Repair Help for Electronic RV Components

Any sources for repair service for a Statpower TrueCharge 40+ battery charger? I really like the unit and would rather have it repaired rather than replace it. The manufacturer declines to repair it. Howard S., (Melbourne, FL)

Howard, the sad truth today is that rarely is it feasible to have any electronic component repaired. Many electronic parts and sub-components are assembled overseas and simply not worth the time and effort. By the time one pays for shipping the unit to a repair center, parts and labor, etc., you’re about near the cost of a new replacement unit. We’ve indeed become a throw-away society, even within the RV realm. Component-level diagnostics are quickly fading. No longer is it possible or feasible to rebuild a generator carburetor or to replace individual electronic board components, for example.

Now that said, thankfully there is a resource; a facility that does perform such repairs, even on the obsolete components. Contact Mark and M&M Electronics. They are located in Ohio. Here’s their website:

M&M Electronics

He’ll probably tell you the same thing; to upgrade to the new Xantrex TrueCharge2 battery charger, but at least it’s worth a phone call to find out. It might be worth it to have him, at least diagnose the problem with your 40+.

Better RV Battery Charging

I am reviewing the handout I received from you at the battery maintenance seminar at the Seattle RV Show and have some questions. I have an Itasca motorhome with two 12-volt batteries wired parallel. I have been dry camping with this rig and have nearly run down the coach batteries after a few days. When that happens I have to start my RV generator (which runs on propane) to charge the coach batteries up some. I thought I remember you saying that this is not very effective. Is running the RV engine more effective or taking it out and driving it a little? I am also thinking of buying a portable 2000 watt generator that I can just connect to the coach batteries and charge them in place. My plan is to buy the little generator and connect to the coach batteries in place without unhooking the battery cables. I have been told I can charge the two coach batteries together by hooking the positive clip to the positive terminal of one battery and the negative clip to the negative post of the other battery. Will buying the 2000 watt generator, which has a built in 8-amp charger, do the job? Jim G., (Seattle, WA)

Jim, I'm glad the seminar prompted some further contemplation on your part! And you remembered correctly; most modern RV generators do not have a dedicated battery charging circuit. They simply produce the 120-volt AC output that further powers a converter/charger or, in some cases, an inverter/charger for on-board battery charging. 

As for connecting the load and a charger, both the load and the charger should be connected to the positive terminal of one battery and the negative terminal of the other battery in a two-battery, 12-volt parallel set-up. 

But in my opinion, 8-amps would not be sufficient for effectively charging your battery bank. The general rule of thumb is C/5. “C” being the total amp-hour capacity of your battery bank, divided by 5, which equals the output amperage necessary to fully charge the bank in the least amount of time, without the fear of over-charging. This presupposes the battery charger is a sophisticated, 3-step charger. If your batteries are Group 27, you can store about 210 amp-hours, or so, of current since the two are connected in parallel. 210 divided by 5 means you’ll need a battery charger that can perform a bulk charge of about 40-amps. Anything less, simply will take much longer to charge and risk overheating the batteries.

Now the engine alternator will likely put out a lot more current, but it’s not very effective or efficient to actually run the motorhome engine just for battery charging purposes. Your best bet is a dedicated battery charger. You already have an on-board generator, so a portable generator just for charging the batteries is not what I would recommend.  

I have recommended the TrueCharge 2 battery charger since it came onto the market. You can read my review here. See what you think. I think it would be a much better option.

 

Repair or Replace RV Electric Steps?

We are in the process of updating our Holiday Rambler and my outside automatic steps need new bushings. They are SCS/Frigette steps. I've been told that a dealer will want to replace the steps. If so what brand do you recommend? Do you think I need to replace them? Jean K., (Madison, WI)

Jean, it would be difficult for me to condemn your automatic steps without taking some electrical measurements and performing some diagnostics, but there have been numerous, publicly documented issues with the SCS/Frigette electric steps. From poor design to broken bolts to failed modules. Parts are still available, so it’s doubtful it will be absolutely necessary to replace the entire unit. But from the research I’ve done, and the fact that you are “updating” your HR, I’d see what the repair center had to say (it might be a quick fix), then make a decision whether to repair or replace. Personally, I’ve been a fan of Kwikee products for a number of years. If the decision is to fully replace the entire assembly, I’d opt for Kwikee.

Objective RV Research Before the Sale

We enjoyed attending your seminars at the Hershey RV Show. We do not own a RV yet, but are doing our research to learn about what we want; size, layout, etc. We will be buying a used diesel Class A motorhome, 40-foot or above. We wanted to ask you if there is a website that compares and rates every single make/model of motorhome based on such criteria as comfort, dependability, ride, value, maintenance issues, etc. This info would be so helpful to us in making our decision as to what motorhome to purchase in the future. Brian M., (PA) 

Brian, in all honesty, unbiased opinions (read: unpaid for), or non-funded evaluations or ratings are probably going to be difficult to find for any type of RV, across the board. Here's what I usually suggest: Narrow your choices, then contact each manufacturer and ask them to convince you why you should purchase their coach. If they seem disinterested in trying to convince you....well, that speaks volumes about their customer service! Seek out an owner’s group for that brand and contact some owners to see what they like and don’t like about their unit. Also search recall lists (available online), to see if that brand or model has any active recall notices, and finally visit a dealer who sells that unit and try to ask one of the service technicians (in addition to a salesperson), what they’ve learned about that model in their shop. The people who work on that brand a lot will be most familiar about the pros and cons of that model.

If you ask the manufacturer or dealer for recommendations, you’ll likely get a list of their most-happy customers; again not a true reflection of what you might learn doing your own due diligence. Searching the Internet using different key words about that brand and model will yield some interesting posts of consumer forums as well. Take it all in as you narrow your choices. There are many different parameters to investigate. Make it a fun adventure!

Avoid buying by price alone. Take into consideration service after the sale. Does the selling dealer have a fully equipped service facility? If you buy from an Internet seller only, they may not even have a service department. You'll definitely want dealer support after the sale! Even when purchasing a used unit. If you buy from a private party, however, I always recommend both seller and buyer invest equally in an aftermarket PDI (pre delivery inspection), performed by a certified RV technician.