Re: Battery related assistance
Reply #1 –
First, let me say that you are lucky to have the 12V wiring schematic. it will make sorting the electrical system much easier.
1. Your battery charger should charge the coach battery when you are connected to shore power, or when you run the generator. It will not charge the engine start battery unless the boost switch is ON. I'm not sure where your battery charger is located, but I would look in all the storage bays. Look on the walls, and on the ceilings, of all the bays. You'll recognize it by the two big battery cables ( + and - ) that are attached, and it should be plugged into a wall socket. If you find it, check the power cord to see if it is getting 115V power. There might be a circuit breaker on the charger - check that. Your wiring diagram shows the big positive cable from the charger goes through a 80(?) amp breaker on the way to the coach battery. You'll need to find the breaker, and see if it is popped. It may be a auto reset breaker, or it may be manual reset.
2. Don't worry about the shutoff switch next to the door (it's called the "salesman switch" on this Forum) right now. Get the other stuff lined out and then you can work on figuring out the wiring on the switch.
3. Yes - the batteries should be isolated from each other. This is the function of the battery isolator. It allows the alternator to charge both batteries when engine is running, but keeps the batteries separated when the engine is not running. It is possible the isolator has been removed, or replaced with some other device, or is improperly wired, or is malfunctioning. Anything is possible with these old coaches. If you can find the isolator, we can tell you how to do a simple test to see if it is working properly.