Don't Ignore a Smelly Motorhome! (1 Viewer)

[Armytwowheels]

As @jumartoo has mentioned in the Morning thread, there was a bit of a drama on site yesterday.

What I learned today - If you walk past a motorhome and it really stinks, don't just comment on it and walk on. I walked past with the dog first thing and thought someone had just emptied their very smelly waste tank, later going past on the scooter, I smelt it again and thought, cricky their waste really stinks.

We got back from shopping about an hour later and Colin over heard the owner saying the battery was hot, which really got Colins attention and realised what the smell was.

Everything turned of and everyone out of the van, in he goes with his tools to undo the fizzing battery. It wasn't just the battery that was hot, the floor and surrounding area was too!

All was well and no damage done to van or occupants, but it could of been so much worse. I can only describe the smell as bad eggs, smelly waste, fridge farts (when you have some really ripe cheese in there), or over cooked cabbage.

If you notice these smells, it could be anyone of those things, but it might be someone's, or your, van about to go up in smoke. So worth a tap on the door as you walk past to just mention it.

 

[Robert Clark]

What was the problem Sandra?

 

[irnbru]

Thanks to Colin he no doubt saved a motorhome and a life.

Was thinking the next lines were someone had been lying dead for weeks so good to read it ended well.

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[Tootles]

What was the problem Sandra?

The battery was hot.

 

[Robert Clark]

The battery was hot.

How come ?

 

[MC 55 FUN]

What I learned today - If you walk past a motorhome and it really stinks, don't just comment on it and walk on.

I can only describe the smell as bad eggs, smelly waste, fridge farts (when you have some really ripe cheese in there), or over cooked cabbage.

The smell of rotten eggs is caused by Hydrogen sulfide in the battery ( H 2S )

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[Tanya_and_Mick]

Smart move....

 

[Tootles]

How come ?

A swollen, hot battery is very dangerous. Disconnect the charger and let the battery cool down before handling the battery. A hot battery probably needs water and the plates are already damaged. The capacity is poor and if the open circuit voltage is below 11.9 V the battery is defective and has to be replaced.
Charging with over voltage (> 14.4 V) and complete discharging must be avoided in any case and are the reasons for most of battery defects.

 

[Madeinengland]

I'm so glad you mentioned this as we have the same problem re bad, awful smells, enough to make us feel really sick. We know it isn't the toilet, and have been thinking maybe it's the waste water. Now we'll keep an eye on the battery. The thing is if it were the battery, would it perform normally at other times, ie it's in the drive on EHU at the minute and charges ok to 13. something, or would it smell whilst not being worked.

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[jockaneezer]

Switch the charger off then check the voltage after an hour for a true reading.

 

[Dave and Ginny]

My son who is in the motor trade told me about this only a short while back. Apparently it can happen with any wet cell battery and the smell of rotten eggs is the give a way. Ever since he told me I put my nose up to the leisure battery every now and then .

 

[Tootles]

I'm so glad you mentioned this as we have the same problem re bad, awful smells, enough to make us feel really sick. We know it isn't the toilet, and have been thinking maybe it's the waste water. Now we'll keep an eye on the battery. The thing is if it were the battery, would it perform normally at other times, ie it's in the drive on EHU at the minute and charges ok to 13. something, or would it smell whilst not being worked.

You wont get an answer to that without disconnecting the EHU, waiting a few hours, and then testing the battery with a multi-meter. IF the battery still smells after this time, then the chances are it's still gassing, and any spark you create could cause the battery to implode. When disconnecting a vehicle battery, always disconnect the earth, or black cable, first. Ensure that you don't have two batteries connected in parallel, IE: a second habitation battery. A battery that has received a full charge, if tested within 24 hours of it being removed from a charging source, (at rest), should give a reading of between 12. volts and 12.5 volts. Anything below 12.volts COULD indicate a cell failure. Most cell failed batteries will give a reading of 10 volts or below, as the other five cells are attempting to 'charge' the failed cell. If in doubt, safely remove the battery from the vehicle, cover the contact posts to ensure that no metallic object can accidentally cross them, and take it to a battery outlet. If their good, they will have a load tester, that will quickly identify a faulty cell. Usually, the end cells of an automotive battery fail first.

