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Lance M · 05-24-2011, 08:42 PM

It is a 20A breaker. The breaker doesn't pop. Just the GFCI at the outlet where it is plugged in.

TG Twinkie · 05-24-2011, 08:45 PM

What size is the GFI?

Lance M · 05-24-2011, 08:50 PM

I took the cover off and looked at it. The receptacle is stamped with "Class A GFCI 20A 125V"

Phrunes · 05-24-2011, 09:40 PM

I'm "crackin'" up over the plumber jokes. Wink

This may sound weird, but have you put a volt meter to your AS' skin?

A switched neutral and hot running thru a gfci can actually make your trailer a ground.

Lance M · 05-24-2011, 09:50 PM

I have not checked the skin with a meter. I'm sure that the wiring is correct. I did check that today.

TG Twinkie · 05-24-2011, 10:28 PM

I think the 20 amp breaker is your problem. Do you have the proper size shore power cord and wiring to a 30 amp receptacle to run it from a 30 amp breaker? Normally in order to run your A/C, you need a 30 amp service. If you try to run it under powered, you can do damage to the A/C motors.

ROBERTSUNRUS · 05-24-2011, 11:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Top

I have it isolated to the A/C circuit of the trailer. I don't think it is anything with the house or the house wiring. I have a 100' extension cord that I use to plug the trailer into an outlet inside the house.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TG Twinkie

I think the 20 amp breaker is your problem. Do you have the proper size shore power cord and wiring to a 30 amp receptacle to run it from a 30 amp breaker? Normally in order to run your A/C, you need a 30 amp service. If you try to run it under powered, you can do damage to the A/C motors.

Hi, this might be part of the problem?

barts · 05-24-2011, 11:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TG Twinkie

I think the 20 amp breaker is your problem. Do you have the proper size shore power cord and wiring to a 30 amp receptacle to run it from a 30 amp breaker? Normally in order to run your A/C, you need a 30 amp service. If you try to run it under powered, you can do damage to the A/C motors.

Hmmm... the original poster said:

Quote:

Even with the A/C off at the thermostat, when I turn on the CB at the CB box it will trip the GFCI.

so the issue is leakage current between hot and ground causing the GFCI to trip; it has nothing to do with an overload condition. Your point is well taken that running A/C systems w/ marginal power is hard on the motors, though.

- Bart

Road Ruler · 05-25-2011, 04:53 AM

A GFCI monitors the amount of current flowing from hot to neutral. If there is any imbalance, it trips the circuit. It is able to sense a mismatch as small as 4 or 5 milliamps, and it can react as quickly as 1/30 of a second.

I have the same problem now with a line of 7 lights we have around our pool at our home location. It has underground cable and when it rains the GFI trips.

We suspect moisture is getting into something, wire or fixture, and introducing a path for voltage to bleed off creating the imbalance.

I need to PD this circuit. If there are any electricians out there I would luv to hear their thoughts on this as well.

Wayne&Sam · 05-25-2011, 05:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aage

Here's a tester[/URL] that I think I will put in my toolbox for future questions like you were going through. It tests for seven conditions and indicates faults by simple LEDs, hopefully it would have given you a hint as to what was going on.

I think my dealer included one of those when I bought our Safari. Or else I used one of my own. Anyway, I always keep one plugged in an outlet that I can readily see. If nothing else you can always confirm you're getting shore power.

Quote:

Quote:
Originally Posted by overlander63
That's a capacitor. If you grab the terminals, it can really "light up your life".
It did just that a few days ago when I was prodding around with the juice on!
05-21-2011 09:53 PM

The fun part about capacitors is that they can get you even when the juice is off.

Lance M · 05-25-2011, 06:02 AM

Thanks for all the replies.
To explain things a little better, I have a very expensive 100' extension cord. It has 10ga wire in it and is capable of 20A delivery. It has a NEMA L-5 30 receptacle on the trailer end. 30 amps are not required to run the A/C. It is on a 20A circuit in the trailer CB box. The problem is not normal amperage draw, it is the GFCI.
Somewhere in the compressor wiring, I have a short to ground.

