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Electrical Systems, Charging and Solar Electrical components and wiring, batteries, charging systems, generators and solar topics.
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Old 02-24-2013, 10:37 PM   #1
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Default Why isn't the battery charging?

Look for a rocker switch right inside of the door. It's probably between the drawers and the door. Make sure it's on. If you are plugged into shore power or house power, you will probably hear the fan in the charger come on if the battery is low and the switch is on. Also check the fuses in the power converter below the A/C. Might try wiggling them (the 12 volt ones) to see if power comes on or check them and see if anything is "blown". Suggest that you keep the 12 battery and not change it to 2 6 volt batteries. I believe the Mojo used a "smart charger" and it probably won't overcharge the battery. This is going to be a simple fix... hopefully =)
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Old 02-24-2013, 10:47 PM   #2
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THANK YOU for that specific information. With no manual (and they never made one for the Mojo) figuring it out is not so easy. Prior to this I camped in tents.

There is a switch by the door. Whatever position it is in, I will flip it the other direction and see if that works. I think I figured out the other switch is the pump back when I had power. I had thought the one by the door was lights or something.

I had found the fuses before and none looked blown, but when I plug it in again in the morning I will double check.

So since the battery is completely dead, any ideas how long it takes to completely charge if flipping the switch works (well presuming the battery isn't trashed - it did work before).

Carolyn
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Old 02-25-2013, 09:08 AM   #3
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HI Carolyn; There are a number of questions you need to answer in order for us to help you. Has the dead battery been outside in freezing weather, this will trash it? Have you taken the battery to a auto parts store to have them test it? Have you purchased a multimeter to check both AC and DC voltages and do you know how to use it? Do all of the lights and receptacles work when plugged into house power? Do you know if the RV has both AC lights and DC lights? What city and state do you live in. There may be knowledgeable forum members living close-by who could help you. This should not be a difficult problem to work thru. I will try to send you a email or private message thru the forum. Hope this helps.
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Old 02-25-2013, 09:38 AM   #4
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When plugged in everything works

Battery was outside but I live in only 2 hours from the gulf of mexico (in MS) so below freezing weather is rare and this winter has been especially warm I hadn't thought to disconnect the battery to bring inside. Instead I had plugged it into my house once a month - but stupidly not checking anything else to see if things were actually charging.

I have not yet bought the battery checker or taken the battery in to be checked. I had that feels like the flu but isn't the flue for 6 weeks and have just been too tired on top of working. Dealing with this and the leak where the hinge is to lift the top (have a tarp over it, someone smeared it with caulk, which is cracked and so it is leaking at those cracks. I think the solution is to find a 6" strip of something flat to attach on the uphill side - is a mojo - that will cover the downhill side, presuming it won't blow up with air catching under it and then tear it off while driving down the road) is on my to do list in the next week or so.

Carolyn
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Old 02-25-2013, 10:00 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JIM L View Post
HI Carolyn; There are a number of questions you need to answer in order for us to help you. Has the dead battery been outside in freezing weather, this will trash it? Have you taken the battery to a auto parts store to have them test it? Have you purchased a multimeter to check both AC and DC voltages and do you know how to use it? Do all of the lights and receptacles work when plugged into house power? Do you know if the RV has both AC lights and DC lights? What city and state do you live in. There may be knowledgeable forum members living close-by who could help you. This should not be a difficult problem to work thru. I will try to send you a email or private message thru the forum. Hope this helps.
PS greater Jackson Ms area. All lights that ran off the battery run when plugged into the house so those are all DC, correct? I could plug a light into an outlet while plugged in to see if the wall plugs work.

Carolyn
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Old 02-25-2013, 04:14 PM   #6
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Default Yipee it was the switch

Not sure if it was turning on the switch by the door or the one on the side of where the sink is (not the one that is for the fridge) - think it was the one by the door think the other one turns on the water pump - but the battery is charging!!! Yipee!. Now I need to buy one of those things to check to see if it gets high enough (had to unplug due to it starting to rain and the plug on the side of my house is not in a protected area) that I haven't trashed the battery in terms of running it to dead. And get a trickle charger. And make sure it is a smart inverter on it if I am trickle charging.

Anyone have a solar one they'd recommend to trickle charge? Also am I right in thinking that you lose a significant amount of the energy in a solar panel (eg most of it) if the sunlight isn't direct? I thought I had read even 5% of the panel in shade cut the amount of power available dramatically more than 5%.

Also anyone suggest a regular trickle charger for bringing the battery inside in the winter (mild winters here, but still that would make sense to do).

I want to thank everyone for their help. As a newbe with no manual (they didn't make one) who has never had anything like this, it makes it harder not to do something stupid/ignorant.

Carolyn
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Old 02-25-2013, 06:04 PM   #7
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Default Glad it worked.

That switch just takes the battery out of service. With it off, you can't use it to power lights, water pump, fridge, heater etc. You also can't charge it from the built-in charger with it off. If the big power cord is not going to be plugged in for a really long time, you may want to switch the battery off as there is probably a propane detector running all the time which may pull it down a bit. I'd go with getting a digital multitester of some sort just to have if you ever need it. Harbor freight and places like Walmart should have them for less than 10 bux (7 Function Multimeter). As far as the trickle chargers and solar chargers, you may want to put the money you would spend on those into a cigar box for when that battery finally goes kaput. Remember that it's not a regular car battery. It may be called a marine battery or something similar that's made to be drawn down and recharged. Car batteries don't like that. I'd leave the battery in the box and hooked up if you are in a warmer climate. Sooner or later, you'll be taking it out and drop it on your foot and end up with a much larger bill than whatever a new battery would cost. I'd trust the on-board charger to be a smart charger that won't destroy the battery from overcharging. Keep it as simple as possible and have fun
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Old 02-25-2013, 06:27 PM   #8
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If you want to use the on board charger plug the trailer into a timer after you get the battery charged up. Have the timer set to charge one hour or less per day. That way the battery will get a short daily charge and it won't get over cooked.

The battery maintainer chargers are most ideal in my opinion, they can be hooked on and plugged in and left without danger of overcharging.

If you have to invest good money in a new battery you want to make sure not to overcharge it. So the layout for a small charger may save you money in the long run. Actually, if you have a good battery, you should only have to plug in the trailer once a month for a half day or so to keep the battery up to snuff.
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