dayoff53 Posted November 10, 2010 Share Posted November 10, 2010 Hi! Well, my lovely bride and I have used my "new" '92 Warrior 321RL once and my son and daughter-in-law have used it once. We are very pleased with it - it suits our traveling style perfectly and it is easy to drive and (relatively) easy on gas. So far, we have only one issue. The coach battery is not charging while we drive. I believe it is charing fine from the shoreline (checking that now), but it doesn't seem to charge at all from the alternator. So... I read the owner's manual portions on the electrical system thoroughly - it tells all about how the coach battery charges from shore power or the genny, but no mention of charging from the alternator. Then... I downloaded all the wiring diagrams from Winnebago (well, they didn't have ones for '92, but the '93 diagrams are dated '90 and I'm sure are identical. I'm not very good at reading wiring diagrams, but I can't find any connection from the engine compartment to the coach battery. All my previous experience is with trailers, and they ALL charged from the alternator while driving. Does this not apply to our ToyHomes? Or is this something unique to Winnebagos? Or have I reached the wrong conclusion? Do any of you Warrior owners have information about this? If I have concluded correctly, have any of you added a charging circuit and isolator to charge from your alternator and, if so, can you explain it for the electrically challenged, with diagrams and 8 x 10 color glossy photographs with circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one (apologies to Arlo Guthrie)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WME Posted November 10, 2010 Share Posted November 10, 2010 Look carefully under the hood. You should have an isolator. Either a aluminum brick with fin (diode type) or a solenoid type, silver and a little bigger than a 35mm film can. From my first RV a 1976, to now all have charge the house battery from the alternator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dayoff53 Posted November 10, 2010 Author Share Posted November 10, 2010 Look carefully under the hood. You should have an isolator. Either a aluminum brick with fin (diode type) or a solenoid type, silver and a little bigger than a 35mm film can. Thank you! I, too, certainly expected the house battery to charge from the alternator based on my experience with trailers. Where would the isolator most likely be? I can't park my Toy at my home, so will have to check it this weekend when I can get over to my son's house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WME Posted November 11, 2010 Share Posted November 11, 2010 I dont have a Winnie, but mine is on the driver fender well under the hood. There should be a large ground wire on the battery -, a large wire on the + going to the starter. AND a smaller wire from the + to the isolator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek up North Posted November 11, 2010 Share Posted November 11, 2010 Just follow the heavy wire from the battery. It should lead you straight to the isolator. Then there'll be another heavy wire from the isolator to the alternator and a third which will disappear on it's way to the house battery. It's probably on the inner fender (or firewall) near the battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dayoff53 Posted November 11, 2010 Author Share Posted November 11, 2010 After reading the comments of you helpful folks, and with the help of my brother in reading the Winnebago wiring diagrams, I have determined that there is, indeed, a charging circuit from the alternator. This afternoon I will go to my Toy and, with the help of my son and a little luck, find out what is wrong... I'll let you know when it's fixed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dayoff53 Posted November 12, 2010 Author Share Posted November 12, 2010 Well, I'm pretty sure I found the problem, though I have not yet fixed it. After getting some help properly interpreting the wiring diagrams, I traced the wire from the engine battery to the circuit breaker to the solenoid to the coach battery box, where it went to another circuit breaker.... Oops! That circuit breaker was all broken up - looks like whoever put the battery in last got the corner of it into the breaker and broke it off the battery box wall. Wires were still connected to the busted-up guts of the breaker, but I'm guessing that's my problem. I have now purchased a new breaker ($5.12 including tax) and will replace it tomorrow. I may not know until Spring, when we take our next trip, whether I've solved the problem, but I'm pretty confident. Thanks for the help and encouragement! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gulfstream Greg Posted November 12, 2010 Share Posted November 12, 2010 I'll bet your correct that its the breaker being busted. Here is a little battery 101. If a lead acid battery is left in a discharged state for a long period of time a process called sulfation occurs. Sulfation builds up on the plates inside the battery, long story short is it kills the batteries capacity to receive and release a charge. 12.6 volts is a fully charged battery, 12.4 volts is considered only 75% charged. Its imperative to keep the battery at or really close to that level when stored for long periods of time to reduce the effects of sulfation. I bring this up because when an rv is stored the battery should be disconnected or be float charged. Your coach converter (shore power) has a charger built in. But if its the old 6300 series the charger is really not suitable for float charging. It will over charge the battery, simmering it to death. Options are, disconnect when stored (make sure its fully charged first), replace the 6300 with a newer system with a smart charger, or buy a smart charger, connect it and keep the rv connected to shore power when stored. A smart charger has 3 stages. Charge, float and excite. Excite throws a little burst of charge into the battery about once a week, it causes a sudden boiling around the plates which stirs up the electrolyte a little. At least that's what I've been told. Here is a good tutorial on batteries http://www.batterystuff.com/tutorial_battery.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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