Inverter receptacles dead

[kmrice]

My inverter receptacles on my 2021 Caravel 16 are dead. I’m plugged into shore power. The non inverter receptacles are live. I’m perplexed; I thought the inverter receptacles would draw from shore power if available. Can anyone straighten me out on this?

The circuit breakers all appeared to be on but I turned them off for a minute then back on.

As always, the advice from this forum is greatly appreciated.

[kmrice]

Additional information: the inverter control panel will not turn on.

This all started when I tried to turn on the TV; it was dead. With an extension cord I plugged it into a non inverter receptacle and it worked. I don’t normally turn on the inverter and the TV, plugged into an inverter receptacle normally works with the inverter off.

[uraljohn]

Find your invertor and push the reset button.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

There are multiple ways this gets done in an AS trailer.

1) You have sockets labeled "inverter" and "non-inverter". You plug into the one you need. If on shore power the "non-inverter" is what you pick.

2) You have a few sockets (possibly unlabeled) that automatically switch from the inverter to shore power. This magic works through a "transfer switch" in these trailers, you just stay plugged into the same socket all the time.

3) Who knows what they may have come up with last week ....

If things have never worked, you have option 1 above. You move stuff from socket to socket to get what you need. Inverter is never run when on shore power.

If things worked in the past and suddenly died, then you have 2 above. The breaker feeding the inverter has tripped, or the breaker on the face (or back) of the inverter has tripped, or the inverter has died.

Lots of possibilities.

Bob

[kmrice]

Originally Posted by uraljohn

Find your invertor and push the reset button.

Thanks; I didn’t know there was a reset button. I also have no idea where the inverter is. Does anyone here know? This is a 2021 Carvel 16.

[kmrice]

Thanks, Bob. It looks like the automatic switching you refer to in 2) isn’t working. I’ll try resetting the inverter, if I can find it. As far as I can tell none of the breakers has tripped. I did turn them all off and then back on.

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

There are multiple ways this gets done in an AS trailer.

1) You have sockets labeled "inverter" and "non-inverter". You plug into the one you need. If on shore power the "non-inverter" is what you pick.

2) You have a few sockets (possibly unlabeled) that automatically switch from the inverter to shore power. This magic works through a "transfer switch" in these trailers, you just stay plugged into the same socket all the time.

3) Who knows what they may have come up with last week ....

If things have never worked, you have option 1 above. You move stuff from socket to socket to get what you need. Inverter is never run when on shore power.

If things worked in the past and suddenly died, then you have 2 above. The breaker feeding the inverter has tripped, or the breaker on the face (or back) of the inverter has tripped, or the inverter has died.

Lots of possibilities.

Bob

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by kmrice

Thanks; I didn’t know there was a reset button. I also have no idea where the inverter is. Does anyone here know? This is a 2021 Carvel 16.

Hi

It's normally mounted under something fairly close to the floor. Under the drawers in the kitchen, under a bench seat, under a bed are the most likely.

Do check the breaker that feeds the inverter before digging for it.

Bob

[kmrice]

We’ll, I found the water pump, DC Panel, and solar controller (under the driver side settee), the tankless water heater (under the floor of the wardrobe) and the circuit breaker/fuse box (all breakers, including the one marked for the inverter were on and I turned them off and back on to be sure), but not the inverter. I’m thinking it’s near the converter. I know generally where that is (under the bed on the passenger side) since I can hear it’s fan when it turns on, but don’t see how to get at it. I’ll be back home tomorrow after our 5 week cross country trip, so I think I’ll wait until I get there before looking much more. Won’t need the inverter meanwhile.

Thanks for the help; you guys are great!

