House battery charging problem

[Ed Schmitt]

House battery charge is fine from AC however the engine alternator does not charge the house battery.

My house battery is located behind the rear tire passenger side
also located in the same area are 4 high amp fuses, the emergency start solenoid and a inline 30 amp fuse.
Under the solenoid is a small black box proximately 3 inches by 3 inches with 3 wires coming out.
The whole box is sealed, no labels.

The emergency start solenoid has the correct voltages on it, engine voltage on one side and house battery
voltage on the other. It also works correctly.

Question
Where can I locate the isolator relay system? The one pictured in the owner manual on page 15
does not look like anything that I can find in the RV.

Does Gulfstream make a parts manual for this unit? 2004 PT Cruiser Model# 5250BT.

[Chuck v]

Ed,


I have that parts lists for a 2006 year model...might be similar enough for it to be useful to you. It is a PDF that I will try to attach here in two parts.


Chuck

[Restorium]

On our MH, when you turn on the key the emergency start solenoid connects the house battery and the engine battery. If the emergency start switch works correctly and the engine battery and house battery systems don't connect when the key is on(not charging) then you have a fuse blown on the ignition to emergency solenoid circuit. That fuse is under the dash near the pedals.

[Ed Schmitt]

Thank you for parts list

[Ed Schmitt]

Restorium thanks for info. I did find a 30 amp fuse down by the pedals, don't know what it connect to but it is good. I started looking around for more after mkt fuses. Found one by the engine battery 5 amp. It was bad, replaced it and things look good right now. Guess I have to wait and see if some thing takes it out.

Do you know where they placed the isolator relay system?

Thanks again for your help.......Ed

[Restorium]

My isolator relay is in the front basement compartment on the driver's side.

One way to find it is; When you press the emergency start button the relay clicks. It also clicks when I turn on the key switch. The energizing wire is white. We have different models and different years there may be differences in the system and location. The key might be hunting for the 'click' when you press the emergency start button.

[jamesham]

On my 96 Gulf Stream motorhome the house battery is on the passenger side by the door, but the "charging" solenoid is mounted on the outside wall of the first basement storage compartment on the driver's side. Took a lot of wire tracing to find it....just follow the large 4 gauge battery cables. The ignition switch "trigger" for the solenoid was a yellow wire clamped off the rear of the inside automotive fuse panel under the dash on the driver's side.

This position for the solenoid was kind of stupid thinking by Gulf Stream because it is exposed to all kinds of weather and out of sight for inspection. But it took 14 years for it to fail, so it must have been rugged. Replaced with a standard 100amp 12 volt auto starter solenoid so hope for another 14 years of use.
[QUOTE=Ed Schmitt;27364]House battery charge is fine from AC however the engine alternator does not charge the house battery.

[Restorium]

[QUOTE=jamesham;27424]On my 96 Gulf Stream motorhome the house battery is on the passenger side by the door, but the "charging" solenoid is mounted on the outside wall of the first basement storage compartment on the driver's side. Took a lot of wire tracing to find it....just follow the large 4 gauge battery cables. The ignition switch "trigger" for the solenoid was a yellow wire clamped off the rear of the inside automotive fuse panel under the dash on the driver's side.

This position for the solenoid was kind of stupid thinking by Gulf Stream because it is exposed to all kinds of weather and out of sight for inspection. But it took 14 years for it to fail, so it must have been rugged. Replaced with a standard 100amp 12 volt auto starter solenoid so hope for another 14 years of use.[QUOTE]


A starter solenoid is designed to be on for only a short time. The right solenoid for the job is one designed to be on for extended times. If you use the starter solenoid it will burn out. Look for one that is described 'continuous duty cycle'.
Like this one;
https://www.walmart.com/ip/NEW-12V-150A-CONTINUOUS-DUTY-SOLENOID-RELAY-FOR-GOLF-CARTS-300A-IN-RUSH-1114208/184081686?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=1134&adid=22222222227048897229&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=146902899258&wl4=aud-566049426705:pla-259848050095&wl5=9017139&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=112343853&wl11=online&wl12=184081686&wl13=&veh=sem&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIgrGo_rbm4AIVgcDACh0Faw1tEAQYBSAB EgJjz_D_BwE

[jamesham]

Good point made about buying continuous duty solenoid.
To be clear, mine only looks like the 100amp ones used by Ford in the 60s mounted on the firewall to crank the engine. In reality, mine is a very heavy duty solenoid designed for continuous duty with more amp capacity than Alternator or cables. Cheapest on Amazon if not in a rush for delivery. Actually made in the USA...what a surprise.

A more modern alternative would be a large battery isolator that is really nothing more than a very big one-way diode with a big heat sink. No relay contacts to corrode or burn, but more expensive.

[QUOTE=Restorium;27426][QUOTE=jamesham;27424]
A starter solenoid is designed to be on for only a short time. The right solenoid for the job is one designed to be on for extended times. If you use the starter solenoid it will burn out. Look for one that is described 'continuous duty cycle'.
Like this one;
[url]https://www.walmart.com/ip/NEW-12V-150A-CONTINUOUS-DUTY-SOLENOID-RELAY-FOR-GOLF-CARTS-