Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 08-15-2020, 08:19 AM   #1
New Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2020
Location: Earth
Posts: 5
Year: 1998
Coachwork: Blue Bird Intl
Chassis: 3800
Engine: T4446
Dual Batteries, dead batteries, jump!?!

Ive just finished removing the rear heater coolant lines and cleaning up the mess from that, then starting the bus and running the heater system with seeming success. But then, a couple hours later, dead battery. or so it seems... I did have the electrical panel opened up a few times to disconnect the rear heater electrical wires, so maybe some problem there... but also, my dual battery system is a little confusing for me at the moment, and im not sure its hooked up properly.

sidenote: Previous owner bought the bus a brand new battery because she thought the one she had was not holding a charge. At the shop they checked the old battery and said it was good, so we took home both batteries. Have only had one connected so far. The bus ran great for the 4 hour trip home, and has been sitting for 2 weeks, no problems with the battery until now.

Last night, I setup the dual batteries to run in parallel and tried jumping from my GMC 3500, but after 45 minutes, i saw only a slight increase in power, not enough to get the brake pedal fully depressed for start, and definitely not enough for any cranking on the engine. Just a subtle "click" upon turning the key. i tried disconnecting the secondary battery, and just charging one, but had even less of a result. Now im wanting to revisit the battery setup entirely and make sure i have all connections proper.

Also, the only thing i did (intentionally) in the electrical panel, was to remove the rear heater wires. I did not remove the wires that run from the control panel/switches to the htr fuse panel, just the wires that ran from the fuse panel to the back of the bus. Would this cause a parasitic drain, or some other problem?

Here are some pictures of my battery connections ...
Click image for larger version

Name:	20200815_094407.jpg
Views:	14
Size:	209.2 KB
ID:	47941

Click image for larger version

Name:	20200815_094605.jpg
Views:	10
Size:	155.8 KB
ID:	47942

Click image for larger version

Name:	20200815_094558.jpg
Views:	8
Size:	153.8 KB
ID:	47943

Click image for larger version

Name:	20200815_094418.jpg
Views:	7
Size:	166.7 KB
ID:	47944

Click image for larger version

Name:	20200815_094612.jpg
Views:	9
Size:	209.8 KB
ID:	47945

I read on Skoolie forums some conflicting points of view on jump starting... some say they've done it no problem even with small cars, some say NO NO NO , you must use a charger...

theHappinessBus is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-15-2020, 10:11 AM   #2
Bus Nut
 
Willie_McCoy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2018
Location: Rhode Island
Posts: 260
Year: 1980
Coachwork: Crown Coach
Chassis: Supercoach
Engine: Detroit 671T
I am having trouble understanding exactly what is going on with your battery setup there.

You should have those looped wires (jumpers) going from + on battery 1 to + on battery 2, and - on battery 1 to - on battery 2. This is wiring them in parallel.

Like This:


Then the + on battery 1 goes out to the vehicle and the - on battery 2 goes to the chassis ground.

If you are replacing batteries you should always replace them all at the same time to keep them balanced, and this is also a good time to upgrade your cables if need be. This is what mine looked like:





You absolutely can jump start a dead battery on a bus, as long as both vehicles have 12V systems you will be fine. It will be very hard to start a big bus with a little car/truck but it can be done. I had to jump the Crown before I replaced the batteries and it took a full size van, a spare marine deep cycle, a charger/jump pak, and a lot of cables to get her going.
__________________
Supercoach Build Thread
Instagram
Willie_McCoy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-15-2020, 12:31 PM   #3
Bus Crazy
 
kazetsukai's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2017
Location: Athens, TN
Posts: 1,574
Year: 1999
Coachwork: Amtran
Chassis: International RE
Engine: International T444e
Rated Cap: 76
Dead or almost dead batteries will be a huge time suck. Yes you can jump, but if your batteries have problems cranking replace them. We did recently, night and day difference. Starting takes a 1/4 of a second compared to 2+ seconds of the starter struggling before.
kazetsukai is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 07:20 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.