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whoi avatar image
whoi asked

Travel trailer installation of battery protect

Hello,

I am trying to use a Battery Protect with my travel trailer. The issue is the manual says not to reverse the current from OUT to IN. My travel trailer has a DC converter/charger on board. So when I am connected to short power, the battery will charge. When I am not connected to shore power, the travel trailer will use the battery power. So I thought the solution was to use use three Battery Protects, a 225A for the inverter I also have in there, then two 65A's for the trailer, The trailer 12v load panel with the converter/charger would be connected to the IN on one 65BP (referred to as B65P1) and OUT on the other 65BP (referred to as 65BP2). When I am connected to shore power, I would turn on only the 65BP1. When I am not connected to shore power, it would turn on 65BP2. (See diagram)

The issue: When I am connected to shore power, the BP2 eventually shows E3 and BP1 gets very warm. So I guess this won't work. So how does one use this in a travel trailer? It is very common in travel trailers and RVs to have this converter/charger.

Any help would be appreciated.

Battery Protect
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1 Answer
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Justin Cook answered ·

@whoi, unfortunately, usage of the BatteryProtect in this configuration is expressly forbidden. The BatteryProtect cannot be used to disconnect the main DC line of an inverter, and cannot be used in any configuration which allows reverse current (Out to In) whether the device is turned on or not; this includes all converter/chargers.

Regretfully, these devices will not work for your installation.

Please see the updated user manual for permitted installation methods.

A permitted use in a travel trailer/RV is between, for instance, the battery and the DC distribution block so long as no charge sources are connected to that distribution block. It is also permissible to use the BatteryProtect to trigger the remote turn-on of an inverter or inverter/charger... but trigger only, not interrupt the main DC line in any way.


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whoi avatar image whoi commented ·

What if I put a schottky diode across the Out/In terminals so the current won't travel across the BP from Out -> In when connected to shore power?

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Justin Cook avatar image Justin Cook ♦♦ whoi commented ·

@whoi, besides the fact that this sort of workaround also bypasses the very protection logic that this device offers (so I wouldn't recommend it) this is also not a supported connection method of the device period, so although I certainly can't control what you do to your components after you purchase them, I certainly strongly advise against this, as this sort of thing would not only void your warranty on the device but also potentially pose a fire risk or, at the very least, a guarantee of eventual device failure.

It is always advisable to purchase a device suitable for your intended usage rather than rigging one up to work in a way that it's not designed to work.

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