TG Twinkie · 05-25-2011, 06:15 AM

#10 wire is not large enough for a 100 ft. run. Go to this web site. There is a lot of good info here http://www.myrv.us/electric Then click on the 30 amp service tab. There is a table showing the proper wiire sizes for different loads.
You must also take into consderation the length and size of the wire from the GFI to the receptacle that you plug into. I'll bet it is #12 wire. Read the notes above the table, particularly this part. Go up a size for more than 100-foot runs, when the cable is in conduit, or ganged with other wires in a place where they can't dissipate heat easily: An extension cord is considered to be "ganged"
Have you measured the voltage at an outlet in the trailer when the A/C is running and the compressor is kicked in?

Lance M · 05-25-2011, 10:56 AM

TG,
Thanks for the link. Good info there.

This morning I went up top and checked to see if there were any melted, cut or damaged wires. I pulled the rubber boots off the compressor capacitor. There was an insect larva in there and some dust but nothing unusual. I took the cap off of the top of the compressor. Some dirt and spider webs. The wires all looked fine. I didn't see any melting or signs of overheating. No cut or chaffed wires.
I plugged in the trailer and checked to see if the A/C would work. I turned it on and it was working just fine.

Since it was working fine I shut it down and took some voltage readings from an outlet with my Fluke digital meter.

With nothing on 123.2V
With A/C fan on LOW voltage dropped to 121.9 and went back to 122.2
With fan on HIGH voltage dropped to 120 then returned to 121.3
With fan on LOW I moved the thermostat to turn on the compressor. Voltage dropped to 116.4 and held steady. When I moved the fan switch to HIGH it dropped to 115.4 volts and held steady there.

The data plate on the A/C unit says the fan motors and compressor are 115 volt 60hz. So with everything running, it was at 115.4 volts. That sounds like an acceptable number. I should not be in any danger of burning anything up if it is running at 115.4 volts.

I'll run it for a while and see what happens.

**DKB_SATX** · 05-25-2011, 12:09 PM

GFCIs can get old and tired just like most other components. I had to replace on in my house that would charge up the cordless clippers just fine but would open after running a space heater for a minute or two. New GFCI will carry the same space heater indefinitely. It's worth checking in addition to the other good information in the thread. I'm not sure if the GFCI you're referring to is integral to the outlet (like the one I'm describing) or if it's a GFCI breaker in your house panel.

Lance M · 05-25-2011, 08:00 PM

DKB,
It one of the integrated outlet types. Nearly every circuit in this house has a GFCI. The A/C was working fine earlier today. I decided not to push my luck and sweated it out this afternoon. It may just be too much heat. Hopefully it doesn't rear its ugly head when we go camping in a week and a half! I'll have to take over the show trailer from CC II!

soldiermedic · 05-25-2011, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Top

I'll have to take over the show trailer from CC II!

If they show

As of today they have not called to make a reservation.

Steve

Lance M · 05-25-2011, 08:05 PM

I think someone told them Bambi Bandit was going to be there, so, well, you know..

soldiermedic · 05-25-2011, 08:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Top

I think someone told them Bambi Bandit was going to be there, so, well, you know..

Hahahaha...well that is entirely possible.

I think Mr. Bandit needs to free up space and capital by selling me his 60's Overlander

Steve

Bambi_Bandit · 05-25-2011, 09:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Top

I think someone told them Bambi Bandit was going to be there, so, well, you know..

Quote:

Originally Posted by soldiermedic

Hahahaha...well that is entirely possible.

I think Mr. Bandit needs to free up space and capital by selling me his 60's Overlander

Steve

You guys crack me up!

I'm toying with the idea of bringing the Overlander for a day or 2 in overflow parking during the rally, just to get some ideas and thoughts from you experienced vintage folks... We'll see. Maybe we will sell it. It is ridiculous for full timers living in a motorhome to have 3 airstreams...