#Power converter rv generator#

The maker tried to pick a middle of the road charging level, but the result is bad at both ends. If you have gel or AGM batteries you may avoid the mess and you can’t add water, but it will shorten the life of your batteries.

Also, if you leave your camper plugged in for too many days, it will likely “boil” (overcharge) your batteries, meaning not only making a mess, but also requiring you add distilled water often (if you have a standard wet cell batteries). Why? It is a very simple single-stage charger. The problem is that if you have a low battery and plug into shore power that Magnetek can take several days to fully recharge your battery. The Magnetek was the choice of many RV manufacturers for years. Magnetek Converter / Charger box – twist black plastic square latch at top to open (Red switch is solar cut-off) The battery charger for your house battery is built into your converter or your inverter, depending on what the RV manufacturer choose to install. There is a loss in doing this - it is always better when running off batteries to run 12 VDC appliances rather than using 120 VAC appliances on an inverter - your batteries will last longer. An inverter takes 12 VDC and “inverts” it to 120 VAC.

#Power converter rv generator#

For those not familiar with the differences, a converter takes 120 VAC (volts alternating current – like in your house) from either plugging into shore power or from your generator and “converts” it to 12 VDC (volts direct current - like your car battery). Your fuses and circuit breakers will be inside the cover of the converter box. Magneteks are very common in the RV world. If you have an older Roadtrek or many other older RVs you likely have a Magnetek Converter/Charger (newer Roadtreks have inverter/chargers like the Tripplite).