Do I have the incorrect house battery?

THEBRAIN · 12-11-2022, 04:27 PM

Do I have the incorrect house battery? 05Pleasureway Lexor RD chevy 3500.
My converter is intelli-power PD9140A.
My house battery is a lead acid.

I read here to not use w/ lead acid batteries

https://www.progressivedyn.com/wp-co...al-english.pdf

I’m new and don’t know about converters yet. When I took delivery of van it had a lead acid battery.please advice. thanks

booster · 12-11-2022, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by THEBRAIN

Do I have the incorrect house battery? 05Pleasureway Lexor RD chevy 3500.
My converter is intelli-power PD9140A.
My house battery is a lead acid.

I read here to not use w/ lead acid batteries

https://www.progressivedyn.com/wp-co...al-english.pdf

I’m new and don’t know about converters yet. When I took delivery of van it had a lead acid battery.please advice. thanks

You have a PD9140A and that warning is for a PD9140AL. The L would mean for lithium, I assume, and you don't have that charger anyway.

mkguitar · 12-12-2022, 12:20 AM

I have the interstate Group 27 from costco- I got 6.5 years from the first one.

if you converter does not have the charge wizard, it can often be added on.
PW included 2006 all models- but maybe your 05 has it ?

THEBRAIN · 12-12-2022, 06:00 PM

is the charge wizard a module that I can see connected to the converter?
thanks Mike

booster · 12-12-2022, 06:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by THEBRAIN

is the charge wizard a module that I can see connected to the converter?
thanks Mike

The Charge Wizard would be a small "pendant" that is connected with a cable to the main unit. It allows you to force the unit into the different stages of charging to optimize the charging. It has a button on it and is usually remotely mounted.

THEBRAIN · 12-13-2022, 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by booster

The Charge Wizard would be a small "pendant" that is connected with a cable to the main unit. It allows you to force the unit into the different stages of charging to optimize the charging. It has a button on it and is usually remotely mounted.

I would like to know if I have this wizard. I'll take a close look next time I'm messing around in the rear.
I think my image of converter is the top where would the wizard be like on what side is this pendant you mention?

I thought the house battery actuely gets charged w/ alternator while cruising around.
then I was informed that the red key (battery kill switch must be turned on for alt. to charge HB)same w/generator on (thats a nobrainer bc red key must be on to start the generator. same w/ shore power batterys not being charged unless key is on.

all this is kindof weird bc I installed the house battery about a month ago it was 12.8V DC then and is still 12.8V DC today. red key always off.

seams like I should get into a habit of turning on the red key when cruising then when parked turn key off.

then when van isn't driven much like maybe once a week or less get in the habit of reconditioning HB w/ my car battery charger.
thanks

mkguitar · 12-14-2022, 02:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by THEBRAIN

I would like to know if I have this wizard. I'll take a close look next time I'm messing around in the rear.
I think my image of converter is the top where would the wizard be like on what side is this pendant you mention?

I thought the house battery actuely gets charged w/ alternator while cruising around.
then I was informed that the red key (battery kill switch must be turned on for alt. to charge HB)same w/generator on (thats a nobrainer bc red key must be on to start the generator. same w/ shore power batterys not being charged unless key is on.

all this is kindof weird bc I installed the house battery about a month ago it was 12.8V DC then and is still 12.8V DC today. red key always off.

seams like I should get into a habit of turning on the red key when cruising then when parked turn key off.

then when van isn't driven much like maybe once a week or less get in the habit of reconditioning HB w/ my car battery charger.
thanks

your battery cut off may be different than other typical RV's because your sofa is meant to always be powered for a safety reason

Jim86301 · 12-18-2022, 05:47 PM

The Charge Wizard plugs into the TCMS connector near the fuses on the output panel of the PD9140A. It comes with a couple of feet of wire so it can be mounted in a convenient place. https://www.progressivedyn.com/charge-wizard/ It is an option for the PD9100 series converters. I installed one several years ago and it seems to do the job it is designed for. My Red disconnect switch interrupts charging from the alternator and the converter but not the solar panel.
Jim

bl_smith25 · 12-18-2022, 09:30 PM

The red key is a battery disconnect key. It disconnects or isolates the battery from the system. The exception is the power sofa in TS floorplans. So, with the red key out, no charging is happening as you’ve removed it from the system.
Depending on who wired your rig, sometimes the alternator bypasses the red key as well. You can tell whether yours does or not by measuring the voltage before and after starting the vehicle with the red key out.

When you’re actively using the van and the house electrical, the red key should be in and turned on. When you’re not going to use it for awhile, like in storage or not camping in it, leave it out. The battery should be fine for a good while without charging it. Check the voltage of it after awhile before going for a drive and either turn it on or leave it off.

Cheers,
BL

Quote:

Originally Posted by THEBRAIN

I would like to know if I have this wizard. I'll take a close look next time I'm messing around in the rear.
I think my image of converter is the top where would the wizard be like on what side is this pendant you mention?

