Joined from Atlanta

[UCF_Citronaut]

Hello, I'm new to the forum and new to RV'ing.
We are soon-to-be retired couple looking forward to many road travels, Harvest Host stays, State Parks. Spouse not a fan of flying so will be our preferred mode of travel.

Just had our break-in trip overnight at Lake Lanier, GA. Purchased a 2020 Vista Cruiser two months ago. Came with some extras like a new mattress, backup camera, WDH, new battery (more on this later), mouse proofed, roof resealed.

Beautiful site with lake views and well-maintained full hookup site.

I was determined not be one of the stories of new campers with broken stuff on day one.
1st day went great. All appliances worked, 12 V and 120 V systems kicked in. Spouse is a quiltmaker so we were cozy and comfy all night.

Next morning not so great- temps in the upper 20's. Woke up to find lights dimmed and flickering and furnace shutting off.
Uh-oh. I wrongly assumed an issue with the campground power grid since all 80 sites were booked and there was high demand with the cold temps. Checked battery- empty.

After trips to Walmart for replacement battery and a voltmeter, I determined either a broken inverter/charger or a hidden blown fuse somewhere.
So it appears the battery had just enough juice to run the furnace fan, radio for the GA_GA Tech game and a light for about 9 hours.

So much for escaping day one travails. Can't get worse right???
Will ask for advice in the TT section.

 

[proost]

Hey! Welcome to the forum and congrats on your purchase! Love Lake Lanier!!

My guess is that your converter is having an issue. That converts the 110V coming from the grid to 12V which charges your batteries. If that's out, you will drain your batteries and your furnace won't work since it's on. It might have been worth trying to recharge your batteries than buying. new one but if it's original to the camper, it may be time. Let me know if you have any questions.

Lastly, if you've ever been interested in shifting over to LiFePO4 or Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries (which will outlive your coach and give you twice the capacity of an AGM battery), Redodo is selling theirs on Amazon for $169/ea. These are fantastic and well built batteries - they are super light - and amazing. They are meant to be drop-in replacements to your AGMs but it does help to have a converter that can be optimized for Lithium to give you that extra bump. Let me know or others here if you have any questions.

Welcome to the Board!!