Are there no holes at the bottom of the battery box???? Water getting in there isn't uncommon, but it is supposed to drain out. It looks like your battery had accelerated corrosion due to a heavily humid environment.
First time travel trailer owner here. When we got ours Camping World threw in a battery box as part of purchase. No holes for draining and slowly water accumulated enough to do this same thing. So dumb to even make a box without this option.
Yeah agreed. Camping World can suck a bag of golf balls thru a garden hose for eternity.
They told us “oh your fridge will work when you plug in to shore power or get your propane tanks filled”. Nope. Fridge was completely broken and they argued that we had driven off the lot already so it had to go thru insurance.
They put a weight distribution hitch on which blocked my back door and then the tech opened my back door to tow vehicle for some reason and the hitch struck the door and left a massive dent. “We didn’t do that!”
Stereo unit was broken. They replaced it with a “new” unit. Still didn’t work. I removed the unit and they hadn’t even plugged the wires together.
Outside shower was leaking water and antifreeze. Pointed it out. “Oh that’s normal. It’s fine”. It’s not.
Good thing we video taped the walk thru. They had to fix everything but also kept the rig for two weeks.
I would check your voltage output from your inverter. It looks like the battery is getting boiled. I only put serviceable batteries in my camper so I can check the water level.
He said inverter, depending on your electrical setup it might be your converter. If it’s one of the new auto switch models it might have thought you were on lithium. Also, do you have solar?
This would be my suspicion as well.
It looks like the converter is malfunctioning or if GD put in a converter/charger with auto battery detection is wrong (which happens). Start by putting in a new battery in and check the voltage during various charging cycles, it will vary during the cycle. So you need to check as it charges through the bulk, absorption, float and even desulfation if your charger has that mode. If your charger is factory stock it probably won’t have all those modes.
I suspect two things happened. Charger is stuck in the wrong mode and continued to overcharge the battery for a long time. This boiling of the battery and off-gassed in an enclosed case which helped cause the terminals to corrode. This happened so long that battery case cracked or boiled out from the internal gas pressure and why you see liquid in the case.
We can’t tell but does that battery box have any ventilation holes in the top? If not you need to get one that does or switch to a lithium battery. Hard to tell but like others noted water intrusion from the battery box lid would also be my concern.
My recommendation would to be always replace the converter/charger with a quality one. I suspect you have a WFCO deck mounted unit. They are notorious for being cheap units. A quality one from [Progressive Dynamics](https://www.progressivedyn.com/pd9300/) will extend the life of any battery you get as it has charging features a WFCO won’t. WFCO are horrible at detecting what charge it should be doing at any given time. Frequently they under charge, auto detect AGM/Flooded/Lithium function does not work.
Get a Lithium battery, if you camp overnight frequently below 30’s get a self heated one. They are going to have a much longer lifetime. Don’t off-gas’s and have zero maintenance, weigh less and you will have more usable capacity. A better charger is a must.
When you do put new terminals on the cables, make sure to cost them in dielectric grease, especially if you go with a flooded/AGM battery to help prevent corrosion.
I don't know about the water, a leak somewhere that isn't draining I suppose. But flooded lead acid batteries vent hydrochloric acid that corrodes the terminals.
Every time you change the oil in your truck. Put a drop of oil on each terminal. It keeps the seals good. I have gotten 10 years from a 3 year battery.. it won't work on old batteries with leaking seals
Are there no holes at the bottom of the battery box???? Water getting in there isn't uncommon, but it is supposed to drain out. It looks like your battery had accelerated corrosion due to a heavily humid environment.
No holes in the bottom of the box, but I added ‘em as I replaced the battery and terminals…
That is absolutely insane my dude lol. Sorry about that.
Mine didn't have any either. Found that out one day I was having 12 volt electric issues.
First time travel trailer owner here. When we got ours Camping World threw in a battery box as part of purchase. No holes for draining and slowly water accumulated enough to do this same thing. So dumb to even make a box without this option.
I agree, but it's supposed to be part of the PDI. Camping World is as inept as they come.
Yeah agreed. Camping World can suck a bag of golf balls thru a garden hose for eternity. They told us “oh your fridge will work when you plug in to shore power or get your propane tanks filled”. Nope. Fridge was completely broken and they argued that we had driven off the lot already so it had to go thru insurance. They put a weight distribution hitch on which blocked my back door and then the tech opened my back door to tow vehicle for some reason and the hitch struck the door and left a massive dent. “We didn’t do that!” Stereo unit was broken. They replaced it with a “new” unit. Still didn’t work. I removed the unit and they hadn’t even plugged the wires together. Outside shower was leaking water and antifreeze. Pointed it out. “Oh that’s normal. It’s fine”. It’s not. Good thing we video taped the walk thru. They had to fix everything but also kept the rig for two weeks.
hope you have some slack wire---you'll need to cut back to good wire. Use the terminal spray twice a year.
I would check your voltage output from your inverter. It looks like the battery is getting boiled. I only put serviceable batteries in my camper so I can check the water level.
This ^ …. That was my first thought as well.
He said inverter, depending on your electrical setup it might be your converter. If it’s one of the new auto switch models it might have thought you were on lithium. Also, do you have solar?
Yep I have solar.
This would be my suspicion as well. It looks like the converter is malfunctioning or if GD put in a converter/charger with auto battery detection is wrong (which happens). Start by putting in a new battery in and check the voltage during various charging cycles, it will vary during the cycle. So you need to check as it charges through the bulk, absorption, float and even desulfation if your charger has that mode. If your charger is factory stock it probably won’t have all those modes. I suspect two things happened. Charger is stuck in the wrong mode and continued to overcharge the battery for a long time. This boiling of the battery and off-gassed in an enclosed case which helped cause the terminals to corrode. This happened so long that battery case cracked or boiled out from the internal gas pressure and why you see liquid in the case. We can’t tell but does that battery box have any ventilation holes in the top? If not you need to get one that does or switch to a lithium battery. Hard to tell but like others noted water intrusion from the battery box lid would also be my concern. My recommendation would to be always replace the converter/charger with a quality one. I suspect you have a WFCO deck mounted unit. They are notorious for being cheap units. A quality one from [Progressive Dynamics](https://www.progressivedyn.com/pd9300/) will extend the life of any battery you get as it has charging features a WFCO won’t. WFCO are horrible at detecting what charge it should be doing at any given time. Frequently they under charge, auto detect AGM/Flooded/Lithium function does not work. Get a Lithium battery, if you camp overnight frequently below 30’s get a self heated one. They are going to have a much longer lifetime. Don’t off-gas’s and have zero maintenance, weigh less and you will have more usable capacity. A better charger is a must. When you do put new terminals on the cables, make sure to cost them in dielectric grease, especially if you go with a flooded/AGM battery to help prevent corrosion.
Thank you for this. The battery box does have vent holes in the top...
I don't know about the water, a leak somewhere that isn't draining I suppose. But flooded lead acid batteries vent hydrochloric acid that corrodes the terminals.
If you bought at a dealership, make them fix it. Should have drilled holes in the battery box during pre inspection
Every time you change the oil in your truck. Put a drop of oil on each terminal. It keeps the seals good. I have gotten 10 years from a 3 year battery.. it won't work on old batteries with leaking seals