Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
 


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 05-25-2018, 06:29 AM   #1
4 Rivet Member
 
2018 27' Flying Cloud
Atlanta , Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 268
Converter breaker tripped

We are on a trip alternating between dry camping and full hookups. Two days ago we arrived at a site with full hookups. AC running, refrigerator automatically going to electric from propane, hot water heater on electric, etc. Everything seemed fine.

I have a Victron battery monitor so I can see state of battery and rate of discharge at all times. When we arrived batteries were at full charge. This morning I checked and battery was down to 11.9 V(!). It turned out that the breaker for the converter had tripped. I reset the breaker and it has been running for over 45 minutes now. The monitor shows a healthy Amp rate into the battery.

Several questions maybe someone here can answer:

1. What drain on battery is created by an inoperative converter while connected to shore power?
2. What would cause breaker to trip?
3. The monitor only showed a 74 A-Hr drain when I checked it.I have two AGMs rated at 100 A-Hr each so that would not be enough to pull the voltage down to 11.9 V. Should I take that voltage seriously?
jnm30327 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-25-2018, 10:02 PM   #2
cwf
Rivet Master
 
cwf's Avatar
 
1999 34' Excella
Currently Looking...
Hillsboro , Texas
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 6,406
Images: 2
Blog Entries: 2
shore power to Converter.. no charging... You may not know how long it was 'off'...

The controls for appliances may use 12VDC... and will pull the batteries down..

Then there is the possibility either a battery or the converter is misbehaving..
__________________
Peace and Blessings..
Channing
WBCCI# 30676
cwf is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-25-2018, 10:45 PM   #3
4 Rivet Member
 
LAWBC's Avatar
 
2013 27' FB International
2012 23' Flying Cloud
GVA , British Columbia
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 335
Images: 4
Your converter will run 120 volts ac and 12 volt dc . Something as you said tripped the main breaker which would have shut down your 120 volt side or in this case shore power, your converter would take over running everything on 12 volt dc , except for your AC which if you tried to run it your Dometic control panel would give you an error code = E 7. So your where running everything off your batteries without realizing it, and that would drain your batteries.

If you have a 30AMP service it sometimes takes less that what you would think to shut off your shore power, say make coffee have the hot water on electric and run the furnace and so on. It probably tripped and you did not realize it.
__________________
Laurence
LAWBC is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-27-2018, 08:43 AM   #4
4 Rivet Member
 
2018 27' Flying Cloud
Atlanta , Georgia
Join Date: Oct 2017
Posts: 268
It was not the main breaker that tripped, only the breaker for the converter. And only one leg of that breaker.

We have been back on shore power for several days now. Everything seems to have returned to normal. The literature that came with the Lifeline AGM batteries I have says that a voltage of 11.9 would indicate a 60% discharge . Yet, the Amp-Hrs would indicate only a 37%. The discrepancy bothers me but I will just have to assume the voltage/discharge relationship is not that exact.
jnm30327 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 05-27-2018, 08:58 AM   #5
Moderator
 
DKB_SATX's Avatar

 
2017 26' Flying Cloud
Alamo Heights , Texas
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,493
Images: 1
Blog Entries: 7
There are probably a couple of things going on here.

1) the voltage you saw was *NOT* float voltage. It was voltage with the fridge and water heater control boards pulling some power, the propane detector pulling a little power, lights and anything else that was active on the 12v side pulling a bit of load. That's going to result in a lower voltage reading than the "float" voltage that'll give you a guesstimate of state-of-charge. You'd need to let the batteries sit with zero load for a bit to get a real float voltage.

2) (this is a guess) your battery manager may be correcting somewhat for that portion of battery capacity you really shouldn't use. Pulling all the amp-hours the battery will supply before 12v devices don't have enough voltage to operate property really shortens battery life, even for AGMs, so the Victron may be reading usable capacity instead of total. I don't have one of these thingos (it's on the upgrades list) so I don't know exactly how it computes the capacity it's displaying, again that's just a guess.
__________________
— David

Zero Gravitas — 2017 Flying Cloud 26U | WBCCI# 15566

He has all of the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire. — Sir Winston Churchill
DKB_SATX is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
2018 Classic 33' inverter tripped stromboli Batteries, Univolts, Converters & Inverters 3 04-19-2023 11:10 AM
Tripped GFI Sylvie Electrical - Systems, Generators, Batteries & Solar 2 07-02-2017 10:10 PM
circuit tripped and will mot normalize FFEJANDIRAB Batteries, Univolts, Converters & Inverters 13 11-22-2015 09:06 AM
Tripped breaker Pat Cassity Lights - Interior & Exterior 2 06-07-2014 05:47 PM
Breaker, Breaker!! Bing-Bing Generators & Solar Power 25 09-24-2013 08:25 PM


Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Airstream, Inc. or any of its affiliates. Airstream is a registered trademark of Airstream Inc. All rights reserved. Airstream trademark used under license to Social Knowledge LLC.



All times are GMT -6. The time now is 05:53 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.