Best rv smart converter7/28/2023 ![]() Voltage fluctuations can do major damage – even cause fires! – to your RV’s electrical innards.īut if the campground power is clean and healthy, start checking for loose connections! If the AC RMS voltage is less than 108 or above 125, you have a power problem. An advanced surge protector should tell you what voltage is being supplied. You really ought to be using a surge protector at the campground power pedestal. And that can mess up a converter’s output power!īattery looking good? Then check campground power. If you’re seeing wonky numbers, especially numbers lower than 11.5 volts, that probably means you have a bad cell in your battery. Get a voltmeter and measure the open-circuit voltage. ![]() Did you check and/or replace the fuse?.Most of the time – especially for new RVs! – the problem can be traced to a loose connection or broken circuit protection. Go read it!ĭon’t make it too complicated! Why assume the worst? Don’t just assume the converter control board is busted or fried, or that the campground electrical system is outside of the required voltage range. However, I can PROMISE you that your converter manual has a troubleshooting table, probably on the last page or two. Less sulfation = more juice, longer life! This prevents sulfation in a stored battery. The converter will automatically sense self-discharge from the battery and will restore the lost capacity. You can leave your camper plugged in while in storage.3-stage chargers can charge a battery to 80-90% state-of-charge in just a few hours. You’ll significantly improve the lifespan of your battery, sometimes 2x or 3x as long!.If you’re still depending on a “dumb” charger, you need to upgrade to a multistage alternative right away! Lead-acid batteries just aren’t designed to be charged at a constant high voltage.Īlmost no one makes single-stage converters are more (thank goodness!). If you mess up, you’ll overheat the battery.Įven if you do everything right, you’ll still shorten the lifespan of your battery. It’s up to you, the RV owner, to keep track of your battery state-of-charge. Essentially, they just pump voltage willy-nilly into the battery. “Dumb” converters are single-stage converters. That’s the big, black brick in the middle of your cord. You use converters all the time! Every time you plug in your laptop, you use a converter. Other features on your camper, such as your furnace, require a little bit of 12V power to operate the control boards.Many features on your RV, such as your lights and ceiling fan, only run on 12V power.12V (nominal) power is what charges your battery.Why do you want 12V power, you ask? Well, three reasons! What comes out: 12V direct-current power, also known as battery power. What goes in: Shore power, also known as grid or household power, which is usually 115-volt RMS single-phase alternating current. ![]() It’s like a magic box that changes the type of electricity.
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