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by kmrice

We’ll, I found the water pump, DC Panel, and solar controller (under the driver side settee), the tankless water heater (under the floor of the wardrobe) and the circuit breaker/fuse box (all breakers, including the one marked for the inverter were on and I turned them off and back on to be sure), but not the inverter. I’m thinking it’s near the converter. I know generally where that is (under the bed on the passenger side) since I can hear it’s fan when it turns on, but don’t see how to get at it. I’ll be back home tomorrow after our 5 week cross country trip, so I think I’ll wait until I get there before looking much more. Won’t need the inverter meanwhile.

Thanks for the help; you guys are great!

Hi

Check the inverter breaker with a multimeter. They *do* go bad.

The "look everywhere" process is part of owning any RV. There is a very finite amount of space. Things get shoved here or there. Often getting at this or that means pulling a couple of screws out. If it only means popping out drawers, that's as good as it gets.

The preferred location for the inverter is towards the front of the RV if the batteries are in front. The idea is to keep the cables as short as possible.

Good luck !!!

Bob

[kmrice]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

The preferred location for the inverter is towards the front of the RV if the batteries are in front. The idea is to keep the cables as short as possible.

Thanks, Bob. I was hoping it would be under the dinette, by the forward panel at the front of the AS, but didn’t find it. Our AS is very small at 16 feet, so there aren’t that many places it could be, but the flip side of that is that things can be very hard to get at. I should be able to find it when I get home tomorrow.

The breaker for the inverter also handles the converter, which is working fine, so I’m thinking the breaker is not the problem, but will check.

Thanks again,

[kmrice]

We got home yesterday and started cleaning up Annie today. My wife lifted up the mattress and saw a lid to a compartment. She opened it and there it was, clearly labeled “INVERTER.” She noticed a black power cord running from it to a receptacle was not fully plugged in so she plugged it in; a light on the inverter came on and it can now be turned on at the wall mounted control panel. What a wonderful wife I have!

Thanks for your help. I sure am glad to have this forum to turn to (and to have such a clever wife).

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Glad you found it !!!!

So now the question becomes: how did it come unplugged and how do you keep that from happening again?

Bob

[kmrice]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

So now the question becomes: how did it come unplugged and how do you keep that from happening again?

Good question! We've got about 17,000 miles on her so far (including twice across country and back once to Key West and back, and have gone over our share of bumpy roads. I'm thinking the bumpy roads probably did it. Not sure what to do about it except to check before each trip to make sure it is plugged in fully. Since we prop up the mattress when not travelling, this will be easy to do (now that we know where the inverter is). Not sure whether it would be a good idea to try and duct tape the plug to the receptacle; might try that if it becomes a regular occurrence. But, the solution is so easy, I don't see this as being anything more than a minor annoyance in the future.

I'm considering this problem solved! With all of your help (any my wife's sharp eye), of course.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

How about a stick on and a cable tie to anchor the cord to the wall? Then, even with vibration, there is no force pulling the plug out of the socket.

https://www.amazon.com/Adhesive-Mana...NsaWNrPXRydWU=

Another option that screws down:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Find the root cause and fix it ( that only makes sense if you have sat through *way* to many ISO-9001 classes ....)

Bob

[kmrice]

Thanks, Bob.

The plug which was loose plugs vertically into a receptacle on the floor so the weight of the cable is not pulling on the plug. I'd attach a photo but I can't figure out how to do so (what would the URL be for a photo in iCloud?). Given that the problem didn't happen for 17,000 miles, and is so easy to remedy, I think I'll just see if it occurs frequently enough to justify adding something else to what is already a pretty crowded space. If so, I think I'll try the glue ons you suggest.

Thanks again for your help.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

The "picture" thing here is a two step process. First you use one part of the thing to upload an image. Then you reference the image you just uploaded in your message. The real fun comes when the picture is rotated in the process and you have to upload it again, pre-rotated this way or that.

Bob

[kmrice]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

The "picture" thing here is a two step process. First you use one part of the thing to upload an image. Then you reference the image you just uploaded in your message. The real fun comes when the picture is rotated in the process and you have to upload it again, pre-rotated this way or that.

Thanks! I’ll give it a try.