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[mjltigger]

You wont get an answer to that without disconnecting the EHU, waiting a few hours, and then testing the battery with a multi-meter. IF the battery still smells after this time, then the chances are it's still gassing, and any spark you create could cause the battery to implode. When disconnecting a vehicle battery, always disconnect the earth, or black cable, first. Ensure that you don't have two batteries connected in parallel, IE: a second habitation battery. A battery that has received a full charge, if tested within 24 hours of it being removed from a charging source, (at rest), should give a reading of between 12. volts and 12.5 volts. Anything below 12.volts COULD indicate a cell failure. Most cell failed batteries will give a reading of 10 volts or below, as the other five cells are attempting to 'charge' the failed cell. If in doubt, safely remove the battery from the vehicle, cover the contact posts to ensure that no metallic object can accidentally cross them, and take it to a battery outlet. If their good, they will have a load tester, that will quickly identify a faulty cell. Usually, the end cells of an automotive battery fail first.

Although by the time your better starts fixing you Sony need to test it.. you know it's dead..

This happened to me with it on the drive.. my charger died so I fitted a new upgrades one. number one daughter came in to say why is the van beeping and flashing.. I opened the sliding door anf was nearly knocked back by the smell.. luckily the co2 Alarm was going off which alerted us to the issue and I got the battery off safely.

 

[Madeinengland]

Thanks very much. Will give that a go, probably tomorrow as just off out.

 

[Spanner]

I'm so glad you mentioned this as we have the same problem re bad, awful smells, enough to make us feel really sick. We know it isn't the toilet, and have been thinking maybe it's the waste water. Now we'll keep an eye on the battery. The thing is if it were the battery, would it perform normally at other times, ie it's in the drive on EHU at the minute and charges ok to 13. something, or would it smell whilst not being worked.

Hydrogen sulfide does smell like rotten eggs but is also highly explosive so open your windows and door to allow the smell to clear and switch off your charger etc before disconnecting the battery terminals, you don't want any sparks that could cause an explosion.

Take your battery to a battery specialist who will be able to test it as it sounds like the battery has a faulty cell and the charger is working overtime.
When carrying battery's it's wise to wrap an old cloth or similar around the case as they often have traces of acid on them, saves ruining your clothes !

Remembering to make sure that your charger isn't faulty and overcharging otherwise you could fry the new battery

Many years ago I witnessed someone testing a car battery that had just been taken off a bench charge, as the drop tester was put across the battery terminals there was a spark that ignited the gas, the bang was as loud as a shotgun, the back and one end of the battery were blown out, miraculously the person holding the tester wasn't blinded by the sulphuric acid that sprayed the bench.

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[Duck Truck]

This poses a significant identification problem for us!!!

Sue's cooking always smells like that

 

[Riverbankannie]

Hydrogen sulfide does smell like rotten eggs but is also highly explosive so open your windows and door to allow the smell to clear and switch off your charger etc before disconnecting the battery terminals, you don't want any sparks that could cause an explosion.

Take your battery to a battery specialist who will be able to test it as it sounds like the battery has a faulty cell and the charger is working overtime.
When carrying battery's it's wise to wrap an old cloth or similar around the case as they often have traces of acid on them, saves ruining your clothes !

Remembering to make sure that your charger isn't faulty and overcharging otherwise you could fry the new battery

Many years ago I witnessed someone testing a car battery that had just been taken off a bench charge, as the drop tester was put across the battery terminals there was a spark that ignited the gas, the bang was as loud as a shotgun, the back and one end of the battery were blown out, miraculously the person holding the tester wasn't blinded by the sulphuric acid that sprayed the bench.

How would you check battery charger working correctly?

 

[Geo]

How long has Colin had Suicidal Tendencies
YOU NEVER EVER DISCONNECT A GASSING BATTERY AT ITS TERMINALS EVER
Rebuilding faces ,eyes, and arms is far more difficult than repairing Motor Homes
Remove from any mains hook up, cover any Solar panels and leave for a few hrs to cool
or approach dressed as a Bomb Disposal Expert because that is what you are dealing with, and with an unknown timer to boot

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[lindyloot]

we had this happen to a habitation battery on our mh several yeats ago. We were travelling up to Norfolk and the radio suddenly went dead , thought is was signal and thought no more of it. a day klater on site we had the smell of bad eggs and Rich realized it was the battery. Luckily we had a spare on board and was able to change it. The strange thing was after changing the battery the radio worked , i have a feeling it was connected to the had battery. I certainly wont forget the smell and if i smell it again will know what it is.

