I just have to ask this question.
What happens if I do not disconnect the negative cable for the house batteries when I install this device? I really do not feel like emptying both basement bays and removing the sliding shelves to remove the negative house battery cable then putting it all back together.
Should not be a problem. Just know you are working with live wires. I did not remove it either. When you take the nut off the isolator , don't remove the Battery wire and place the Trik l Start wire on it and it cannot touch anything.
Thanx Barry - Knowing that it is "live" is key. I have often changed switches and outlets at the old stix and brix and figured this might be the same. Just can't touch anything else, ay?
I installed a Trik-L-Start a couple weeks ago with no problems. It was initially floating the chassis batteries at 12.8v. Now they are floating at 12.4v. What does this mean?
Brett,
Doesn't sound like it is and perhaps never was working properly.
Assuming the house bank is at 13+ VDC (plugged in, solar charger, etc), the chassis battery should be reading the same voltage.
Disconnect the lead that goes to the chassis battery, and with house bank verified at 13+, see if you get a reading.
The only other explanation I can think of is that there a load on the chassis battery bank in excess of what the unit can "transfer".
The other Brett
What lights are lit on it?
My tech buddy looked at mine and commented if memory serves me that it was rated at 5 amps and better sized for a gas rv's battery sizes.
Installed a 20 amp rated flow unit unit instead as I have three redtops for the engine.
Bob
The 5 amp unit is just fine for MAINTAINING battery charge.
I agree, it is not intended for battery CHARGING (bringing a dead or partially charged battery up to full charge).
BTW Bob, what 20 amp unit did you use?
Will Have to look. He mentioned thst it was not an outdoor unit normally but the electronics were potted internally according to my service buddy and after adjusting its settings and mounting it in the area in the drivers side rear door and attaching it to the isolator he sealed the openings with sealant that could be removed if needed.
Bob
Dave,
Yup, no lights. Dead in a week. I guess I'll see what the Tril-L-Start warranty service is like.
Brett I used something different after mine died. I will let you know what the name is. It is a latching relay but much more substaintial than trickle start.
Thanks, John, I'll wait to hear.
Brett, I looked at my bill. It was called latching relay. I got it at MOT. It is not a trickle charge but a bit more robust. It cost me 110 bucks to get and it goes on like your trickle charge. I was looking for a model name but will have to get behind the coach to read it. It might be just as easy to call parts and ask them for the name. I can get you the part nmber if they do not have it but they said they were not using trickle charge any longer when I went to buy a replacement. It has worked perfectly since april anyway. I never have to use the boost switch with it.
John,
What is the "trigger" that closes the latching relay. Hopefully, it is a voltage sensing device that connects the battery banks when voltage is above, say 13.0 VDC but (critical part) separates the at lower voltages. If there is no voltage sensing, you are just basically combining both banks and could potentially completely discharge both banks.
yes it works the same way. There is a voltage threshold and it opens up the current. I will have to pull the specs but it works like a trickle start in that manner.
Check ground wire connection as it is needed to run the light. We have tried several high tech and more expensive battery bank 'combiners' and took them all out to use the fool-proof Trik-L-Start, which uses diodes to prevent draining house battery.
All relays that combine two banks have to have electronic voltage monitoring to know when to connect and disconnect and each of the two different combiners I installed have disadvantages relating to when they disconnect. Some have user adjustable voltage set points and some are fixed.
When it comes to keeping a fully charged start battery bank under charge, nothing works better than Trik-L-Start or a simple diode connection. For many years we used a small isolator connecting center post to house and one side post to start bank. I thought we would get more sophisticated and bought a Magnum combiner, which caused us issues, so we switched to Blue Sea and was not happy when battery temps increased, telling our Xantrex to correctly lower charge voltage, which caused Blue Sea do disconnect combining. In hot summer temps, our start battery bank was seldom under charge because of the automatic disconnect. Relay combiners have a place when a 2nd bank needs to be high-amp charged from an alternator, etc, and are a common part of boating charging systems.
Buying a Trik-L-Start solved all our problems, so we believe that diode based combining has benefits for us, over relay based combining, when used to keep start battery bank trickle-charged. We start every time, even after sitting for a month, and never use boost solenoid.
Xantrex Echo charger is a good one for replacing the Trik-l-start.
I have the Xantrax unit in my coach, and even though the green status light is lit, it DOES NOT keep the chassis batteries charged when plugged in to shore power. Has been dead since I bought the coach, cost me a few red-tops thinking it was working......
Had trick-l-start in last coach - just bought one on-line, but thinking of a dedicated on-board battery maintainer/desulfator. Wondering can one unit be used across the three red-tops in parallel? SOmething like a battery tender or guest unit meant to be installed permanently in vehicle.
I had the same issue with the Xantrex Echo Charger-no charging with green light lit. I'll check the ground wire before reordering, once I get up the energy to empty the rear closet again and crawl down on top of the engine. Oh, my aching back!
I use a 5 amp Battery Tender. It is mounted inside the coach on the side on the bed island where I can see the status lights. Works for us. The small smart charger keeps chassis batteries topped up on shore power, generator, or inverter. When on inverter while stopped, I can easily unplug it if that seems appropriate for the conditions.
JD,
That is what I was thinking, or maybe the optima version. Some are temp. Compensated , having in outside ambient would be better I guess, but they are maintainers, not bulk chargers