battery issue

[chin_k]

I am a complete newbie when it come to the flooded battery. I usually use AGM, but there are two huge Interstate batteries in the coach. I have three questions:

1, is it normal for you to get some liquid on the bottom of the battery tray after you drive around? It seems to me that some of the acid in the batteries somehow spill out when the rig move around. I can test the pH to confirm, but I am sure it is not water leak.

2, is there a place where I can bring my battery to to have it serviced? Meaning they will add water to it, etc.. For one of the Interstate batteries, I can see the level thru the translucent case, and one of the partitions is noticeably lower than the others, maybe by 1/2 inch.

3, the other battery have even liquid level, but it is not hold charge anymore. The best I can do is to get it all the way to 12+, but it will drop down to 10.2 V relatively quickly. Is there a way for me to revive it, or it is pretty much ruined?

[Scott]

1) I would not consider that to be normal. At least I've never seen it. Has anyone else? Are the caps secure? That's something that needs to be corrected.

2) You can do it yourself. It's super easy. Top off with distilled water. Just be careful, and wear eye protection. If you don't have convenient easy access, and you plan on sticking with flooded cells, look into getting an irrigation system. Makes it much faster, easier, foolproof.

3) Unfortunately, it's probably toast. I'd just replace them both. Bring the old ones with you and make sure to get your rebate for the cores. You can get a pair of flooded 6V deep cycle batts for a little more than $300 (I'm biased though).

Good luck.

[Roly]

I agree with Scott's reply. Maybe the batteries were overfilled in the past.

You might also want to shake some baking soda onto the water at the bottom of the tray to neutralize it. I recall that tray has a drain, but the bottom is not really sloped to it.

I have dealt with flooded batteries for decades, but recently went to AGM, and the convenience is huge. Here is what I eventually ordered: from VMAXTANKS.COM:

SLR125 12Volts, 125AH Deep Cycle, Solar AGM Battery. $299.99
Qualifies for Quantity Discounts, Free Shipping within the 48 States and 10% Off Your First Order.

250 AH total, and they can fit under the couch inside. Nearly twice the price of those flooded golf batteries, less 10%. (I'm not shilling for these guys, just saying what I bought.)

Roly

[chin_k]

Thank you gentlemen.

I guess I will look into instruction as to how high the acid level should be, and inspect the battery case to make sure here is no crack. I don't think there is any crack, since it would have drain the liquid considerably more.

The bad thing about the liquid spill is that it corroded the battery tray. It was spilling for a while when I brought it from PO, and so I removed the batteries, and fixed the tray by cleaning it and repainting it. But it still continue to leak, and I was assuming that it is normal, until now.

There are four caps on the top where you can use to add the water, and it appears to be tight. I think I will pay more attention in inspecting them.

[SMan]

Never had any acid overflow a battery in the Chinook (or other RV's I've owned). I have had water in the bottom of the compartment (not in the tray).

FWIW I use a turkey baster to add distilled water to my batteries so as to not overfill and slop into the tray.

[Jlfchinook]

If you are getting moisture around batteries it is a good chance that your battery charger is boiling it out. Charger should go into trickle charge after batteries reach full charge. If you have a bad battery charger my never see a full charge and not go into trickle mode causing battery to boil water out.

[chin_k]

I see the liquid every time when I come back from a trip. I don't think it is the solar charger boiling it, since I usually disconnect my coach batteries when I am at home.

The most rational explanation is that the caps are not tight. I will do that once I am done with some of the mechanical things that I need to do.