 

[pyro]

You wont get an answer to that without disconnecting the EHU, waiting a few hours, and then testing the battery with a multi-meter. IF the battery still smells after this time, then the chances are it's still gassing, and any spark you create could cause the battery to implode. When disconnecting a vehicle battery, always disconnect the earth, or black cable, first. Ensure that you don't have two batteries connected in parallel, IE: a second habitation battery. A battery that has received a full charge, if tested within 24 hours of it being removed from a charging source, (at rest), should give a reading of between 12. volts and 12.5 volts. Anything below 12.volts COULD indicate a cell failure. Most cell failed batteries will give a reading of 10 volts or below, as the other five cells are attempting to 'charge' the failed cell. If in doubt, safely remove the battery from the vehicle, cover the contact posts to ensure that no metallic object can accidentally cross them, and take it to a battery outlet. If their good, they will have a load tester, that will quickly identify a faulty cell. Usually, the end cells of an automotive battery fail first.

Excellent advice, worth repeating, as is this:

How long has Colin had Suicidal Tendencies
YOU NEVER EVER DISCONNECT A GASSING BATTERY AT ITS TERMINALS EVER
Rebuilding faces ,eyes, and arms is far more difficult than repairing Motor Homes
Remove from any mains hook up, cover any Solar panels and leave for a few hrs to cool
or approach dressed as a Bomb Disposal Expert because that is what you are dealing with, and with an unknown timer to boot

And if those two posts above alone justify paying £15 to read, then it is money very well spent

 

[Tootles]

I once had a tank battery implode on me in the drivers compartment of a Chieftain Tank. There were four large battery's in the compartment, positioned each side of the driver, in half sized metal compartments. It was just after first parade, I got in, switched on the battery master switch.....BANG....I was covered in acid, but very fortunately, my head was outside the drivers comportment. I scrambled out, overalls smoking, and one of the lads was really quick with a hosepipe, sluiced me down. Within an hour, there were more holes then overalls, and I had some pretty bad burns to my legs and chest. Scared the living hell out of me.
However, it taught me a lesson about batteries. As Geo says, treat them as you would a bomb.

You can see in this picture the battery boxes each side of the drivers position.

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[Duck Truck]

Could have been worse
You could have had the battery box
under your seat as on Fiats
lol
lol

 

[Jaws]

How long has Colin had Suicidal Tendencies
YOU NEVER EVER DISCONNECT A GASSING BATTERY AT ITS TERMINALS EVER
Rebuilding faces ,eyes, and arms is far more difficult than repairing Motor Homes
Remove from any mains hook up, cover any Solar panels and leave for a few hrs to cool
or approach dressed as a Bomb Disposal Expert because that is what you are dealing with, and with an unknown timer to boot

You beat me to it Geo.
If a battery is gassing that bad pull the EHU from the post.
Open all doors and windows and leave to vent for at the very least 30 minutes
A gassing battery is just SO dangerous the issue cannot be stressed enough

 

[Armytwowheels]

What was the problem Sandra?

This particular battery (labeled maintenance free) had hardly any water in. Some cells were empty.

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[Armytwowheels]

You beat me to it Geo.
If a battery is gassing that bad pull the EHU from the post.
Open all doors and windows and leave to vent for at the very least 30 minutes
A gassing battery is just SO dangerous the issue cannot be stressed enough

Everything was discounted and the van well vented before he touched it, but yes he should have waiting longer for it to cool down. I have told him off!

 

[hilldweller]

A gassing battery is just SO dangerous the issue cannot be stressed enough

Learn the hard way like I did, I had a car battery on fast charge and decided to do some gas welding on the wing it was mounted on. Pop Pop Pop Pop as all the caps went skyward. A few spots on me, nothing serious, my lucky day. That was about 55 years ago, it's not something you forget.

 

[jumartoo]

Sandra @Armytwowheels thanks for posting this. If it strikes a chord in just one person's memory when they smell "the smell" it's been worthwhile. Newbies need to know what to look (smell) out for. It's not something that you'd be expected to know.

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[scotzsue]

Thanks to Colin he no doubt saved a motorhome and a life.

Was thinking the next lines were someone had been lying dead for weeks so good to read it ended well.

Me too

 

[XRN]

My carbon monoxide alarm went off when my leisure battery failed. I couldn't figure it out till I googled it and found that the Hydrogen is one of the gasses also picked up by the CO alarm.

 

[jumartoo]

No-one would lie dead for long on the camperstop here. We're all too nosy for that to happen

Although three years or so ago a French motorhome was parked at a service station not too far from here. After a week it was entered and the occupants found dead! Their dog was still alive but escaped when the door was opened and disappeared!

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