IBS-DBS: Interesting malfunction and solution (1 Viewer)

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Wow man...that video answered some questions and created about 25 more! Haha.

Okay... so, I have noticed that my deep cycle battery will barely charge, even after a full day of driving. That video seems to explain the reason why. I wonder if there is a work around, or is my IBS system just not going to work on a mismatched battery system?

I did do a reset, it didn’t seem to fix the low battery alarm. I may try swapping in a regular cycle battery and see if that resolved the issue. Thanks for your help man. I’m still a little lost here, but I’m learning.
 
He has good stuff.

Now earlier you mentioned a 12v reading at the 2nd battery, but still a low battery alarm at the monitor. If the rig is running then the batteries are connected and you will get a 12v reading at the battery. The monitor reads each battery independently so that's why you have the alarm. I would replace that 2nd battery. If you have another vehicle then use that battery as a just a test to see if the alarm goes off.
 
He has good stuff.

Now earlier you mentioned a 12v reading at the 2nd battery, but still a low battery alarm at the monitor. If the rig is running then the batteries are connected and you will get a 12v reading at the battery. The monitor reads each battery independently so that's why you have the alarm. I would replace that 2nd battery. If you have another vehicle then use that battery as a just a test to see if the alarm goes off.

Yes, I’m getting a low auxiliary battery warning, only when the motor is off and the computer isolates the battery. However, I’m actually at around 12.6v on the auxiliary battery

Perhaps I have the wire that monitors the charge routed incorrectly? I’m not sure.

Here is the schematic I used. I’m not running solar (yet) so disregard that part. Any idea which wire to start with?

46DE0E82-BF73-48F1-BD39-EE0B13EFD9E4.png
 
I've been living with a low battery warning when the engine is not running in my IBS system for three years ....even after replacing the batteries. Decided to try and figured it out today and thinking I had a faulty RBM or relay ....googled IBS any found this thread. Didn't know there was a full system reset. With the truck running held down the Link and Auto button for 5-7 second until it beeped . I turned off my truck and the warning alarm did not come on. Checked the truck a few hours later and it's still off... I love this forum.. thank you for all the input.
 
I “think” I figured out my low battery alarm issue. I believe I had a band ground on the auxiliary battery. After running a new cable from the negative post on the auxiliary battery back to the frame, my low battery alarm has gone away and the IBS system appears to be operating normally. It’s only been 24 hours so far, so I’ll ost an update after a few more weeks of testing. Fingers crossed 🤞🏼
 
About four years ago I installed an IBS-DBS from Sierra Expeditions. (As some have pointed out this particular system is far more expensive than other systems out there but I pulled the trigger on it anyway. That is not what this thread is about.) I installed it in my UZJ-100 without issue. It went in easily and worked very well - for a while. When I bought the system I added the RBM (Relay Booster Module) which is supposed to help in protecting the system in the event you need to jump your own starter battery with your accessory battery. "RBM Relay Booster Module: designed to improve the functionality of the IBS-DBS Dual Battery System (IBS-DBS and DBi-DBS) in the event that the starter battery is empty or fails totally." I was running an Optima blue top as my accessory battery and a Sears Platinum Group 31 as my primary starter battery.

Fast forward about three years. The first thing that happened is while on a long hot drive in the Philippines the controller began to beep and the green link light illuminated. I played with the controller a bit to see if I could make this stop and I found linking and unlinking the batteries manually would make the condition revert to regular operation.

I read this in the IBS-DBS trouble shooting "manual" which there really is not much to:
"Link failure alarm: The monitor monitors the charge on both batteries. When fitting charge (from alternator, solar, charger) no charge to the other battery is detected, the link error alarm with flashing green LED "linked" and the "beep" sounds. If this error occurs, check immediately the wiring of the power cables to (relay, battery terminals, crimp contacts, control relays). After bug fixes, the alarm will automatically reset."

I inspected all my connections and found nothing wrong. I do not drive the truck much here in the Philippines and often only drive short distances. The problem did not present again for a while and then my Sears G31 battery started failing. When I drove more than about 45 minutes, the error started to present again. Eventually, after about 6 months or so, the G31 battery was garbage and I replaced it with an Optima blue top G31 (which are about 2 times the price here as in the states. Ouch. But other batteries here are junk.)

Problem not solved. And as a matter of fact, it was getting worse. It started to happen after 20 minutes. Ten even 10 minutes of driving. Eventually I recognized that the accessory battery was only being charged for about the first ten minutes of driving. After that, a malfunction caused the system to ignore the accessory battery. It showed on the controller in the cab and I watched as it would drain when using my fridge.

I contacted Wil and Sierra Expeditions and he thought it could be a bad main 200amp relay. I also did some searching and found someone in another forum having a very similar problem his solution was to remove the RBM (which is an option) completely. He also was driving in harsh hot conditions. But because I do not pay attention to what I read, and it was going to be easier to replace the main relay than remove the RBM, I went ahead an got a new main relay from Wil. It was far cheaper than the RBM as well so I figured it was worth a shot. (In retrospect I should have just removed the RBM and kept my $30 but I bought a Trasharoo at the same time but I digress.)

