question for someone who knows their stuff on electrical issues !

[nickclifford]

question for electricians out there ... i'm really stumped on this one .. 2nd owner of a 1972 31' Sovereign, changed the power converter as original was not functioning.(this was done by an RV guy, as seemingly beyond my novice capability, it was a tedious job as after much head scratching, cable between battery and power converter had to be bypassed with a new one to make it all work.)

Everything "works"; 12v, 110, battery charges ... only issue is when using the 12v overhead lights , the converter gets VERY warm / hot and makes a light humming sound. According to the manufacturer, this is not normal.

any thoughts on troubling shooting ? most appreciated

[Glenritas]

What converter did you install ? Make and model ?

[Belegedhel]

Your statement "cable between battery and power converter had to be bypassed with a new one to make it all work" gets my attention. It makes me wonder if the installer didn't hook up your converter in such a way that instead of charging the batteries, and the battery providing the 12V to the trailer, the converter itself is acting as a power supply for the 12V system, and the battery is just sitting there being kept charged, but out of the circuit.

Question is, if the trailer is not plugged into a 110V power source, and thus the converter is not doing anything, does your entire 12V system work as expected, drawing from the battery?

good luck!

[HowieE]

If the bypass wire was undersized and the fuse panel fed from the converter end of the bypass wire the converter would see the load and run full out to support the load. From an electrical standpoint both ends of the converter to battery are the same as long as the wire between them can support the load. If not the wire becomes a resistor and power will be drawn from the converter rather than the battery.

Remove the shore power and try the experiment above running the lights off just the battery. Feel the positive size wire coming off the battery. If it is getting warm and the lights are dimmer it is undersized.

Once you solve this issue replace the converter with a newer intelligent one that has different charging rates and a battery monitor system.

[TomKirk]

If the new converter gets as warm as you say, there's a bad ground some place.

BTW - The old converter was replaced "for good reason."

Check temperature of 12 volt fuse panel. Touch the fuse connectors. Do they feel "very warm" to the touch a well?? If they do, that means the 12 volt system is trying to ground itself thru the positive wires.

Rule of thumb = Electricity, like water, follows the path of least resistance.

Tom

[SuzyHomemakr]

Another thing to check... make sure that all of your connections are nice and tight. Corrosion, or a loose connection can cause the heating. Airstreams come with some feeble 12V wiring, IMHO. You can go to the auto parts store and get some #2 ga. cables for short money... you would also need a set of big crimpers.

This is all good advice being given in this thread. Whenever you have electrical problems, start off making the circuit as short as possible, then add stuff back in until you replicate the problem.

If you want to step up your electrical installation, I'm selling a Xantrex 1000 watt inverter/smart charger for a mere pittance

[nickclifford]

Originally Posted by Belegedhel

Your statement "cable between battery and power converter had to be bypassed with a new one to make it all work" gets my attention. It makes me wonder if the installer didn't hook up your converter in such a way that instead of charging the batteries, and the battery providing the 12V to the trailer, the converter itself is acting as a power supply for the 12V system, and the battery is just sitting there being kept charged, but out of the circuit.

Question is, if the trailer is not plugged into a 110V power source, and thus the converter is not doing anything, does your entire 12V system work as expected, drawing from the battery?

good luck!

thanks for taking the time to respond, yes, the 12v systems works just fine if the trailer is not plugged into shore power. the batter is being fully charged when connected to shore power, all electrical outlets and the a/c work just fine too. But when i switch on ANY 12v overhead light , that's when the converter starts to warm up excessively.

[nickclifford]

Originally Posted by HowieE

If the bypass wire was undersized and the fuse panel fed from the converter end of the bypass wire the converter would see the load and run full out to support the load. From an electrical standpoint both ends of the converter to battery are the same as long as the wire between them can support the load. If not the wire becomes a resistor and power will be drawn from the converter rather than the battery.

Remove the shore power and try the experiment above running the lights off just the battery. Feel the positive size wire coming off the battery. If it is getting warm and the lights are dimmer it is undersized.

Once you solve this issue replace the converter with a newer intelligent one that has different charging rates and a battery monitor system.

thanks for the feedback, i'll give this a shot, i'm very confident that the correct wire size was used. i also have a new inteli-power 9200 series.

[nickclifford]

[QUOTE=TomKirk;1693235]If the new converter gets as warm as you say, there's a bad ground some place.

BTW - The old converter was replaced "for good reason."

Check temperature of 12 volt fuse panel. Touch the fuse connectors. Do they feel "very warm" to the touch a well?? If they do, that means the 12 volt system is trying to ground itself thru the positive wires.

Rule of thumb = Electricity, like water, follows the path of least resistance.

Don't believe the fuse panel getting warm, but i'll look again .. it's never blown a fuse either (except for when i shut down a roof vent fan by having to pull wires as couldn't find a switch anywhere) ..another topic ...!

[nickclifford]

Originally Posted by SuzyHomemakr

Another thing to check... make sure that all of your connections are nice and tight. Corrosion, or a loose connection can cause the heating. Airstreams come with some feeble 12V wiring, IMHO. You can go to the auto parts store and get some #2 ga. cables for short money... you would also need a set of big crimpers.

This is all good advice being given in this thread. Whenever you have electrical problems, start off making the circuit as short as possible, then add stuff back in until you replicate the problem.

If you want to step up your electrical installation, I'm selling a Xantrex 1000 watt inverter/smart charger for a mere pittance

thanks, can explain in a little more detail what you're suggesting ? where would i run the #2 gage cables to / from ?

the inverter's are good for boon-docking, right? you can power up a coffee machine or whatever from the battery? but if you couldn't recharge battery for a few days, wouldn't this deplete pretty quickly if running high drawing electrical appliances , no?

thanks, nick

[Silverflames]

I have the 70 amp version of the same brand. When there is a lot of power draw, it will get warm and the fan will come on inside the unit. It is never hot to the touch.

[SuzyHomemakr]

Originally Posted by nickclifford

thanks, can explain in a little more detail what you're suggesting ? where would i run the #2 gage cables to / from ?

the inverter's are good for boon-docking, right? you can power up a coffee machine or whatever from the battery? but if you couldn't recharge battery for a few days, wouldn't this deplete pretty quickly if running high drawing electrical appliances , no?

thanks, nick

Yes, an inverter is good for the off-the-grid stuff. You are correct in that you must have a huge battery bank for the big loads, or for more time on small loads.

The cables from the battery to the inverter need to be stout, so that would be true for a good quality high-amperage charger as well. The more load that you want to draw, the larger your wires have to be.

Last year, I was at a park with sub-standard power, and had a voltage dip that fried a bunch of gear. A similar thing could have ruined your converter. All it takes is a chilly morning, everybody turns on their space heaters at once, voltage gets real low real fast!

In your case, I would try removing all fuses to all 12V (the circuit is very small now), and see if the converter heats up. That will tell you whether it's the converter or the lights/wiring/other stuff. If the converter stays cool, start putting things back together one at a time until the symptoms return.