Just now, Tom Cherry said:

OK...for the RECORD...  The pictures verify that the Intellitec BIRD Diesel(maybe original...but who knows) is in place.  But it is TOTALLY non functional.  That means the BIRD SYSTEM or BiDirectional charging has been removed. The RELAY terminal on the Module is the OUTPUT to one of the BOSCH relays pictured.  Which ever one....then goes to the BOOST or the White Rodgers Solenoid.

That relay is wired thusly... If you read the previous post with pin numbers, that is explained.

IF the BOOST switch works...then all the OP or whomever did was disable the BIRD.  The BIRD output (RELAY Terminal) goes to that Relay.  BUT that Relay is also the CONTROL relay for the White Rodgers.

AS USUAL....interesting.  NOTE that the Generator Terminal is used.  Todd's is NOT.  

FWIW,

I sent Todd a sheet so he can measure voltages.  We, Frank and myself, need this so we can help others. That will answer the questions. 

MY INTERPRETATION....from your comments.  The ORIGINAL Windsor did NOT have a "Trickle" charger.  It had a THIEF system.  That was a device that bled power off the House (assuming there was AC power) and then charged the Chassis Battery.  On the OEM Windsor circuit....that function was NOT available...  I can't remember the device's brand name...but Amp - L - Start or such are out there and being used...  As long as there is POWER and the House is being Charged...then it will siphon off and charge the Chassis.  There is a PCB and a few Diodes to keep it from stealing power and draining the House.

Your Orion-Tr-Smart is a variation of that....if I read correctly.  I am ASSUMING that you have it wired so that the Alternator puts out a signal or is used for POWER.  Then you can add the House and you will get or siphon off charging current for the Chassis...

There appears to be many configurations or uses.  Is that how you are using it.

Most folks, when the hear or read "Trickle" charger on the site think...  an AC powered, low output (usually 2 or so amps) charger that will maintain the Chassis and NOT overcharge it or damage it.

Could you elaborate on how you have it configured and what it does or is intended to do....

We all learn....

Thanks...

 

 

So in my case Tom, I kept the "Boost" connection to the relay between the house and Chassis batteries. I'm not sure if my BIRD was set up as a bidirectional relay from the start or it was not working. So here is what I have: The House batteries are charged from my inverter charger when plugged into shore power. The coach battery is charged by the AMP-L-Start (DC to DC charger) as you say stealing power from the coach battery. I have lithium coach batteries and the AMP-L-Start has a dip switch for that configuration. However, I have found that the AMP-L-Start can sometimes be unreliable so I added a NOCO 3 amp charger that is plugged into my block heater receptacle in the engine compartment and I can turn it on and off from the switch up front. It will still charge when I'm on the inverter so I don't want that. The NOCO is connected to the coach battery. The Orion (DC to DC charger) is connected to the circuit coming from the alternator and limits the current draw to 30 amps for charging the house battery bank.

My system has been solid since I added the NOCO charger. I thought I might have had some circular charging between the two battery banks but I don't think that was the case in the end.

So basically I can charge both my batteries from multiple sources depending on whether I'm plugged in or not. I also have 700 watts of solar on my roof as well.

13 minutes ago, jacwjames said:

Thanks for posting Mark.  

Does your coach start with the chassis battery disconnect OFF?

So the big changes are that the Lambert 415 has been disabled by removing the red wire and ground AND  bottom stud on the Lambert is just being used to connect the coach wire from the Isolation Solenoid to the BIRD with a white wire that is plugged into coach battery spad on the BIRD (which is open in the original setup).  Pretty simple work around to eliminate the Lambert and convert the charging system to the new BIRD style charging.  

I believe this is the work around that Tom described. 

I have never tried starting the coach with the disconnect off. I have removed the old trickle charge system and added some other equipment as seen in the attached picture

Here are some pictures of my original setup before I made some updates. I talked with tmw188 he asked me to post these pictures.

I used 3M marine adhesive. It's been three years with no issues. I followed the directions and proper surface preparation. I also used panel brackets from eBay.  I have two 350-watt residential panels in series. I applied the adhesive to the bottom of the brackets and followed up around the edge to seal them.

I bought 2 last September from Rackupgo and also bought a new thermostat and two soft starts. But once cry once. These guys had them in stock and were cheaper than Amazon at the time.

I agree with Tom, call Boss. They are in Oxnard CA. My unit is powered from a dash switch. It’s a straight forward installation.

Single din or double din? There are lots of options at just as many price points. My 2002 Windsor had a single din Sony that I replaced with a SSL, its the same as the Boss. It has Apple car play and multiple video inputs, Bluetooth etc. It was fairly cheap for what you get. Pioneer, Kenwood and others make great units but they cost north of $800. The Boss comes in 9" and 10" sizes for $250-$300 depending on where you buy it. I run the Garmin, Waze or Google to compare while driving for changing conditions.

https://www.crutchfield.com/S-Q3cdx4oj149/p_104BE8ACP/BOSS-Audio-BE8ACP.html?XVINQ=GLX&XVVer=1HX6&awcr=681110669756&awdv=c&awnw=g&awug=9031619&awkw=pla-2278921928354&awmt=&awat=pla&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAtt2tBhBDEiwALZuhAMWnrNbgCSrL9Spk1GyG4oSm74WDoLiQ_kOod6ZK4NOipuq48rp_6RoCFjwQAvD_BwE

I've had what I thought was a similar experience. Had a hard time getting my propane to light, the ignition system needed cleaning and it takes forever to clear the line of air after being shut off. Now I purge the line at my barbque connection I added. My electric switch the light is burned out so you can't tell if it's on or not, and it only works on shore power or generator. Not sure if that helps. Good luck.

