Troubleshooting RV Alternator and Converter Not Charging Battery Bank

Question:

I am not getting a charge on the rv batteries by the alternator or the land power converter/charger. Is this a problem with the charging system or the charging solenoid? does the charge off the alternator go through the converter? The converting side is working when on land power.

asked by: Steven K

Expert Reply:

I would be happy to help!

The charge current coming from the alternator is not going through the converter portion of your your panel as a converter converts AC power from shore power or a generator to DC power for your batteries. Since the alternator on your RV is already setup for DC it does not go through the converter.

First things first you will need to use a multimeter like the # PT89ZR to test the charge wire running from the alternator of your RV to your battery bank to see if it is getting power. If it is then you will need to trace the wire towards the alternator to see if there is a battery isolator like the # DW08770 that may be faulty. You will need to use the multimeter to see if power is making it into the isolator, and then check and see if power is making it through the isolator. If power is not making it through then you will need to replace the isolator.

Now since your converter is not charging your battery bank when hooked up to shore power you will need to test the voltage going into the converter, and then test the voltage coming out of the converter going to the battery bank. If the voltage is different then you likely have a shorting breaker somewhere causing the voltage drop.

Lastly since you have having charging issues with both sides of the charging system you will also want to take a good look at the connections to the battery bank to make sure they are securely connected to your batteries.

Let me know what you find and we can go into more in-depth troubleshooting if needed.