco,and the guy said that they only made them for a year or two and discontinued them.It might not be the 3000,maybe before that one.

I did'nt say it was a power hog,just he said used more power than some others.I dont know how to measure how much amps,milliamps and all that,so you loose me when start talkin like that.

But why should it use power if nothing is on in the first place?
Exept maybe the propane detector.

[AustinBoston]

It's a '99 Jayco,and the guy said that they only made them for a year or two and discontinued them.It might not be the 3000,maybe before that one.

I did'nt say it was a power hog,just he said used more power than some others.I dont know how to measure how much amps,milliamps and all that,so you loose me when start talkin like that.

But why should it use power if nothing is on in the first place?
Exept maybe the propane detector.

All idling circuits use some power.  It may be extremely small.   Micro and picoamp (millionths and even billionths of an amp) are not uncommon today (depending on a lot of factors).  I'm not talking power converters here.  At those levels, the battery iteself will use much more power just sitting there.

The converter, when connected to battery, needs to use enough power to know that it's not connected to 120V and to switch over automatically if it does become connected.  OTOH, a good designer would have made sure that power came from the converter.

If it has LED's that are on when 12V power is available (a bad design IMHO), they will use power.  A better design would be an LED that indicates which fuse is blown or when 120V is on.

Austin

[stewartlittle]

OK,just got the phone with some one about that converter.He said it uses about 65 milliamps (what ever that means) where as an Elixir brand would use 6-10 milliamps,that seem like a big differeance.

[wavery]

I think mine has a centeron 3000 or something like that in it.

I heard that those use more power from the battery than most others,even if nothing is running.It just draws power.

Would it be OK to re-wire it so that when I dry camp it will use power straight from the battery instead of goin thru the converter?

Maybe have a on/off switch that would let me use the converter while plugged to shore power?

It would be possible to run a separate circuit for use when dry camping. It would entail a separate fuse panel and a 3-way switch.

You could have it so that it runs off of the battery direct...completely off...or from the converter.

I'm not sure what you are trying to accomplish though. The draw from the converter is negligible. If you are having problems with your battery going dead, I would suggest that you may have a problem with the battery. If your battery is good, maybe you need to carry a spare (fully charged) battery.

65 milliamps is (nearly) nothing.

How do you charge your battery before you dry camp?

How often do you check the water in your battery?

Have you had the battery checked with a hydrometer?

[stewartlittle]

How do you charge your battery before you dry camp?   Put it on a 1.5 amp charger a few days before,the green charged light comes on.

How often do you check the water in your battery?    It's full,try to check it before each charge.

Have you had the battery checked with a hydrometer?    No,I dont even know what that is.But you dont have to explain,I'll google it.


What is a fuse panel,like a inline fuse on battery lead or something with several fuses for each appliance?

Back in June I charged it up,let some people use it for 5 days at a fireworks stand.They only use it to sleep in,one would sleep and one to stand guard.
I popped it I popped it up to dry from rain,put it back down.Then about two weeks of sittin,I was gonna work on the plumbing and the lights would'nt work,battery was dead.Probly no big deal but I dont want it to use more juice than it has to.

Maybe I might need to invest in a battery meter.

If camping with power,I could get by with just a charger to top it off,only time we use power is for water,and use the lights very little before going to bed.We outside the rest of the time.

[wavery]

How do you charge your battery before you dry camp?   Put it on a 1.5 amp charger a few days before,the green charged light comes on.

How often do you check the water in your battery?    It's full,try to check it before each charge.

Have you had the battery checked with a hydrometer?    No,I dont even know what that is.But you dont have to explain,I'll google it.


What is a fuse panel,like a inline fuse on battery lead or something with several fuses for each appliance?

Back in June I charged it up,let some people use it for 5 days at a fireworks stand.They only use it to sleep in,one would sleep and one to stand guard.
I popped it I popped it up to dry from rain,put it back down.Then about two weeks of sittin,I was gonna work on the plumbing and the lights would'nt work,battery was dead.Probly no big deal but I dont want it to use more juice than it has to.

Maybe I might need to invest in a battery meter.

If camping with power,I could get by with just a charger to top it off,only time we use power is for water,and use the lights very little before going to bed.We outside the rest of the time.

Having it set-up for 5 days without recharging the battery is a LOT.