If he has the Trace RC7 its a Xantrex inverter like I had. I would suspect the transfer switch. Just do a search on here to see the many reasons why It needs to be changed if it hasn't been already. They original was recalled and is a fire hazard.

15 minutes ago, Capt. Tango said:

Mark, the batteries are wired in parallel producing 12 Volt (Approx.) as show in this diagram. 

That's how they should be. Not sure what else would cause your issue.

I assume the batteries are in series. The cables to the inverter and chargers should come from the positive of one battery and the negative of the other battery. This allows the load to be passed to both batteries. Just a guess on how they are not equal.

You can try Shadepro. I did mine but I made some changes to the TV box and made some valances to match.

Cockpit P.pdf

My 2002 Windsor has a steel angel iron running across the top of my front cabinets. The strapping is attached to it. Not sure about your late model coach but I bet there is a similar support up there.

1 hour ago, waterskier_1 said:

I'm sure you are right.  I don't havre 5G service on my cell phone at home.  I get no AT&T at home - it switched to WiFi calling, so I switched to Verizon.  I get two bars of 4G.  I live in an older suburb and they are using.5G in the urban areas - eventually they will get it.  As you said,  5G is design for densely populated areas where there is"line of sight" to the tower. Each tower can handle many more simultaneous connections, but only for short distances which is why large, densely populated cities were first to get it.  And that was usually in the urban areas.  That sad. I was surprised when my nephew told me he installed T- Mobile Home internet at the farm in Wyoming.  It's a very small town, but I'm not sure what other options there were for internet. Maybe one tower can support the whole town 🤔.

I'm going to input some of the places I stay often in Arizona, and a couple of the bases I stay on, and see if they support one or the other.  Have you tried using you device outside your state?

  - Rick N 

My main location is in the Santa Barbara area, I have traveled to and used the T-Mobile in Northern California, Southern California and Arizona, mostly in Lake Havasu. I also use it while driving and occasionally it drops out but is pretty solid. We stream podcasts, books etc. My phone is with AT&T and I have a iPad from Verizon that I can hot spot. This works for me and is easier than a dedicated pepwave or similar system.

I have the T-Mobile at my vacation house and it works great. I also have it at my main house and it's garbage but I keep it so I can use it in the coach. It's worked great on my last three trips. I did some testing in my truck using the 120-volt outlet and drove around my local area to test the speed. Two blocks away from my house I was getting 632 down and 36 up. Other tests averaged over 200 down. It's very dependent on location. I have kept the cable just for the speed and consistency. During the day I can get 30 down and 3 up, but in the evening it's useless for streaming. <5 Mbps or less down and less than 1 up. I would still recommend it.

We bought a house there last year with a RV garage to store the coach when we are not traveling. We've been going to the State Park there for years and really fell in love with the town. We just got our pool finished this last weekend in time for winter lol. We plan on retiring there in a couple of years. We'll travel in July and August!

37 minutes ago, JDCrow said:

You follow Havasu on FB? 

Yes, and I have a place there. Went by right after it happened but it's not my picture.

This happened this last weekend in Lake Havasu City at the front of the Coach Net building. No idea how it happened. The rock stairway is destroyed.

Well I just did this last month. Thanks for your advice Tom. I just bit the bullet and replaced both units and the ccc2 thermostat. I tried changing the coil on the reversing valve with no joy. Total cost was about $3500, upgraded to the penguin II 15k btu heat pumps. I also added two soft starts while I was in there, another $500. Only took me a couple of hours. Fortunately I have a forklift to use. I had to take the duct work apart to get to the rear bolts. I also transferred the drains to the new units, they were very brittle and I was very careful. I was able to test it on a 20 amp circuit and all works as I hoped.

I have the old duo therm 13500 unit and micro air ccc thermostat for sale market place. So far only low ballers and scammers.

Jim, my Windsor came with the trip-tech and it didn't work. I bought a used unit and it didn't work either. I also bought a Bluefire so I could get the data you get with your Silverleaf. The Bluefire connects via Bluetooth and it does but I can't get any data. I want to get that figured out. Here is a picture of my cockpit remodel.

Jim, I had the problem of my suction cup coming off all the time and I found this.

https://www.tackform.com/products/fb31-tpms-fast-track-base-mount-2-arm-tpms-holder?variant=44164816568494

I installed it on a RAM mount above the pilot chair. I also ran the power through the upper cabinet. I did this when I was installing my new power shades and TV upgrade.

I installed the dc to dc charger to limit the current draw of my lithium batteries. It will protect your alternator. You can use other options but Victron only has the 30 amp version. You can use two.

I did the same but they keep getting knocked down. I'm thinking of moving them over to the side. I put one in the engine compartment too.

7 minutes ago, BradHend said:

Light looks good.  Which product is this?

Is that wiring connection secure?

RVZONE 12v LED Interior Light Bar | 108LEDs 1600LM 6W DC 12 Volt led Strip Lights Enclosed Trailer Lights Fixture for Camper Truck Van RV Trailer Cargo Cabient Lights Fixture Motorhome Lorry (4Pack) $20 for 4

Is it draining off of your roof? If you take off or open the air intake on your ceiling you can see the drains if they are there.

We go by you on our way to our place in Lake Havasu City!