First rv winterization: battery storage for 5 months?

[ron]

I just finished winterizing my first RV, a 14dbs 2014 model. 

It will sit protected and unused from  Dec thru April, a total of five months.  It is connected to 110 power.  I am pretty confident about how it was winterized, and think the pipes and structure will be fine.

Could you give advice on two final issues?

1.  BATTERY For this five month rest, should the battery be removed and placed in our warm basement? Or, can it simply be left in the camper that is connected to power? If removal is the preferred method,  which terminal gets disconnected first? Any specific charger recommendations?

2. TIRES.  The entire camper is covered with a breathable cover, a Gold Line cover.  Should I use a big jack and get the camper tires off the ground?   I just retired so another option would be to uncover it once or twice during this period and drive it around a bit to keep the tires loosened up.

thanks

[pinstriper]

[quote source="/post/5297/thread" timestamp="1417015713" author="@ron"]I just finished winterizing my first RV, a 14dbs 2014 model. 

It will sit protected and unused from  Dec thru April, a total of five months.  It is connected to 110 power.  I am pretty confident about how it was winterized, and think the pipes and structure will be fine.

Could you give advice on two final issues?

1.  BATTERY For this five month rest, should the battery be removed and placed in our warm basement? Or, can it simply be left in the camper that is connected to power? If removal is the preferred method,  which terminal gets disconnected first? Any specific charger recommendations?

2. TIRES.  The entire camper is covered with a breathable cover, a Gold Line cover.  Should I use a big jack and get the camper tires off the ground?   I just retired so another option would be to uncover it once or twice during this period and drive it around a bit to keep the tires loosened up.

thanks[/quote][p]1. Depends on how low the temperatures are expected. 20's ? Probably nah. Below, sure. I wouldn't store it inside the house, in case you have any battery gasses getting loose, but a semi-heated garage is good. Always disconnect the negative post first on any battery, and connect it last. At least on a car, this is because the frame is part of the ground/negative. So if you happen to be touching the frame or anything connected to it when you touch the positive, you can complete the circuit. I don't know if travel trailers use the frame as ground, but I just stick to that rule.[/p][p]
[/p][p]2. No. The tires will acquire a flat spot in a few days, and they will self correct within the first 5-10 miles, depending on speed and temperature. If you are storing the trailer on soft ground, put some board under the tires so they don't sink into deep mud.[/p][p]
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[david]

There are a couple of threads on this topic, but let me summarize:

LL campers have a small but significant battery draw that will run them down if not charged somehow.

I personally don't like the built in converter for maintenance charging. I think it is much better for batteries to be removed and put in a garage (unheated is fine if they are charged). A low amperage charger like Battery Tender or one made by Black and Decker will keep it safely charged up.

As the previous posts says, don't worry about your tires.

David

[kodabear]

Not trying to be argumentative, but there's nothing wrong with storing your battery in your house. A battery only off-gasses during the charging process, and the amount of hydrogen given off is not at all hazardous in a space the size of a typical basement. The concentration just is not there. Also, do not listen to anyone who warns against storing your battery on concrete. That's bunk. I second the advice about a smart charger. I have used a [a href="http://smartercharger.com/products/batterychargers/ctek-multi-us-7002/"][font color="#e61963"]CTEK 7000[/font][/a] for years. I also have a Battery Tender that I use for small batteries like the little 5AH emergency brake battery but it's a toy compared to the CTEK. Here's the thing, if you use a good charger like the CTEK once a month, you can leave your batteries on your camper's tongue without fear of their freezing.

More hazardous, IMO, is leaving your RV plugged into 110 all winter. What's the point? Unplug it and eliminate one more way it can be damaged. 

[daplumbr]

I know this thread is titled batteries and I'm sure there is lots written elsewhere on the forum about tire storage, but I still can't resist noting that stored tires often develop surficial cracks at stress points, like the bulges where the tires rest against the ground. Here's a tech article from the Tire Rack with the first point being not to store tires with weight on them. I've got my TBS on jack stands for the winter.

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=37&;

Back to the battery thing. I second (or third actually) the point about not leaving the shore power plugged in and to hook up the battery (in or out of the trailer) to a CTEK or Battery Tender trickle charger. With a light trickle charge as needed all winter the battery won't sulfate up and will be ready to go for next season.