Pat,
I think the consensus around here is that the Statpower(www.statpower.com)
"TruCharge" series is your best bet. They come in 10A, 20A and 40A sizes.
The 10A and 20A are offered "refurbished" on their web site for $95 and $180
respectively and I hear that, if you call, they may have a couple refurbed
40A models in stock. Note that there is a "plus" version of the 20A and 40A
model that is not offered on their site, but the additional features aren't
generally considered worth the price difference.
Regarding "reliability", the old ferroresonant chargers are "sledgehammer"
simple, but they're also hard on your batteries. You can't leave them
connnected all the time or they'll boil your batteries dry. The TruCharge
boxes are about as plug-it-in-and-forget-it as they come. Reliable to me
means being able to depend on the coach power, so I'd obviously go with a
"switching" style charger.
BTW, pick up the book "Managing 12 Volts" by Harold Barre. Just the section
on battery charging is worth the cover price.
Personally, if you rarely dry camp, then I can't imagine why the TruCharge
10HW wouldn't make a decent replacement for the OEM "buzzbox".
My $.02,
Patrick
>
> My coach has no battery charger and the converter case has
> been modified.PO was an {electrician]..Not sure how long it
> will work...Does anyone have any experience with the
> Magnetek 7400 series electronic converter/charger or other
> brands.. Are electronic converters less reliable than
> Ferroresonant???
I think the consensus around here is that the Statpower(www.statpower.com)
"TruCharge" series is your best bet. They come in 10A, 20A and 40A sizes.
The 10A and 20A are offered "refurbished" on their web site for $95 and $180
respectively and I hear that, if you call, they may have a couple refurbed
40A models in stock. Note that there is a "plus" version of the 20A and 40A
model that is not offered on their site, but the additional features aren't
generally considered worth the price difference.
Regarding "reliability", the old ferroresonant chargers are "sledgehammer"
simple, but they're also hard on your batteries. You can't leave them
connnected all the time or they'll boil your batteries dry. The TruCharge
boxes are about as plug-it-in-and-forget-it as they come. Reliable to me
means being able to depend on the coach power, so I'd obviously go with a
"switching" style charger.
BTW, pick up the book "Managing 12 Volts" by Harold Barre. Just the section
on battery charging is worth the cover price.
Personally, if you rarely dry camp, then I can't imagine why the TruCharge
10HW wouldn't make a decent replacement for the OEM "buzzbox".
My $.02,
Patrick
>
> My coach has no battery charger and the converter case has
> been modified.PO was an {electrician]..Not sure how long it
> will work...Does anyone have any experience with the
> Magnetek 7400 series electronic converter/charger or other
> brands.. Are electronic converters less reliable than
> Ferroresonant???
