2010 Interstate Wiring Diagram? Hooked Up to Mis-Wired Shore Power

[nvestysly]

I'm looking for a wiring diagram for a 2010 Interstate, twin bed model. We are the fourth owner of the Interstate - we have what I believe to be all the documents provided with the van at time of sale but there are no wiring diagrams.

Now on the incident that precipitated the problem and my desire for a wiring diagram...

We recently moved into a new house (built for us) and I plugged into the 30A receptacle in the garage. I did not check the receptacle prior to connecting to shore power - shame on me. The receptacle is mis-wired and has 125V on both the line and neutral legs. I immediately realized something was amiss and disconnected the cable but damage has been done. Now I'm attempting to determine the extent of the damage.

As an aside, the same electrical contractor installed a temporary 30A receptacle that we used during construction and everything was fine.

It appears no wires are melted/fused but it's not obvious to me what may have occurred with voltage applied to both line and neutral. I plan to manually connect (one by one) to appliances to see if they function - refrigerator, microwave, TV, A/C, etc.

Then I'll be investigating the transfer switch, circuit breaker panel, in-line fuses, etc.

Any ideas/suggestions appreciated.

[ITSNO60]

Originally Posted by nvestysly

I'm looking for a wiring diagram for a 2010 Interstate, twin bed model. We are the fourth owner of the Interstate - we have what I believe to be all the documents provided with the van at time of sale but there are no wiring diagrams.

Now on the incident that precipitated the problem and my desire for a wiring diagram...

We recently moved into a new house (built for us) and I plugged into the 30A receptacle in the garage. I did not check the receptacle prior to connecting to shore power - shame on me. The receptacle is mis-wired and has 125V on both the line and neutral legs. I immediately realized something was amiss and disconnected the cable but damage has been done. Now I'm attempting to determine the extent of the damage.

As an aside, the same electrical contractor installed a temporary 30A receptacle that we used during construction and everything was fine.

It appears no wires are melted/fused but it's not obvious to me what may have occurred with voltage applied to both line and neutral. I plan to manually connect (one by one) to appliances to see if they function - refrigerator, microwave, TV, A/C, etc.

Then I'll be investigating the transfer switch, circuit breaker panel, in-line fuses, etc.

Any ideas/suggestions appreciated.

Connecting to 240V will not damage any of your wiring, it will only affect connected loads like the converter and anything else that was plugged in or connected. Start with the converter after resetting any breakers and replacing any fuses that may have blown. Things with electronics will be susceptible to damage, possibly your control center, AC board, Televisions etc. The actual wires themselves don't know the difference and won't be damaged. You won't need a diagram even if one existed because the damage will be to accessible components, not hidden in walls.
You may get lucky and have little to no damage. Some things, like televisions, might have their power supply smoked but if you're handy a power supply can be replaced.

[Boxster1971]

Here is a 110V AC wiring diagram I got from Airstream. It is for a Lounge model but should be basically the same.

[nvestysly]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

Here is a 110V AC wiring diagram I got from Airstream. It is for a Lounge model but should be basically the same.

Thank you. I received a wiring diagram for our 2010 from Airstream late yesterday afternoon. I requested the diagram earlier in the day - kudos to Airstream for a quick reply.

As mentioned by ITSNO60, I don't see any damaged wires but I'm not seeing 120V inside the van at the electrical outlets. The circuit breakers are working as a far as I can tell using a continuity tester.

The first electrical device in the AC circuit is the Parallax transfer switch. I performed a visual inspection and don't see any obvious problems with the switch. I called Parallax and they don't believe there would be any issues with the switch. The switch is in a normally closed position to pass shore power to the circuit breakers. I'm going to remove the switch from the circuit to see what happens.

[ITSNO60]

Originally Posted by nvestysly

The first electrical device in the AC circuit is the Parallax transfer switch. I performed a visual inspection and don't see any obvious problems with the switch. I called Parallax and they don't believe there would be any issues with the switch. The switch is in a normally closed position to pass shore power to the circuit breakers. I'm going to remove the switch from the circuit to see what happens.

Any way you can just meter the incoming lugs and the outgoing lugs see if power reaches the switch then passes through it? On the bright side if the switch failed before letting power through it could have save your other stuff.
PS: No EMS?

edit: looks like your EMS is after the transfer switch so likely you are on the right path.

