Prevent external power source from charging batteries

[rv_pete]

Hi everyone,

I'm new here, and new in the RV world in general

I would appreciate some help with my 2015 Northwood Nash 25C, maybe someone can help me out.

I'm using the RV to live off-grid, and I have an external solar generator connected as a power source. I see that the RV is drawing around 350W constantly, without anything in the RV being used - so my guess is, it's charging the batteries of the RV.

I don't really want that to happen, as those batteries are charged by separate solar panels anyways. Furthermore, I'd like to keep the draw on the solar generator low, and not waste energy by transferring it from the generator to the batteries in the RV.

How would I stop this from happening? Can I disable the RV batteries being charged by the external power source?

Thank you very much in advance already, and I hope I'm posting this in the right place

 

[helloDog]

the problem is that the way to do this is to disconnect the rv batteries from the charger/converter, but doing this means the charger is not connected to a battery. The battery acts like a big sponge to absorb any spikes or other odd electric fluctuations that could occur. It will work, but I would not do this way.
So you are using battery power to run household power to run battery powered devices in your rv. Dont.

Bring your "generator" inside and plug the DC outlet into your rv somehow instead of your house batteries. you can get rid of the house batteries if you do not use them. you are using the "generator" instead, and this is just a battery, not a generator, it is a battery with some stuff with it, but it iis a battery. Connect this battery to the battery terminals of your rv.
Issues might be that your "generator" does not have a DC outlet that can provide much power (amps) so you need to modify something.

They are called generators because the marketing dept knows Americans are way stupid and fall for anything they are told. A battery is not a generator, ever. Putting some electronics in a case with a battery does not make it a generator. They call it a generator because you can kinda use it in place of a gas generator in that you can plug something into it, but nothing is being generated. In the case of a solar generator the SUN is the generator, the sun generates the power and the solar panels collect that power and the battery stores that power. It is really a solar storage device, also known in modern terms as, yes, a battery.

You are plugging a battery into a battery, and on top of that plugging a charger into an inverter that is plugged into a battery. There is no good way to just anything. You will have to make mods.

 

[rv_pete]

Thank you very much for taking the time and responding with all that information!

Helps me contemplate next steps and which route to take

 

[helloDog]

hope that gets you started...
IDK exactly what I meant when I said, "plug the DC outlet into your rv somehow". I meant to say to somehow wire your RV's battery terminals into the generator battery (getting rid of the rv batteries, or keeping them as backup/spare.

If you just wire your generator 12v (more like 13.xv) positive and negative into the RVs 12v positive and negative wires then you will be connecting the generator / lithium battery to a lead acid battery. Lithium batt sits at a higher state of charge. 13.x volts, where the lead acit sits at 12.6 volts typically. The lower voltage 12.6 batt will drain the higher voltage battery constantly until the stronger one is equalized at 12.6 volts, but hey, it will work I guess, but is not the way to do it.

If you are living in this, then forget the generator thing. Keep it as it is handy and you can move it around and charge it at any outlet you find along life's way....

Get some lithium batteries. Two 200 amp hour batteries or one 300 or one 400, or whatever you find that best works for your situation.
IDK what you are powering so that is the key...
Get solar panels so you can fully recharge the batts every day (every sunny day) and plan for no-sun days too, so batts that can go 4 days on what you do is good choice.
This is the way. If you are living in it, then this will be a very good decision.

For me, the battery is everything. I run a DC compressor fridge, lights, sometimes small tv, charge things, fans, blower for heater... I have the solar too, and life is good that the camper gives me the electricity I need and I do not have to tend to it at all.