Advice for keeping batteries over winter?

[skloon]

I pulled all 4 batteries out of my coach- 3 for the house and one for the engine- I only have 1 charger and they will be stored in an unheated garage in northern Alberta- any hints to keep them alive- other than put the charger on each for 1 day per month as I will forget after the first month

[boohoo222]

I leave my batteries hooked up in rv all year butt while sitting I hook up shumacher model sc2 automatic batt charger/maintainer, one for starting batt...one for batteries in parallel.......$24.95 each

[Rickf1985]

I leave all mine in the RV and leave the RV plugged in. I have a Boondocker charger/converter and it maintains them all winter. I have a Battery Tender on the chassis battery and I could just plug that into one of the coach outlets but I start it up once or twice over the winter so that battery stays up that way.

[M & J]

Ditto what Rick said.

[Rickf1985]

And with that Boondocker plugged in pretty much all the time for the last three years I have not had to add a drop to the batteries. It must be doing a good job at maintaining.

[skloon]

Keeping the rig plugged in is a no go- it's about 2km to the nearest plugin- I think I would go broke leaving the generator running over winter

[Oz]

I really didn't have a good situation to keep mine plugged in either.  So, I thought, not only do the batteries need maintained, the entire RV should really be "exercised" on a regular basis.  I would run the RV every week to two weeks at the most.  Let it warm up, idle it up about 1,000rpm and keep it there for about 5 minutes using this incredibly advanced mechanism (a 2"x2" stuck on the gas pedal and held down to the desired position by the armrest of my driver's seat).  I would then drive it around the a few neighborhood blocks before parking it and would put it in reverse and forward, and back a few times (don't know if that did any actual good, but it seemed like a good idea). 


Oh yes, when I first start it, I would turn on the refrigerator and the furnace.  I would also light each of the stove burners and the oven as well (once a month).  Total time of actually running the engine was about a half an hour.  If it was snowed in or I just didn't feel like driving around the neighborhood because of the cold, I would at least put it forward and reverse and work the brakes.

[CapnDirk]

OZ brings up a point I had not thought of.  Last winter I did exercise things by starting the engine and generator (everything else had been winterized and I had no problems come spring).  However sticking it in forward and reverse would send warm fluid to the clutch packs and through the pump(s) solenoids and valve body.


I like it!   


And no doubt OZs neighbors think he is doing it as some sort of ritual (driving around the neighborhood) to summon the gods of spring.   :)rotflmao

[legomybago]

I leave all mine in the RV and leave the RV plugged in. I have a Boondocker charger/converter and it maintains them all winter. I have a Battery Tender on the chassis battery and I could just plug that into one of the coach outlets but I start it up once or twice over the winter so that battery stays up that way.

This is exactly what I do.

I really didn't have a good situation to keep mine plugged in either.  So, I thought, not only do the batteries need maintained, the entire RV should really be "exercised" on a regular basis.  I would run the RV every week to two weeks at the most.  Let it warm up, idle it up about 1,000rpm and keep it there for about 5 minutes using this incredibly advanced mechanism (a 2"x2" stuck on the gas pedal and held down to the desired position by the armrest of my driver's seat).  I would then drive it around the a few neighborhood blocks before parking it and would put it in reverse and forward, and back a few times (don't know if that did any actual good, but it seemed like a good idea). 


Oh yes, when I first start it, I would turn on the refrigerator and the furnace.  I would also light each of the stove burners and the oven as well (once a month).  Total time of actually running the engine was about a half an hour.  If it was snowed in or I just didn't feel like driving around the neighborhood because of the cold, I would at least put it forward and reverse and work the brakes.

This is truly the way we should all do it, even if you have your rig plugged in. I try to practice this, but sometimes my rig doesn't get started/moved for a couple months at a time. If you cant get to the rig for say 4-5 months? I would pull the batteries and take them home with you and keep them warm, where you can at least trickle charge them for a couple days a month.

[Rickf1985]

Typed up a big long solution with several options and it went POOF! Gone with the wind!  I will try again later.

[Oz]

Typed up a big long solution with several options and it went POOF! Gone with the wind!  I will try again later.

You need to stop writing your replies on parchment paper over the camp fire...

[uglydukwling]

I try to charge the batteries in my stored equipment every month. I probably get around to it every other month, on the average.

If I forget, it should be no big deal. A battery in good condition discharges pretty slowly. If it's fully charged when you put it away, and disconnected to eliminate the possibility of an undetected load draining it, it should come through the winter just fine. If it doesn't, it was probably almost worn out and due for replacement anyway.

[Rickf1985]

You need to stop writing your replies on parchment paper over the camp fire...

True that.  As said above, a good and clean battery will come through the winter just fine on it's own if it is in fully charged condition when stored. If it is 4-5 years old then it is probably about due for replacement anyway.