I would give the battery a full charge with a 3-stage charger and keep it charged up.

If you insist on eliminating the converter from your 12V circuit, you could merely put an in-line fuse to the lights and a separate one to the w/pump. If you have a furnace, that will need a fuse also. A fuse block like this just makes it a cleaner, easier job:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/8-Gang-Fuse-Block-Panel-w-cover-w-fuses_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ50437QQihZ011QQitemZ320152212702QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW
or
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/3-GANG-WATERPROOF-BOAT-RV-CIRCUIT-BREAKER-PANEL-10013_W0QQitemZ260154890162QQihZ016QQcategoryZ50437QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

If you go with this concept, you might as well throw away your converter and put in a 110v circuit breaker panel to take it's place. It is much smaller and lighter. It would free up a lot of cabinet space, where your converter is.:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CIRCUIT-BREAKER-PANEL-MARINE-120-VOLT-AC_W0QQitemZ190145903269QQihZ009QQcategoryZ50437QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Here are some AC/DC crcuit breakers that you could make your own panel out of:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/15-AMP-AC-DC-PUSH-BUTTON-PANEL-CIRCUIT-BREAKER-13131_W0QQitemZ300145986150QQihZ020QQcategoryZ26455QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem

Then when you are camping with hook-ups, you could just leave the battery charger plugged in. However, I don't think that it's worth the effort.

[AustinBoston]

Then when you are camping with hook-ups, you could just leave the battery charger plugged in. However, I don't think that it's worth the effort.

Particulary when, at 65 mA, the converter takes nearly 15 hours to use as much power as a single 12V bulb uses in an hour.

Austin

[wavery]

Particulary when, at 65 mA, the converter takes nearly 15 hours to use as much power as a single 12V bulb uses in an hour.

Austin

I agree whole heartedly.....however.....I must admit that I have been thinking about doing the same thing myself  but for different reasons.

I don't like the amount of room that the converter takes up and, quite frankly, the whole concept makes little sense to me.  I agree with stewartlittle. I'd rather just leave my 15A 3-stage smart-charger on the battery if I am camped with hook-ups (which is rare).

The problem that I have with the converter is that it #1, takes up WAY too much space. #2 mine only puts out 12.6V. If I have the battery charger on the battery, I will be getting well over 13V most of the time. I don't like it when we run the water and the lights dim etc. The fact is, most 12v items are designed to run at their peak at about 13.8V (That's the voltage that your car has when it is running).

I want to install a cassette-toilet in our PU. If I get that converter out of there, I can do it without sacrificing too much cabinet space.

[AustinBoston]

I agree whole heartedly.....however.....I must admit that I have been thinking about doing the same thing myself  but for different reasons.

I don't like the amount of room that the converter takes up and, quite frankly, the whole concept makes little sense to me.  I agree with stewartlittle. I'd rather just leave my 15A 3-stage smart-charger on the battery if I am camped with hook-ups (which is rare).

OK, but that would be a step DOWN for me...my converter has a 25A 3-stage output (so you know how I was thinking).

The problem that I have with the converter is that it #1, takes up WAY too much space. #2 mine only puts out 12.6V.

Uh, now THAT would be a problem.  Since the battery should already put out between 12.6-12.7V when fully charged, the best your converter would do is share the load with the battery, not handle it, so even with the converter, the battery is being drained.  When the load is turned off, you then have a converter that can AT BEST dribble a little charge back into the battery.  I can see why you find it, um, unsatisfactory.

If I have the battery charger on the battery, I will be getting well over 13V most of the time. I don't like it when we run the water and the lights dim etc. The fact is, most 12v items are designed to run at their peak at about 13.8V (That's the voltage that your car has when it is running).

Our cars are not that old - 14.4V is the standard today for motor vehicles.

I want to install a cassette-toilet in our PU. If I get that converter out of there, I can do it without sacrificing too much cabinet space.

Our converter doesn't take up that much space - half of it is under the furnace.  But I can see why you would want to rip that thing out of there.

BTW, when we get everything going - including 4 lights (total 6 bulbs), furnace, a couple 12V fans, and then the water pump comes on, the lights dim, and that is with a 25A converter.  Don't think what you are thinking of will solve your dimming problem (though it should make it better).

Austin