Installation a battery disconnect switch and rewiring the batteries banks

The PO, did little to make things easy, and the batteries were no exception, everything seemed to be jerry-rigged, and also there were far too many wires going to each post, so first I decided to install a battery disconnect switch to disconnect the battery from the house and engine to help prevent parasitic drain, it seems as if no matter what I did the batteries went dead. So that being said, I was just going to rewire everything to clean things up, but after posting a question on my motorhome forums everyone said I should fuse them again , because it would make things much easier to check the fuses from that point of connection instead of looking for a problem in the stock fuse panels, I plan to leave them in place, and I was hoping to fuse each circuit, and then run a single heavy wire to each post instead of the 10 or so that are there now, I also bought and installed in the wood panel I built a dual battery test meter so I am able to test the basic battery condition once I reconnect the battery by switch.

So I begin by taking a section of 3/4" plywood, and painted it to help preserver it, then I cut the holes for the cut off switch and the battery condition meter, with 2 /10 fuse gang panel to allow me to again take the many wires to a few, which will allow me to clean the battery connection and allow me to service the batteries because now they will be easier to disconnect.

Sunday December 26 2010 decided to install and began to rewire the systems

Today 12/31/2010 I went back to pulling the wires over to the new gang fuse panels, tried to solder all of the connections and splices, but discovered that soldering in the cold doesn't work very well, the lighter gauge wires were not much problem but when it can't to the 10 gauge I cold not get it hot enough I ended up using a butt crimp connection on one of them going over every connection with shrink tubing to make the

connection clean , I hope to get back to to tomorrow if it so not so cold. I also lightly coated the connections with dielectric grease and reconnect the wire connectors.

Today Saturday Jan 1st 2011 I completed the wiring of the fuse battery disconnect panel, tomorrow I hope to be able to install the two new Optima blue-top house batteries and the starter battery, surprised again of the very limited space, I wanted to upgrade the battery tray but due to limited space I only had 1" of free room on the tray, I was very limted on what I was able to do.

Today I was able to get the battries banks reinstalled and rewired

Was very happy it started first thing, but I must have not wired the battery disconnect switch correctly because it started in both positions, so I will have to investigate what I did wrong. I still have to wire the fuse panels and the voltage meter in, but so far I guess so good

Well today Saturday 01 08 2011 I ended up making a 8ga "Y" split cable to tie the 2 panel into the battery

When I started adding fuses, many blew so I continue replacing fuses until they stopped blowing. Ended up that four wires blew every fuse I tried so I pulled them after thinking that they must be ground wires and moved them over to the negative battery post. I went back to try and track what fuse powered what and was only able to ID a few wires, so I don't understand what is going on, but I will continue trying , I really hope that the cost and time I put into this upgrade was not nothing but a total waste of time. The battery cut off switch still does not work, this morning I switched the wires from the isolator to the solenoid, so there must with be a cable by passing the current or there is another problem, but at least I have it in place and I will continue trying to resolve the problem as I move forward

I also added another battery disconnect switch to the "Y' split cable I created at least I know there will be no parasitic drain. I also installed a on board battery maintainer to insure we are able to keep the battery banks charged at all times. as well as still another disconnect switch between the house batteries and the starting battery, rewiring everything the same way I took them off, may be a problem with everything still being connected, but I did not know another way to do it and hopefully will resolve it once I be come more familiar with  the D/C system, like I said before at least everything is now in place , I also now have many areas to pull power from as I replace the fog light and replace the windshield washer assembly that the PO removed, etc. The dual battery test switch did end up working, so far each test only showed each battery as only fair, so I hope that after charging them today I will get a battery reading , or I may find that the test too was not worth the effort, only time will tell.

Tomorrow I will continue tracing wires and hopefully dial everything end, but at least everything seem to again work before I stoppled working today, I also hope to be able to make new battery cables to replace the ones I create just to start this project, I will save the ones I threw together as back ups, look forward to seeing how my new Anchor battery crimper going to work.   Well today Sunday the 9th of Jan 2011, I replace the fog lights and wired it into the existing switch the PO installed.

Today something odd occurred, the engine would not turn off via the key switch, I had to go out and disconnect the connecting I installed to power up the fuse panels, I began pulling battery cable and then the engine failed to start, put them all back in the same spot and then the next few times the engine started and stopped by the key switch. I know I will have to remove as many of the s extra battery cable to prevent them from powering the system up, so I guess this will end up being a timely process, because I have to undo everything the PO did, and I hope to be able to get everything to work with as few battery cable connected as possible, but with my luck nothing I do will work and I will have to maintain it as it was.

Really freaked out this week end, after I thought every thing worked after the rewiring I went to install a new windshield washer being the PO took the old one out, so I first removed the wiper arms, then tested the wiper only to discover they no longer worked, so I worked all week end but finally was able to locate the problem the wiper wire was on the positive post when it should have been connected to the negative post, I first added it to the former only to have it not work when the engine was running and just because I was completely lost I tried to add it to the negative post only to find it corrected the problem.

So I went ahead and made a base for the windshield washer reservoir, painted and added the reservoir hanger and then the reservoir, installing it into the only area I could in the motorhome. I also went ahead and stripped and painted the wiper arms.

Next week I hope to make the fitting that will connect the rubber hoses from the inside under the hood to the outside and connect it all together and then reconnect it to the wiper arm, if that all works I will wire in a new switch under the inside dash.