Once installed there was no change to the system. It continued to fail. This Thursday I finally got around to getting in the 120 Fahrenheit basement to remove the RBM. Problem solved. Like the guy in the other forum, my RBM had failed and was preventing my system from operating. Closer inspection also revealed that the sealant on the RBM was no longer intact. I am guessing the heat and humidity of the Philippines destroyed the internals.

Wil was quick to respond to my emails and I appreciate that. There was no way for him to have known the true problem. Unfortunately, because I installed the system myself, it only has a three year warranty, if someone else had done it for me, I would have a five year. Go figure.

In summary, if you have a IBS-DBS with an RBM and start getting a flashing linked light and alarm after a short time, remove the RBM from the system first. It is likely the culprit and the easiest thing to do - even easier than inspecting all your connections and wires, as a troubleshooting step.
Thank you for leading me to an awesome assessment post of my IBS-DBS intermittently inop condition!
 
Thank you for leading me to an awesome assessment post of my IBS-DBS intermittently inop condition!
You bet. When I put in the new RBM I placed it higher and in a position that would suffer less heat and would be easier to replace should it fail again.
 
So I’ve got a Optima red top for my primary, and a Yellow top for my auxiliary battery. Do you think that will cause a problem?
No. Not if they are properly separated by a system like the IBS. If they are in line like my 24v BJ43 the batteries have to be the same but properly separated it matters not what main battery and an acc battery you use.
 
Man, I wish I had seen this earlier. My IBS system with the RBM caused me many of these same problems for the 3 years it was installed. I finally trashed it and bought a cheap system off Amazon about 2 years ago...fortunately it has worked flawlessly. Wish I hadn't thrown that system away...and done better research on Mud.
 
This is a huge thread, I'm going to try the reset first and if that fails, it's a new RBM. THANK YOU!
 
This is a huge thread, I'm going to try the reset first and if that fails, it's a new RBM. THANK YOU!


Be sure to double check all your grounds. Most of my problems were resolved by finding good/better grounding points.
 
Be sure to double check all your grounds. Most of my problems were resolved by finding good/better grounding points.


Will do. the reset didn't do it. thx!
 
Add me to the list of RBM failures. Ripped that sucker out and now everything seems to be working fine again. I always have jumper cables with me anyways so I'd still be able to "link" the batteries in the event of a total starter battery drain.

Thanks OP for this thread. I had just ordered a new relay and found this in time to cancel the order.
 
This really frustrates me. I have the same problem: link failure alarm with no charge on the second battery after 20 mins of driving. While I am super appreciative of the “solution” to remove and replace the RBM, the idea of having to spend another $100 to replace a cheap relay that has a proven history of failure galls me. I wish I would have just built a Blue Seas system for a fraction of the money. What a disappointment. My recommendation to anyone interested in this IBS system is a hard pass.
 
If you follow 4xOverland he spells it out pretty good in this video. He's been doing this a long time and knows his stuff.



I am running the deep cycle with the house lead battery so according to this video this means that the IBS-DBS Is a bust for my set up? I have only had the system installed for maybe over 1 week with heavy daily use during a 7 day power outage. I just got it back from a two day stay at the shop and took it out for a drive when I noticed the “Linked” button blinking And the auditory Beep. Has anyone else had trouble running the different battery types off the IBS?

for what it is worth I don’t have the RBM.
 
I am running the deep cycle with the house lead battery so according to this video this means that the IBS-DBS Is a bust for my set up? I have only had the system installed for maybe over 1 week with heavy daily use during a 7 day power outage. I just got it back from a two day stay at the shop and took it out for a drive when I noticed the “Linked” button blinking And the auditory Beep. Has anyone else had trouble running the different battery types off the IBS?

for what it is worth I don’t have the RBM.
Not me. I have always had different batteries and sizes. I would think most do.

Also, since my replacement and relocation I have had no further issues. At least not yet.
 
Great news I finally discovered the culprit of my issue. So to recap i installed my IBS without the booster relay and a month later the handheld monitor started signaling an error code Indicating that the batteries weren’t linking. Long story short it ended up being a loose battery cable on the relay. Here are some trouble shooting steps..

step #1. Make sure that the relay is working properly by testing the audible “click” As indicated by the start up manual instructions ie. With the vehicle engine off. If there isn’t an audible click than the relay is bad. #2. If the audible click is heard than disconnect and reconnect the handheld monitor inside the vehicle. Now permitting that the issue still persists.. #3. verify that the battery cables as all cables are firmly connected to the relay. This is where my issue occurred, upon removing The relay from its mounted location I saw that one of the battery cables had all but fallen off and the nut and lock washer were literally hanging on the very last thread. Upon tightening this down the issue resolved. #4. Using the multimeter Verify grounding cable is connected and has continuity, and check resistance.

here are further steps to rule out issues related to the alternator.


This step is to rule out issues with the alternator or the voltage regulator to the main battery. At this point we assume that all of the above steps checked out and are working flawless but the issue still throws the code and that the hand held monitor charge indicator doesn’t increase above the 13.0v. Now using a multimeter check the main battery voltage With The vehicle turned off And write the voltage down. Next turn the engine on and write down the voltage of the main battery, drive the vehicle for 30+ minutes and write down the voltage. A faulty alternator to voltage regulator will result in an insufficiently charged battery ex. reading less that 12.6V.

this is as far as I got in my trouble shooting when I doubled back to dismount the relay And discovered that the battery cable was hanging loose.

Hope this helps someone.
 

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