coach battery

[Warwickmc]

I have to run engine about 15 minutes before lights and other coach functions work. There is a cutoff swith on the coach battery. Should I cut battery off when parked. This is opposite of my former Itasca which had two coach batteries. My BT cruiser only has one.

[jayme]

I leave my battery switch on all winter (not in use) and have no problem running lights etc on spring start up. Your battery ( if not run down) should run 12 volt lights etc. Maybe have your house battery load tested to see if it is holding charge?

[Warwickmc]

Thanks for the info. I will have it tested

[Leisure Time Larry]

Yes, you should shut off your battery kill switch when the RV is not in use and is not plugged in, or connected to a battery charger/maintainer. There are small draws that will continue to be pulled otherwise, like the LP detector, some smoke or carbon monoxide detectors, and circuit boards that use 12 volt power such as the one in the refrigerator.

It sounds like your battery was drained all the way. If it is not a sealed type, check the water levels, and if low, top up with distilled water. Then either plug in the RV to shore power to have the converter charge up the battery, or charge it yourself separately.

After it is fully charged, you can have it tested. Good luck!

[McKannick]

I'll side with Larry here. I see two possible reasons the house battery(s) won't hold a charge. (I'm assuming you're talking going dead while parked and unoccupied?) First the battery may have been deeply discharged (it seems) and has a issue with holding a charge long enough to be of much use. Next the constant small drains on the battery combined with the lowered capacity of the battery causes it to go dead quickly. Here's a link to some videos on batteries and maintenance tips https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJrSr54OyfY

I'll assume you're the original owner? If not and the battery was replaced with an ordinary car or truck battery, that will be a continuous problem, as a car battery is designed to give a massive burst of amperage to crank a vehicle, not supply a constant demand of power that your house battery should. If it's not a sufficiently rated amp/hour battery for your rig, even if it is a deep cycle battery, that can also be a problem as the load overwhelms a lesser output battery. You'll have to find that info from your rig's manual.