[ITSNO60]

It also looks as though your EMS only monitors current for load shedding but does not analyze for incorrect supply voltage, is that correct?

[dznf0g]

The EMS should have protected the rest of the coach...I say should have, if your model monitors and takes action to disconnect on high voltages (usually above 130V).

[ITSNO60]

Originally Posted by dznf0g

The EMS should have protected the rest of the coach...I say should have, if your model monitors and takes action to disconnect on high voltages (usually above 130V).

Looking at the diagram the hot only passes thru a CT and the neutral comes straight thru to the neutral bus, if this is the case his EMS is only for load shedding and cannot detect wiring errors or high/low voltage.

[dznf0g]

Originally Posted by ITSNO60

Looking at the diagram the hot only passes thru a CT and the neutral comes straight thru to the neutral bus, if this is the case his EMS is only for load shedding and cannot detect wiring errors or high voltage.

I have always wondered about that EMS detail. In their write-ups (I haven't researched all brands and models) they don't give the level of detail as to their internal circuitry and logic whether they monitor voltages on the neutral leg. And their "features" write-ups don't say that either. But it would certainly be good info to know when shopping, as this type of mis-wiring is all too common.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by nvestysly

Thank you. I received a wiring diagram for our 2010 from Airstream late yesterday afternoon. I requested the diagram earlier in the day - kudos to Airstream for a quick reply.

As mentioned by ITSNO60, I don't see any damaged wires but I'm not seeing 120V inside the van at the electrical outlets. The circuit breakers are working as a far as I can tell using a continuity tester.

The first electrical device in the AC circuit is the Parallax transfer switch. I performed a visual inspection and don't see any obvious problems with the switch. I called Parallax and they don't believe there would be any issues with the switch. The switch is in a normally closed position to pass shore power to the circuit breakers. I'm going to remove the switch from the circuit to see what happens.

Thanks for the follow up. Good to know that Airstream is finally being more open to providing wiring diagrams. Before they started including them in about 2015 it was always difficult to get them to release wiring diagrams.

[richard5933]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

Thanks for the follow up. Good to know that Airstream is finally being more open to providing wiring diagrams. Before they started including them in about 2015 it was always difficult to get them to release wiring diagrams.

They used to be included in the owner's manual.

[nvestysly]

I was measuring very low AC voltage inside the van at the transfer switch and circuit breakers.

Further investigation revealed ever-so-slightly-loose connections at the bulkhead connector for the shore power cord. After tightening the three contacts I now measure 120VAC at the wall receptacle, at the bulkhead connector, at the transfer switch, circuit breaker panel in the van and at the inverter/charger. There is very little voltage drop in the system now.

I think the contacts in the bulkhead connector have been loosening over time and the recent events exacerbated the issue perhaps. This was a rabbit hole of sorts as it confused the troubleshooting I was performing.

With full voltage now available I began turning things on one by one. The microwave, refrigerator (12V), AC receptacles and air conditioner work. All the 12V systems appear to be working.

There are two outlets (or more) that are powered via the inverter - for the television and one behind the driver's seat. I think there's another but can't recall right now. Flipping the breaker to activate the inverter/charger was an EVENT! Buzzing, popping, smoke! So the Tripp-Lite inverter has failed. I suspected this would be the case as I'd spoken to Tripp-Lite earlier in the week and they indicated their unit would not take kindly to 120V on both the line and neutral lines.

I'm purchasing a replacement Magnum MMS-1012 inverter/charger and ME-RC controller from forum member Lewster and I'm purchasing a few other related items from online retailers. Hopefully all the replacement parts will arrive early next week and I can get the van back on the road again.

on edit: added Magnum model #

[ITSNO60]

Sounds like you were fairly lucky, and on the bright side you probably won't ever do that again.

[StogieMan]

Agree with ITSN060 on the extent of the damage. It also makes sense that the inverter got the brunt of it as with other regular AC/Converter combo distributional panels, the converter is what gets toasted most of the time when this happens.

Glad to hear that it wasn’t that bad and the inverter install shouldn’t be too bad of a task.

Yup, that Airstream installed EMS at least on the Interstates is a hall monitor that sheds loads and not the conventional surge guard protector type.