LP gas detector Wired to Water Pump?

[lhorne]

Have a new 25 Safari, LP gas detector is wired to the water pump which makes no sense. There is a lead black with white stripe coming out of wiring bundle that has been snipped and taped. The wire off the LP detector has black with white stripe that is run to water pump power supply. Tested the cut lead and found no power to it. Does the power lead originate behind the distribution box or somewhere else? Where would the fuse be located that is discussed on other forum questions? If I can get power to the cut lead I can reconnect that to the LP detector. Thanks. Silversub

[nickcrowhurst]

Originally Posted by Silversub

Have a new 25 Safari, LP gas detector is wired to the water pump which makes no sense. Silversub

Why does it make no sense? Both the LP detector and the water pump require a 12v power source, and they can happily coexist on the same circuit. Is there something I don't understand here?
Nick.

[lhorne]

Nick, Maybe it's not just that you turn the LP detector on with the water pump switch at the sink which is not normally on when hooked up to water. And who wants to listen to the water pump cycling every once in awhile while sleeping? Is that the way yours is hooked up? Thanks. Silversub

[nickcrowhurst]

Silversub, it depends on how the wiring is configured. I assumed (probably wrongly), that the 12 volt supply circuit would have been installed as an "always on" ring circuit, as in a home circuit, and that the wiring to the pump switch would radiate out from the ring to the pump switch, and back to the pump. Both devices can then attach to the same ring. If the LP detector is indeed in parallel with the pump, and controlled by the pump switch, then that is absurd. Have you used a voltmeter at the LP detector to see if it is controlled by the pump switch? If not, does it have an indicator light to show when it is powered?
A Safari owner on the forum will be able to describe the fuse and wiring location for you. On my trailer there is a small hinged compartment behind the back of the front couch, just below the window, concealed behind a piece of fabric trim.
If it is wired in that crazy way, I would guess that sometime in the past, rather than fault-find the dead black/white circuit, someone connected to the nearest electrical device. I hope not.
Nick.

[lhorne]

Nick, The LP detector goes off when the water pump switch is turned off. Voltmeter shows a little over 13 volts when the switch is on, zero when off. The cut black/white circuit makes me think that the fault was not traced. I have behind the sleep sofa in the front a wood box about the length of the sofa. The box has a screwed down lid with a lot of wood screws. When I throw the battery disconnect switch the sound seems to come from that area. I'll check that out. Thanks. Silversub

[Denis4x4]

It is at the foot of the bed (curb side) in a 25 FB.

[nickcrowhurst]

Thanks, Dennis. How about in the non-FB, anyone? ?? I don't know which type Silversub has. Canoestream, how about your trailer??
Nick.

[pienjim]

On a 2005 the fuse panel is integral to the converter and is behind it's cover.
That's at the foot of a twin bed layout.

Jim

[CanoeStream]

Jim, I'm only a little surprised they'd have such a long wiring run between the converter & batteries. Jim definitely has a standard Safari (2004 is before the FBs came out), so I'd take a second look at back under the beds.

Originally Posted by Silversub

When I throw the battery disconnect switch the sound seems to come from that area.

I'm usually the one throwing the disconnect switch but am familiar with the sound you are mentioning here. Having the converter so closed off from access (screwed down panel) sounds strange. Does that "wood box the length of the sofa" correspond to an outside storage compartment?

The Forums action has been sleepy over the holiday weekend. Thanks to Nick for trying to get attention for your question on a Saturday afternoon (one of the slowest times of the week in my experience). Keep us filled in on the outcome of your search -- we'll keep this thread alive until you find it!

[CanoeStream]

Silversub, I take it that you are trying to just turn off your water pump at night while leaving the LP detector hot. My water pump wouldn't cycle at night during the first year but it has started doing that just a bit now. I seem to recall other threads on what might be happening in that system. Maybe I'll research this a bit more since it is personal now.

[Mike Lewis]

Silversub---The power supply to the LP detector is not supposed to ever be shut off !! If you read the instructions it must have constant power to burn of impuritys that accumulate on it's sensor. If disconnected it can ruin its ability to scent LP's presence. That said, the current draw from it can and often will drain a battery in as little as 30 days while sitting in storage. Most LP detectors are hard wired directly to the 12 volt system and throwing the battery disconnect switch does not shut it off. Others like our Classic has a seperate fuse that must be taken out in order to shut it off. In our case it is under the couch near the converter in an orange inline fuse holder. Others we've had did not have a seperate fuse and disonnnecting the battery was the only way to shut it off and prevent long term storage discharge. Obviously the previous owner or someone changed the power supply to your's in an effort to prevent battery discharge. Personally I disconnect the fuse in ours and take a chance on damaging the unit. As a side not I think is funny that Airstream recomends removing the battery during storage and the Lp Detector mgf. says keep power to it all the time ???-----pieman

[lhorne]

Thank you all for keeping this going. The converter/circuit breaker/fuse panel is aft under a closet non curb side. There is no panel fuse for LP detector so it is wired from some other source point. If it comes from behind the panel what a pain to pull that and the converter to get to an in-line fuse not to mention excessive wiring run. The wood box behind the sofa does not correspond to an outside storage compartment. It sits flat against the most forward bulkhead behind the sofa. It is a protective box of some sort. I think that is probably the place I should check out next. Thanks to all. Silversub

[nickcrowhurst]

Silversub, in your position I would wire the LP detector into the "always on" live wire that supplies a nearby "non-switched" appliance like the furnace. This does not have a remote switch like the water pump, as it switched by a relay inside the furnace container. On my trailer this is a red wire. There are four wires connected to the relay. Two from the thermostat (switched power and ground), one always live 12 volts, and one switched 12 volts to operate the furnace. However, there is probably a wire nut connector behind the furnace, and you could connect into this, and ground to the nearby door pillar. This is how my LP detector is wired. If you do this, then switching off the battery at the master disconnect will disable the LP detector. This is not a significant issue for me, IMHO, as the LP will be turned off at the tanks when the trailer is stored with the master switch off. I've been doing this for 7 years with no problem for the detector, and I test it each year.
Nick.

[Silverhobby]

Originally Posted by Silversub

Nick, And who wants to listen to the water pump cycling every once in awhile while sleeping? Thanks. Silversub

If your pump is cycling during the middle of the night and you are not using water, you may have a water leak or the pressure switch may be going bad.

[Pahaska]

Go to the Airstream site (airstream.com) and click on Products and then Customer Services, and them Maintenance Books. They may not have your year, but the most recent manual for your trailer type should have wiring diagrams. A little hard to read, but here is little change year to year except between different configurations such as FB vs RB. The diagrams for my trailer date back with minor changes to the introduction of the wide body in the 90s.

[lhorne]

Thanks for the suggestion to go to airstream. I emailed their tech people to see if they knew where the fuse was located. Also, thanks for the furnace power lead idea. That is close by and not a difficult connection. I'll keep everyone posted on what Airstream technical provides. Silversub

[lhorne]

Airstream Tech responded that the fuse is under the front sofa near the battery. I will check out the box. The radio memory and the LP detector are wired to be always on. Thanks to all. Silversub