As we have seen in previous articles about the batteries of our motorhomes, we know that they are recharging while the engine is running. However, many times (too many or more than we would like) not enough or all that we need are loaded.

Motorhome battery: reasons why they are not charged enough

• If we have gone out for a weekend to not very long distances (100 or 150 km) and we have drawn quite a lot of current from our batteries. When we return, we do not give the alternator of our motorhome time to recharge what was spent.
• It also occurs in longer vacation. We spend a couple of days or three in one city consuming batteries and then we move to another nearby city (250 or 300 km). Again, the alternator does not have enough time to recharge what is consumed.
• Yes we returned from a weekendAt night and even more so in summer with the air conditioning on, most of the current produced by the alternator is used to recharge the engine battery, sending little or no current to the passenger compartment batteries.
• It also sometimes happens that, even after having traveled quite a few kilometers, the passenger compartment batteries are not fully charged. This is because the alternator of our motorhome has a automatic system to avoid damaging the engine battery. This system detects that the battery is fully charged and reduces the generation of current (stays in float) and sends very little to the other batteries
• Finally, a very general problem in almost all the motorhomes that I know, is that the cables ranging from the engine battery (or from the alternator) to the passenger compartment they are of very little section, which appreciably reduces the current that passes through them and, therefore, the amount of charge to our batteries.

The conclusion: we are running out of charge in the batteries and  over time they are sulfated and substantially shortening your life. I have heard many times the complaint that "the batteries I bought have turned out very bad despite what they cost me." This could be solved if we had installed in our motorhome a team that measured the REAL load intensity, we would see that most of the time less than 10 or 15 amps reaches the batteries.

What are boosters and what are they for?

Boosters are devices that give us a large charging intensity for our living area batteries regardless of all the factors that I have previously mentioned (25 or 40 amps), so in a short time and a few kilometers we fully recharge our batteries.

The best models on the market give full load even when the engine is idling. It does not need to be accelerated, they also adjust the load to the type of battery we have (AGM or GEL or Acid) and regulate the float current by disconnecting when the batteries are charged and also protects the motor if necessary, if it has a very high consumption such as lights or air conditioning so as not to overload them.

Installation is not complicated: we must bear in mind that a suitable section of cable must be put in, with a 45 amp fuse and do not forget to put a temperature sensor so that it automatically disconnects if the temperature of the batteries rises too much, avoiding overheating and over gassing . What I do recommend is that the model has an IUoU charging system.

As always, any questions or queries are at your disposal in the comments on this article or by sending us an email through Contact Form.

A hug and see you on the road!