Hooking up to outlet issues

[CarCollector]

Since we bought our 64 Overlander we had it plugged into our house (110 plug in) to run a heater to suck all the moisture out and to turn lights on. We even had all the lights on and the heater on for quite some time with no issues.

On our first camping trip we plugged it in and it kept popping the reset button on the outlet. At home we haven't plugged it into an outlet with the reset button. Once we got home I plugged it back into the extention cord and haven't had a problem since.

Any ideas what could be going on? We already have enough to fix to have it working like new. Also, would it be safe to get an adapter to plug it into 220?

[dkrug]

It may have been the outlet. Our last trip the outlet we plugged into was having issues and quit altogether. We plugged into the spot next to us and all was well. We carry a small tester in the camper so we can check outlets.

[jdalrymple]

Generally speaking, an electrical outlet with a reset button is a Ground Fault Interrupt circuit.

These outlets are required by the electrical code in outdoor or wet areas, like around a kitchen or bathroom sink.

Without going into a lengthly explanation, they prevent electrical shocks in certain situations by measuring the current being drawn from and returned to the outlet.

Outlets without the reset do not have the protective circuit and don't trip.

The tripping with your trailer may indicate a big problem, or a small one. It may be as simple as an appliance you have plugged in inside the trailer, a broken wire in the umbilical cord or elsewhere, or a mis-wired outlet inside the trailer.

Finding it yourself will require you to have some basic understanding of electricity and wiring.

As for an adapter to 220 volts, unless someone has rewired the trailer at some point in the past, nothing in the trailer is ready for 220 volts. Even today's largest USA trailers are only 120 volts AC.

The larger outlets you see in the hookup pedestals in RV parks are not 220 volts. They are high amperage 120 volt outlets. Normally rated at either 30(three prong) or 50(four prong) amps.

Adapting your plug to one of them may keep the power on, because these are not usually GFI protected.

But, it would not solve your issue. If the problem is in the wiring of the trailer, and you happen to touch something that is shorted, you could be electrocuted.

Broken wires inside the walls of the trailer can short to the trailer skin and electrify it.

Not trying to scare you here, but just making you aware of potential issues.


Good Luck,


JD

[CarCollector]

Thanks for the warning. My boyfriend works with electricity on CNC machines and has a really nice ohm meter. I may have him bring that home this weekend and see if he can figure it out for me. Thankfully we have the wiring diagram in our owner's manual, so I think it's more time consuming for him. In the mean time I'll just plan to use the extention cord and bring it in through the window with a power strip, lol. We have a small fridge we can hook up outside of the camper. The AC doesn't work anyways and we are going to borrow a floor AC unit, so it's no big loss.

[interstateflyer]

You would be wise to purchase one of these surge guards. Avoid the cheap ones. They analyze the park power and warn you if there is a problem that could compromise your AS's electrical system.

Portable Surge Guards With LCD Display - 30 Amp - TRC 34730-003 - Surge Protectors - Camping World

Also....we use a de-humidifier instead of a heater. You'd be amazed at how much H20 it collects.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by jdalrymple

Outlets without the reset do not have the protective circuit and don't trip.

Not entirely true. My Interstate has one ground-fault protected circuit where the "test" button is on the breaker itself, and there is no test/reset button on the outlets.

I'm no expert, but I'm told on good authority that if the breaker is GFCI-protected, the whole circuit is protected already, and so the outlets should not have their own GFCIs. There is no benefit to having two GFCIs in series on the same circuit.

[jdalrymple]

Originally Posted by Protagonist

Not entirely true. My Interstate has one ground-fault protected circuit where the "test" button is on the breaker itself, and there is no test/reset button on the outlets.

I'm no expert, but I'm told on good authority that if the breaker is GFCI-protected, the whole circuit is protected already, and so the outlets should not have their own GFCIs. There is no benefit to having two GFCIs in series on the same circuit.

A GFI breaker does indeed protect the entire circuit connected to it.

However, in the interest of simplicity it was my intent to keep the explanation confined to the gist of the OP's problem:

The trailer worked at home when plugged into what is evidently a non-GFI receptacle, but seems to exhibit an ground fault issue when connected to a protected circuit.



Regards,

JD