Ventilation of battery

[Duane King]

Just received a UPS shipment of the over-priced marine grade electrical panel I ordered. (You might recall from an earlier post that I paid WAY TOO MUCH. Just how much, let's not get into again. . .It's just too painful)

Anyway, the directions for installing this thing say to not let the back of the panel be anywhere near lead acid batteries because they cannot guarantee a spark won't ignite battery fumes. But this is exactly the location I intend for the panel. I want the front of the panel to be down at the feet of my sleeping cabin and the back of the panel to be in the battery compartment under my galley.

I called the place where I ordered the panel and they said, "No problem, just put a vent in the sidewall of your battery compartment so off-gases cannot build up.

What do you folks think? Do I need several vents so I get cross ventilation? The battery storage is about 12" x 18" x 14" and is on the rear corner of my rig. I could put cross vents on the two outside walls, but it will be ugly if I do. (I had intended only one vent on the side of the trailer)

Help me keep from blowing myself up. . .

Duane

[Steve_Cox]

Duane,

How about boxing in the part of the battery compartment with the electrical panel in it and putting the panel itself in a door that opens into the TD? I put my electrical panels in a door and it worked out pretty well.

[Miriam C.]

Duane, Mike S posted a battery box that has a vent hose connected. You just cut a hole and vent the box. You might even separate the panel from the battery with some plywood. Can't find the picture.

[jplock]

Here is how I vented the battery compartment on my TD.


Diagram of vent.

Battery box cover with vent

Back side of battery box cover.


jplock

[asianflava]

I used an Optima which doesn't vent nearly as much as a regular battery. The most likely time it vents is when it charges. I leave the compartment open when I charge.

[toypusher]

I used an Optima which doesn't vent nearly as much as a regular battery. The most likely time it vents is when it charges. I leave the compartment open when I charge.

Zactly what I have and do!!

[Miriam C.]

Mike S. found it for me. Here ya go.


This could solve the problem.

[Steve Frederick]

Ok, Where would I get one??

Thanks for the pic Aunti-M!

[Miriam C.]

Ok, Where would I get one??

Thanks for the pic Aunti-M!

Here's one source. Mike S. got his at "Bass Pro shop or somewhere"
http://www.pplmotorhomes.com/parts/rv-converters/battery-boxes-vented.htm

[Chuck Craven]

I used an Optima which doesn't vent nearly as much as a regular battery. The most likely time it vents is when it charges. I leave the compartment open when I charge.

Zactly what I have and do!!

Remember the older a battery gets the more it outgases. The faster you charge it the more it outgases. That battery box is perfect for handling the out gas. Just don’t put a main breaker or fuse inside the box with the battery. Don’t block the bottom vent when installing it! Good choice!!

Chuck

[Duane King]

Thank you all for your suggestions in this thread. I think I will probably not use the vented battery box. It looks like a real cool idea, however there appears to be a hole in the bottom of the box to allow air to circulate through. This would open it up to the same spark problem I started with.

I really like the drawing and explanation that jplock gave of the vent used by Camp-Inn. I think what I will do is install two vents like that in my battery compartment. One on the sidewall of the trailer and one on the rear wall.

I am using the same sort of panel as the one Steve Cox used. His door idea is fabulous, but I don't think I have enough room in my battery compartment to isolate the wiring and feed it into a dedicated panel cabinet. If I can use that idea, I will. But it may be that two vents is the best I can do. The dual vent idea is what the marine supplier said would work. But he won't be sleeping in my trailer. . .So I'll keep thinkin' and strategizing what to do. If you hear a loud boom, you'll know I choose poorly.

Thanks again for all of your help.

Duane

[Chuck Craven]

Duane
The hole in the battery boxes bottom, if I remember right is about 1” in diameter. When you fasten it to the floor you can use an O-ring seal to prevent water from getting in. Or just caulk around the hole.

Chuck

[Cary Winch]

Duane,

Have you bought your battery yet? If not, just stay away from conventional lead acid batteries. They really should not be used in indoor applications. Venting is a gray area. I used to design battery backup equipment and sat through lots of debates with UL over the issue. Use a battery meant for indoor use like a UPS battery or something. This is what we do and it really is the only way. You will still need to do some venting for heat but the explosion risk is no longer there.

The problem is that these are not batteries you can just roll into your local parts store and get. If you have a actual battery store in the area they could probably order one. Any industrial electronics outlet should be able to get one too.

Cary

[bobhenry]

Thank you all for your suggestions in this thread. I think I will probably not use the vented battery box. It looks like a real cool idea, however there appears to be a hole in the bottom of the box to allow air to circulate through. This would open it up to the same spark problem I started with.

I really like the drawing and explanation that jplock gave of the vent used by Camp-Inn. I think what I will do is install two vents like that in my battery compartment. One on the sidewall of the trailer and one on the rear wall.

I am using the same sort of panel as the one Steve Cox used. His door idea is fabulous, but I don't think I have enough room in my battery compartment to isolate the wiring and feed it into a dedicated panel cabinet. If I can use that idea, I will. But it may be that two vents is the best I can do. The dual vent idea is what the marine supplier said would work. But he won't be sleeping in my trailer. . .So I'll keep thinkin' and strategizing what to do. If you hear a loud boom, you'll know I choose poorly.

Thanks again for all of your help.

Duane

Hydrogen is lighter than air (ask the folks on the hindenburg) so fumes go up and out the top mounted vent while fresh makeup air comes in the hole in the bottom. Off gassing only occurs when charging are you charging when you are camping (battery maintainer on 120 land voltage ) if not the risk of a catastrophic explosion is almost non existant.

[Duane King]

Cary,

What is a "UPS" battery? Around here, UPS stands for United Parcel Service.
I did already purchase a lead acid battery from Interstate Batteries. I don't know if they have access to the kind of battery you are talking about and if they will exchange this one.

Duane