I thought the house battery actuely gets charged w/ alternator while cruising around.
then I was informed that the red key (battery kill switch must be turned on for alt. to charge HB)same w/generator on (thats a nobrainer bc red key must be on to start the generator. same w/ shore power batterys not being charged unless key is on.

all this is kindof weird bc I installed the house battery about a month ago it was 12.8V DC then and is still 12.8V DC today. red key always off.

seams like I should get into a habit of turning on the red key when cruising then when parked turn key off.

then when van isn't driven much like maybe once a week or less get in the habit of reconditioning HB w/ my car battery charger.
thanks

ChicagoTom · 12-19-2022, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by THEBRAIN

I would like to know if I have this wizard. I'll take a close look next time I'm messing around in the rear.
I think my image of converter is the top where would the wizard be like on what side is this pendant you mention?

I thought the house battery actuely gets charged w/ alternator while cruising around.
then I was informed that the red key (battery kill switch must be turned on for alt. to charge HB)same w/generator on (thats a nobrainer bc red key must be on to start the generator. same w/ shore power batterys not being charged unless key is on.

all this is kindof weird bc I installed the house battery about a month ago it was 12.8V DC then and is still 12.8V DC today. red key always off.

seams like I should get into a habit of turning on the red key when cruising then when parked turn key off.

then when van isn't driven much like maybe once a week or less get in the habit of reconditioning HB w/ my car battery charger.
thanks

08 Chevy Lexor here...the Wizard is mounted on the drivers side rear. If you have the wizard, and you should, unless stock was replaced, you will see a picture of the wizard. With the sofa up you can peak through the opening under the sofa cushion. Best to get a good AGM battery. I have an Interstate (About 5 years old) and never had an issue. Maintenance free, so no adding distilled water. If the red key is off, it will not charge. Yes, sofa always has power due to safety concerns.

bl_smith25 · 12-19-2022, 02:44 PM

Tom, his 2005 doesn’t have the same converter as your 2008 so no, he doesn’t have the charge wizard unless a previous owner added it. It didn’t exist until 2006 or later for the older converters.

ChicagoTom · 12-19-2022, 04:23 PM

Thanks for the correction. I'm assuming it's still similar and located in the same area. Do you know?

THEBRAIN · 12-19-2022, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim86301

The Charge Wizard plugs into the TCMS connector near the fuses on the output panel of the PD9140A. It comes with a couple of feet of wire so it can be mounted in a convenient place. https://www.progressivedyn.com/charge-wizard/ It is an option for the PD9100 series converters. I installed one several years ago and it seems to do the job it is designed for. My Red disconnect switch interrupts charging from the alternator and the converter but not the solar panel.
Jim

thanks Jim now I know what the wizard looks like. I do see 2 wired connections on the left side (driver side) of converter in my image. if I have the wizard would there be a 3rd wired connection?

[QUOTE=bl_smith25;144189. You can tell whether yours does or not by measuring the voltage before and after starting the vehicle with the red key out.

Cheers,
BL[/QUOTE]thanks bl smith25 I'll test the battery before an after ignition w/out key.also thanks for red key tips.

[QUOTE=ChicagoTom;144207]08 Chevy Lexor here...the Wizard is mounted on the drivers side rear. If you have the wizard, and you should, unless stock was replaced, you will see a picture of the wizard. With the sofa up you can peak through the opening under the sofa cushion. Best to get a good AGM battery. I have an Interstate (About 5 years old) and never had an issue. Maintenance free, so no adding distilled water. If the red key is off, it will not charge. Yes, sofa always has power due to safety concerns.[/QUOTEthanks Tom I'll look closely at the converter.from my image i see 2 wired connections if there was a wizard module would there be a 3rd wired connection?

Quote:

Originally Posted by bl_smith25

Tom, his 2005 doesn’t have the same converter as your 2008 so no, he doesn’t have the charge wizard unless a previous owner added it. It didn’t exist until 2006 or later for the older converters.

just how inportant is this wizard? so it's main function is to provide the proper charging type. thanks

bl_smith25 · 12-19-2022, 05:37 PM

just how inportant is this wizard? so it's main function is to provide the proper charging type. thanks[/QUOTE]

It’s not super important unless you’re going to switch to an AGM house battery. What you’ve got now is fine for lead acid.

If you go on the progressive dynamics website, you can read about your model’s charging regime as well as what the wizard pendant does and go from there. It’s certainly not anything you need to stress about.

booster · 12-19-2022, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by THEBRAIN

just how inportant is this wizard? so it's main function is to provide the proper charging type. thanks

The Wizard allows you to override the set program in the PD charger.

The PD uses a set 4 hours of "boost at 14.4v" time and then goes to what they call a topping charge at 13.8v for IIRC 24 hours. After the topping charge is done it goes to a lower voltage float stage.

Systems like this will pretty much always miss hitting a full charge without overcharging because charge time is variable based on bank size and how far it is discharged.

There are very, very few chargers that can charge accurately all the time and they are very expensive to get so most don't get them and accept shorter battery life.

The Charge Wizard, when used in conjunction with a shunt based battery monitor, will let you override the charging to force it to do a very thorough charge without overcharging. If you are not willing to do the manual input to improve the charging or don't want to put in a monitor, the usefulness of the Wizard is much, much smaller.

You may also like: