Batteries are a commonly overlooked item when it comes to RV maintenance. Winter can be an especially hard time on your batteries. If you understand what kills a battery and perform some simple preventive maintenance, you can keep them healthy and functional for longer.
Batteries should last five to seven years. This complete guide to RV batteries will help you prevent having to change your batteries too often, leaving you more money in your pocket for camping trip
Why is Winter Especially Hard on RV Batteries?
Cold weather is hard on RV batteries, and you are less likely to be using your RV in the winter, which may mean your batteries are not recharging regularly. This is a double whammy for your batteries.
For lead acid batteries, cold temperatures slow the chemical reactions involved in energy production. You may experience slower charging and reduced capacity. If the battery fully discharges and then freezes, it can be permanently damaged.
Lithium-ion batteries also face challenges in the winter. First, the battery management system (BMS) will prevent charging when the temperature is too cold. Plus, freezing temperatures can cause them to short-circuit if lithium metal collects on the anode, causing a fire hazard.
Follow the tips below to help maintain your batteries through the winter–and beyond.
How To Prevent RV Battery Issues
The best way to prevent battery issues is to properly store, maintain, and charge your batteries. Here are some tips:
- Top off batteries monthly: If possible, plug the RV in for about 8 hours every month to recharge and top the batteries off.
- Remove batteries from RV or use the battery disconnect switch: Either option prevents parasitic loads from draining the battery; however, they will still self-discharge (more on this below). Test the battery’s state of charge every month, and recharge any battery that is at or below 70 percent.
- Keep the battery on a maintainer: Battery maintainers, like those from BatteryMINDer or Battery Tender, can continually charge a removed battery without concern of overcharging.
- Use your RV regularly: Last but certainly not least, you can use and enjoy your RV at least once a month and let the batteries get charged that way.
Additional Tips for RV Battery Care
Here are a few more tips to keep your batteries in tip-top shape:
- Periodically check and adjust the water level in your lead-acid batteries. If you do need to add water to the battery, only use mineral-free water (distilled water is best). Fill the battery cell to 1/8 inch below the vent well. Remember to always wear rubber gloves and eye protection when working around lead-acid batteries.
- Always recharge a discharged battery as soon as possible. The longer a dead battery sits without a charge, the more damage you will cause to the life of the battery.
- Buy batteries from a reputable brand. Battery quality varies. A high-quality battery will last longer and have a better warranty.
- If you’ll be storing your RV away from home at a storage facility for extended periods of time, consider keeping the battery at your house. This way, you can properly maintain it so it doesn’t fully discharge.
What about Lithium-Ion RV Batteries?
Lithium-ion batteries require different care than lead acid batteries.
- First, they shouldn’t be stored at 100-percent charge. Instead, charge them to around 50 to 80 percent for storage.
- Occasionally check to see if the charge has dropped. Lithium-ion batteries lose around two-to-three percent of charge per month when properly stored. If the charge drops below 50 percent, recharge the battery.
Resolving Battery Challenges
Want to learn more about common battery issues? Here are a few common problems that lead to battery failures:
Issue 1: Sulfation And Under-Charging
Sulfation is the number one cause for lead-acid battery failure. When you use a battery, small crystals of sulfuric acid start forming on the plates in the battery. This is normal, and when the battery is charged on a regular basis, these crystals convert back into active plate material.
The problem starts when a battery remains in a low state of charge for an extended period of time. The longer a battery goes without a charge, the larger the sulfate crystals get—until finally the battery is ruined. This can happen regardless of the battery’s age. The important thing to remember is to always recharge a discharged battery in a timely manner.
Issue 2: Parasitic Loads
There are numerous electronic devices and equipment in your RV that can drain the battery when you are not using the RV. These are referred to as parasitic loads and they slowly drain the battery, even when you are confident nothing was left on in the RV.
Here are a few items that can drain your RV battery when it’s not being charged or regularly used:
- TV antenna booster
- Carbon monoxide and propane detector
- Electric circuit boards, like those in many appliances
- Lights that are accidentally left on
Issue 3: Self-Discharge
Did you know that batteries will self-discharge while in storage, even without parasitic loads? It’s not uncommon for a battery to discharge up to 10 percent a month when not used. At that rate, it won’t take long to completely discharge the battery. If the battery is not recharged, sulfation starts forming and the battery will eventually die.
Issue 4: Over-Charging
While you want to avoid discharging your battery, you also don’t want to overcharge it. Your RV has a converter with a built-in battery charger. Once the battery has been fully charged, the charger switches over to a float or maintenance charge to keep the battery in a fully charged condition. The float charge is roughly 13.2 volts, and it prevents the battery from overcharging.
Maintaining a float charge on the battery is extremely important. The problem is that some older and less expensive RV converter chargers provide a constant charge of about 13.5 volts, which is too high for fully-charged batteries. Keeping an RV battery on a full charge rate instead of a float will eventually result in an early death for the battery.
