Hey Gang,
I moved my battery from the tongue to the inside of my 13 Scamp. Main reason was I mounted a travel trunk (pick-up tool box) on the tongue and needed the space. Although I am not worried about the lack of storage space where the battery is now located (beneath the bench at the front of the trailer), I have heard concerns of battery vapors, or something to that affect. The battery is located in a battery box but wanted to get your opinion on this subject.

Whatchathink?

IMHO, I'd oopt for a new battery ...specifically one of those 'gell cell' types (Optima) that can be mounted in any position. As they contain to liquids, they cannot leak or cause vapors.

When being charged, batteries give off hydrogen gas, so it is probably wise to be cautious. I built simple battery boxes but made sure they were pretty well sealed up. Then I attached a tube to each and vented it outside past one of those round little vents you can by at the RV store.

You can buy or build boxes as Per has.

I have had it both ways. In my 13, the battery was below the sink in its own compartment, passively vented to the outside thru the nearby fridge vents. It was a pain to get to, but took up otherwise useless space, was balanced right in front of the axle and helped reduce tongue weight. I never noticed any ill effects from it being there.

The new trailer has the battery on the tongue, and is definitely easier to service, but is open to theft (Until I get a locking bar made) and ads to tongue weight.

Take your pick.

I had my battery inside and unfortunatly I needed the space so I moved battery to tongue.
The battery when being used gives off a gas and should be in a sealed box, vented to the out of doors.
These can be purchased at any RV store.
Also be awear that these gasses are flamable and a spark in any enclosed area where battery is will explode.
The key word is enclosed but I always would err on the side of safety.
gerry the canoebuilder

I just bought a Lite House Grand Trailer-for-Two. I brought it home but can't find the battery storage. It is supposed to have one but I don't know where to even look. Any ideas?

Gerry's right. The key word is 'enclosed'. A little bit of hydrogen in a battery box in the outside world is not going to cause any explosions. At best, a barely audible 'woof' even in the unlikely event that enough of it was able to pool up inside the lid (hydrogen is lighter than air). Inside the trailer, another story. Sadly, I think few of our trailers are sealed well enough to allow any significant quantity of hydrogen to build up. Better safe than sorry though.

More important than hydrogen though, is to make sure that wherever you put the battery, someone isn't likely to put something large and metal on top of it. Like that big crescent wrench you keep in your cutlery drawer for disconnecting the propane tank. Or under your big metal hot water heater. Or in the cabinet with the cookie sheets. Or in the cupboard with the aluminum baking tins. See my other thread about 'welding with car batteries'.

I'm also a fan of Optima batteries but for a trailer, I wouldn't waste money on the red 'starter' batteries. You only get a few 'full drain' cycles on them before it's time to pull out your wallet again. On my 4x4's, I have had the yellow deep cycle Optimas for about 7 years and they've been drained fully as much as a dozen times and they always bounce right back. Optimas are sealed, use a gel, and weigh about half as much as your typical group 24 battery with just as much 'punch' as your typical car battery. The red ones are cheap ($110 at Wallymart) but the yellow/blue are quite expensive (I paid $380 each for mine, 7 years ago).

Hi Debrah,

A litehouse! Thats a rare find! Congrats!

We have a couple litehouse owners here. Maybe they will chime in and help you.