Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

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SteveLombardi
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Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by SteveLombardi »

http://1drv.ms/1VIgUCH

Steve K,

As requested, I am sending along some info on how I put two T105’s in my 2012 BF. The basic problem is the height of the batteries or conversely, the lack of height in the compartment opening. The newer body style on my BF shares the battery compartment door with the generator compartment and for reasons unknown to me the opening height is less than on the older body styles. This, along with the height the EZ Glide drawer raises the batteries off the floor of the compartment, it’s impossible to get the T105’s through the opening.

I was determined to get the T105’s in because the original Interstates had failed me this past summer and having had such a good experience with the Trojans in my previous motorhome I wasn’t going to give up. I was never a fan of two 12Volts in parallel and have never gotten more than 4 years out of them while my last set of T105’s were still going strong in their eighth year when I sold that motorhome.

In order to figure this all out I visited a Trojan dealer near me and they conveniently had two T105’s with the lead and acid guts removed that weighed a mere few pounds. With these I was able to monkey around and determine that if I could get the batteries through the small opening of the compartment there was plenty of room inside as long as I removed the EZ Glide drawer. The roof of the fiberglass compartment is almost three inches above the top of the opening sill and with the batteries in place I could still get my hands and tools in there to make the cable connections. At this point it was my plan to abandon the EZ Glide drawer and come up with my own design for a hold-down strap or bracket to securely mount the batteries directly on the fiberglass compartment floor. I was then planning to purchase the Trojan watering kit and pump to service the batteries since it would be rather difficult to remove them for this purpose alone. I think this is a very workable solution and except for some creativity needed to make a hold down strap/bracket everything can be purchased.

What actually happened is my son saw my approach to all this and had to get involved. In about an hour he had modified the EZ Glide drawer to lower the tray down to about ¼” off the fiberglass compartment floor and had cut off about ½” of excess fiberglass from the upper compartment sill opening. I am lucky because he has cutting, welding, and grinding tools enough to supply a pro- garage. With these modifications the drawer opens and closes as designed and the battery posts just make it past the upper sill opening. I had not yet purchased the watering kit so nothing was lost and it's all working OK so far.

I might add that I’m going to fix one more thing that’s been bothering me. I noticed that a steel support member of the coach’s under-structure is positioned just above the positive terminal of the battery pair and it nags at me to think what would happen in an accident if the un-fused positive terminal hit the frame member. I plan to adhere a heavy sheet of insulating material to the steel member to disallow this. It’s worth noting that the original Interstates were prone to this same potential problem albeit with more clearance.
2012 25RB
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Dallas Baillio
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Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by Dallas Baillio »

Interesting that Born Free made a modification to the battery compartment that complicates a change over to 6 volt batteries. It was a straightforward simple process for me to effect the change. The old adage "buyer beware" even applies to Born Free, a company we all well respect. If I were buying a used one at this time I would have never imagined that a changeover to 6 volt batteries would be so complicated.
Dallas Baillio
2001 26RSB
Born Free Leap'n Lions RV Club Member
jeffcarp
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Joined: Tue Apr 26, 2011 8:02 pm

Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by jeffcarp »

I had two 6V Lifeline AGM batteries put in when we ordered our coach from the factory. The actual battery compartment works fine with the original sliding tray using the two AGM batteries. What didn't work was the height of the compartment at the "top lip" of the compartment where the door gasket seals against. All the factory had to do was to cut this lip enough to allow the batteries to slide out on the tray. Once the lip gets past the battery compartment, they left the rest of it as-is. The door gasket still has enough vertical lip surface to seal against. I suppose with the right tools this lip could easily be cut and ground smooth as they did at the factory.
2011 Born Free 22' Rear Side Kitchen
Tahoe
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Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by Tahoe »

I noticed the 2001 24 RB now on eBay was ordered the 6V batteries.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2001-Born-Free- ... 1867707525
Russ and Denise
2002 24RB
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stevek
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Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2012 5:33 pm

Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by stevek »

Nice looking BF on Ebay.
Eventually I am going to "cut" mine to get 6 volt batts to fit.
Thanks SteveLomardi for write up and pics and everybody else for input.
Steve
2011 Born Free 22 foot RSK, rear side (corner) kitchen, E350, 29k miles.
Our first motorhome. Lots to learn. Thanks.
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SteveLombardi
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Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by SteveLombardi »

When you proceed to cut off the top fiberglass lip of the battery compartment be advised that there is a steel member of the coach that sits just behind the lip and runs parallel to it. (coach front to rear) This limits the amount of fiberglass you can remove to about 1/2 inch but the steel member also makes a really nice straight edge to cut along. I used a fine hacksaw blade and the strip of fiberglass was off in a few minutes. The white decorative edge trim that surrounds the compartment must be pulled off before you cut the lip but I was able to push it back on afterwards.
2012 25RB
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bechlumber
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Joined: Sat Aug 20, 2005 1:28 pm

Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by bechlumber »

I installed four 6volt gel batteries in 2004. There is no room left in the battery compartment. We had to put a metal plate under the compartment with a bolt up through the inside floor of the Born Free because of the weight of the batteries. I also added a solar system and inverter/charger 2000 watts.
2002 24' Rear Bath 4x4 7.3 Diesel
jerseypete

Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by jerseypete »

The BF engineer modified my batt compartment and installed 4 T-125 Trojans with a pro-fill system. Done in 1998. Just replaced the batts only because of age, to avoid any problems. This was to accomodate 4 solar panels on the roof, in co-operation with AM solar in Oregon.
randallrae
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Joined: Wed May 22, 2013 7:30 pm

Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by randallrae »

http://www.lifelinebatteries.com/rvflyer.php?id=14 These AGM batteries are under 10 inches tall .
2012 25' rb
ChasOButts

Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by ChasOButts »

In reply to the 2001 24rb EBay coach that was ordered with 6 volt batteries, I purchased that coach, it now has 12 volt batteries, but from bottom of battery tray to ceiling above is 14 inches!
rick1949
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Joined: Wed Apr 08, 2015 1:27 pm

Re: Has anybody modified Batt. Compartment for 6 Volt Batts?

Post by rick1949 »

There is a drawer compartment above the standard batt compartment that could be eliminated for extra batt space, although it would have to be vented. Has anyone tried this? :?
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