need an electrician in the nj/pa area

[lilpeewee]

We have a ‘67 caravel that we bought about 12 years ago, that owner said that they had rewired it, and we haven’t had too many issues until recently, the lights are hot to the touch, and our tv blew out. spoke to a few places and haven’t been able to find a shop that understands airstreams, colonial told us they ‘don’t do electrical’, and we just brought it home from an rv place that said it needs to be totally rewired, for thousands of dollars. I think they just couldn’t figure it out, and I certainly have no experience in electrical wiring. anybody know of a reputable electrician in New Jersey, or the Philadelphia area? I’d really appreciate a recommendation!

[lilpeewee]

does anyone have any advice on where to start trying to figure out what is going on? I really want someone to go in and diagnose the issue but if that’s not possible, I will have to self diagnose and make sure the airstream is safe.
it’s a 30 amp system, that has been rewired by the previous owner so I’m thinking that since the 9v lights get hot after a minute, that they are not going through a converter. how can I test what is going through the lights? should I just turn off that breaker and use lights that I can plug in? mainly trying to avoid a fire. any help would be appreciated.

[YippieKiYa]

I'm not sure what you mean by "lights are hot to the touch" and "TV blew out". Lights by their very nature are hot, so I'm sure there's a detail I'm missing. And if the television stopped working, does the outlet still have power?

[lilpeewee]

we needed to send the tv back, the cord blew out, meaning overloaded. there was still power coming through. the lights are very hot as are plugs when plugged in. I know lights get hot, this is hotter than normal. just looking for some ideas of how to determine the source of the problem and definitely prefer to have a pro look at it, but not getting any referrals for electricians in my area.

[YippieKiYa]

Do you have a voltage meter to check the voltage levels at the lights and outlets?

Pretty impossible to get more than 110v at the outlet.

Wait a minute - where are you plugged in at? A home 30a outlet? Is it a 110v RV outlet, or a “dryer/range” outlet? Those outlets are wired for 220v (trailers need 110v), and may explain your issue.

Again, a voltage meter will tell you what’s going on.

[lilpeewee]

ok thanks, will get a voltage meter and go from there.
when we hook up, it’s at the campground where we have been for many years, will wait til we return to start checking it out, as it is home now and not at the proper source. was hoping to get this resolved before the season begins, but without a pro, will just wait. thanks again for your guidance.

[YippieKiYa]

OK. I’m glad to hear that we can rule out the home power source.

[HowieE]

You can do any checking need at home. Just plug into an AC circuit and as long as you do not tur on the air conditioner you will not overload that circuit.

Start by checking several 110 outlets that do not have any thing plugged into them. They should all read the same as the circuit you are plugged into. If there is a difference of more than 5 volts low I would unplug the convertor and check again. If that brought thinks back to normal you may have a bad convertor. I am assuming if the PO rewired the trailer he installed a convertor rather than left the original battery charging system. They did not work from day one.

Plug the convertor directly into your home circuit with an extension cord and check the output voltage with the batteries connected. Should be around 13 volts. I more again look at the convertor. If the convertor is putting out high voltage that would cause the lights to be hotter than normal.

Not sure why the TV failed without blowing a fuse.

[garry]

Hopefully this will give you some idea what's happening when you have someone look at the AS you will know what they are looking for.

Since there has been a rewire do you know if you have a 12VDC system or just 120VAC ?
With 12V you will have a converter and a battery (converter charges battery) and lights will work when "not" plugged in at the campground.

The 120VAC system only works when plugged in at the campground and powers things like air-conditioning, charges battery and anything that plugs into the household type outlets.

Your AS can not generate power it only accepts power so if your power is high causing things to get hot it will be coming that way from the campground.

If you do have a converter it can fail in such a way that it could put out 18V overheating battery and lights but that is rare.

One thing you can do is purchase an adapter plug from RV 30amp to 120V standard household plug and a 120VAC plug in meter. You can find these at any RV dealer or you may find them at Lowe's.
Once you have the above items you can plug your RV cord into the adapter and plug that into your home 120VAC house outlet, plug the AC meter into an outlet in the AS and it will tell you the voltage coming into the AS.
Post back and someone will have an idea of what might be happening and post back.

[Foiled Again]

Don't assume that the campground is innocent

They frequently have to rewire 30.amp outlets because of wear and a new electrician might have miswired the one you plugged into. Go check it for 220... kist in.case.

Paula

[lilpeewee]

thank you all for the ideas! will be heading down to the campground next month and will investigate all of your suggestions.

[A W Warn]

You could have an issue like mine:
I left my trailer plugged in at a campground for months while I was away. When I came back to the trailer there had been a power serge (I assume lightning). The power cord end plug was burned so badly it had to be replaced. One battery burst. The AC/heat pump unit failed the next day, so I installed a new one. I did not notice that the voltage output from the converter was high and constant, so the second battery failed very soon. Had to replace both batteries and the converter. The water heater control module and igniter had to be replace. The radio/tape player stopped working properly. Several florescent light ballasts and bulbs failed over the next year.
It could have been worse! Fingers crossed, hoping the fridge lives on!
It's been 3 years since this happened. I think I've repaired everything that was damaged. I did not have any issues this winter while in FL.