Onan 4000 Gen

[jtkamin]

Removed starter battery in xplorer 230 xlw due to battery drain. Charge went fine, installed, started rv drove it for 2hrs. 2hrs later the Onan gen start/stop switch, both in the rv and on the gen, were lighted and clicking. Didn't start gen, instead disconnected the battery negative cable. Suggestions as to what is cause and fix.

[hbn7hj]

This whole forum is about running an RV off grid. You have a lot of reading to do.

This is just a start. Look through past topics and read those, too.
https://handybobsolar.wordpress.com/...ging-puzzle-2/

In your case you probably have a second battery that is not getting charged. For an Explorer I think it also is under the hood.

[jtkamin]

Originally Posted by hbn7hj

This whole forum is about running an RV off grid. You have a lot of reading to do.

This is just a start. Look through past topics and read those, too.
https://handybobsolar.wordpress.com/...ging-puzzle-2/

In your case you probably have a second battery that is not getting charged. For an Explorer I think it also is under the hood.

I'm sorry, I assumed that since this thread was "Electrical,- Charging, Systems, Solar, Generators" a question regarding electrical, systems and generators was appropriate since other questions in this threaf was regarding issues that weren't specific to solar.

[hbn7hj]

You are correct. You are in the right place. All the info you need has already been posted. I’m just trying to direct you to it rather than repeat it.

Same for pasusan. All the answers are here. We would rather steer you to other threads than repeat everything.

You can run an RV off grid in the winter staying warm with plenty of power in the morning without a large battery bank (even single battery). You have to know what you are doing. The people here are more than willing to share but they don’t want to repeat everything every two weeks. Put in some effort and ask your questions.

Without this group I’d still be freezing my butt off on a winter morning trying to get a generator to start with a depleted battery. Now I just turn the thermostat up.

Step one is charging a lead acid battery to 100% and knowing it is 100% charged.

[booster]

Originally Posted by jtkamin

Removed starter battery in xplorer 230 xlw due to battery drain. Charge went fine, installed, started rv drove it for 2hrs. 2hrs later the Onan gen start/stop switch, both in the rv and on the gen, were lighted and clicking. Didn't start gen, instead disconnected the battery negative cable. Suggestions as to what is cause and fix.

There really isn't quite enough information here to be able to recommend a fix, as it is hard to determine what is wrong.


You removed the starting battery because of power drain and charged it. Did you fix the power drain? Then you drove it. Did you check to make sure the starting battery was actually charging? Did you check the battery after the drive to see if it stayed full?


All of this would normally not have anything to do with the coach power, which the generator controls normally run off of. Did you check to see if the coach battery was charging while you drove and had sufficient charge when you stopped? Did you also charge the coach battery? The flashing could easily been from low coach batteries which we don't know if they were, or are, charged.


If you don't know how to check this stuff, just let us know and we can walk you through it. But at this point we don't even know the problem for certain, much less the cause or fix.

[avanti]

Moderator's note:
I have trimmed this thread to remove content-free posts and minimize snarkiness.

[jtkamin]

Did you fix the power drain? YES
Then you drove it. Did you check to make sure the starting battery was actually charging? YES
Did you check the battery after the drive to see if it stayed full? YES stayed full.
There appears to be a direct connection between the genset and the underhood battery. With the DC converter in the off position, and underhood battery connected, the genset inside the rv starts clicking off the minutes of usage, both the start/stop buttons inside and on the genset are on (red light).
I did check the battery cable connected to the genset solenoid and there was full 12.45V going in. I tested same battery cable while pressing the start button on genset, no lowering of voltage. That's as far as I got in testingI was wondering if I removee the battery cable from the solenoid, would I still get the usage counting on the inside genset panel?

[booster]

Originally Posted by jtkamin

Did you fix the power drain? YES
Then you drove it. Did you check to make sure the starting battery was actually charging? YES
Did you check the battery after the drive to see if it stayed full? YES stayed full.
There appears to be a direct connection between the genset and the underhood battery. With the DC converter in the off position, and underhood battery connected, the genset inside the rv starts clicking off the minutes of usage, both the start/stop buttons inside and on the genset are on (red light).
I did check the battery cable connected to the genset solenoid and there was full 12.45V going in. I tested same battery cable while pressing the start button on genset, no lowering of voltage. That's as far as I got in testingI was wondering if I removee the battery cable from the solenoid, would I still get the usage counting on the inside genset panel?

Good information, thanks. It was mentioned by someone earlier that the coach battery may be under the hood on your model. When you say "starting battery" are you referring to the OEM van starting battery or the starting battery for the generator which normally would also be the coach battery?


Unless it has been changed out to a solenoid style connection, your van probably would have an isolator connecting the engine charging to the coach battery. It is also possible that it is a wired connection also directly all the time, but that is not common. An isolator is one way only, engine to coach battery so shore charger should not charge the starting battery if that is what you have. A separator, relay, connection normally will charge both directions.



I think we need to make sure you are seeing the right battery for the coach first off, and how they connect together. It sounds like the coach battery may not be getting charged and that is why you get the flashing lights. Maybe someone has a wiring diagram of your model, as that would sure help, as right now it is really tough to understand what is happening.

[jtkamin]

My reference to Start Battery is the OEM battery under the hood. The xplorer 230 has two coach batteries under the passenger side dual doors step up. I check on both and they were at 12.45 prior to the 2 hr drive. There is an isolator under the hood, a 12V diconnect under the front passenger's seat as well as a house battery start button under the steering column. I"ll check on the status of the coach batteries after turn off the dc disconnect. will also start the engine and see if they are being charged.

[booster]

Originally Posted by jtkamin

My reference to Start Battery is the OEM battery under the hood. The xplorer 230 has two coach batteries under the passenger side dual doors step up. I check on both and they were at 12.45 prior to the 2 hr drive. There is an isolator under the hood, a 12V diconnect under the front passenger's seat as well as a house battery start button under the steering column. I"ll check on the status of the coach batteries after turn off the dc disconnect. will also start the engine and see if they are being charged.

More good information. The fact that the 12.45v on the coach batteries is the same as the solenoid was seeing may be the clue. If you have a bad, high resistance, connection, you can see good voltage, but when it needs to provide amps in can't do it. My guess right now is that there is a bad connection that circuit to the relay or the the ground for it.

[Peder_y2k]

You are dealing with a 20 year old vehicle, so my first thought is corroded battery terminals. They can register accurate voltage, but not carry enough amperage for serious work. First step is to disconnect and clean terminals making contact surfaces a bright metal.