Our First Glitch

[Mrs. Bale]

Hi all! Mrs. Bale here again. Just posted the scoop on our Maiden Voyage- all went well, but I'm never pulling a 20 trailer through San Francisco and across the Golden Gate Bridge again. What were we thinking? Quick question for anyone technically inclined. When we got our 2008 Safari SE 20 backed in, unhitched and plugged in, the ceiling lights over the dinette and in the bathroom, as well as the fans in the bathroom and kitchen, don't work. They worked fine when we picked it up, because the guy demonstrated them. After a kind forum-friend told me where it was, I checked the fuse box and nothing was blown. Anyone have any ideas why only these lights/fans won't work. The rest of the electrical all seems to work fine. ???

[lewster]

Originally Posted by Mrs. Bale

Hi all! Mrs. Bale here again. Just posted the scoop on our Maiden Voyage- all went well, but I'm never pulling a 20 trailer through San Francisco and across the Golden Gate Bridge again. What were we thinking? Quick question for anyone technically inclined. When we got our 2008 Safari SE 20 backed in, unhitched and plugged in, the ceiling lights over the dinette and in the bathroom, as well as the fans in the bathroom and kitchen, don't work. They worked fine when we picked it up, because the guy demonstrated them. After a kind forum-friend told me where it was, I checked the fuse box and nothing was blown. Anyone have any ideas why only these lights/fans won't work. The rest of the electrical all seems to work fine. ???

The fan should have an individual fuse on the base of the unit (screw-in type holder) and the light bulbs might be burnt out. Try replacing them and see if it works. Also, you can't just look at a fuse to tell if it is good; they have to be tested for continuity. Get yourself a fuse tester and re-check them all.

[Mexray]

1. when the lights, etc., failed, were you plugged into shore power (AC110 volts)?

2. if you were NOT plugged into shore power, then your batteries are powering your 12 volts systems (you knew that of course) - SO, I would check the battery cable connections, and check the voltage at the battery terminals to make sure you still have 12 volts...

3. again, if you were plugged into shore power, then the converter/charger unit will be providing 12 volts to power those systems, and of course to charge the batteries as well...so if this was the situation, you have several things to check...there may be an additional fuse in the converter/charger unit itself, or the AC circuit breaker may be tripped to the C/Chgr unit...

4. as stated above, fuses must be removed and checked to make sure they are good, and making a proper connection...there should be fuses or circuit breakers in the circuit coming from the batteries - carefully check these or use a multi-meter on both sides of a circuit breaker to check for 12 DC voltage...

5. did the dealer check your 7-way cord from your tow vehicle to make sure all wires were connected properly? One of the wires will charge your batteries while the TV's engine is running - it's possible that wire is connected wrong, causing a 'short' and discharging your batteries while you're on the road - this is an unusual problem, but worth mentioning in any event - recheck the 7-way connections - you can tell if the AS batteries are being charged from the TV by using a multi-meter - check DC voltage with TV's key OFF, at the battery in the AS - then start up the TV and again check the DC voltage at the AS batteries - there should be a RISE to indicate some charging current is finding it's way back to the trailer batteries...

Good luck - a cheap digital multi-meter (from Harbor Freight, for example) is handy to keep on hand for those electrical gremlins...

[Foiled Again]

Look at your Circuit Breakers - when they flip, they don't go all the way down - they just pop off the "ON" setting.

And to reset the breakers you actually have to push them all the way to the "OFF" setting, then reset to the on position. It's HIGHLY unlikely that you'd blow the fuse for the fan AND several light bulbs at the same time, so go to the breaker first.

OH, and if you have LEDS, I have one that comes loose every time I move my unit. I just pull the cover and plug it in each time.

Paula

[overlander63]

Did you click the little rocker switch for the battery cutoff to the "on" position?

[Mrs. Bale]

Hi Paula
Thanks for the info on the circuit breakers. When I checked last night, I just saw that they weren't flipped all the way down and closed the box. I will check again and individually flip them off then on. What is LEDS?

[Goal15]

I'm sure you've already done this but make sure all of those rocker switches are on for ceiling lights both in dining and bath area. Our bathroom fan switch can stick so sometimes it takes a little wiggling. hope you've got it figured out.

[casa3805]

Originally Posted by Mrs. Bale

Hi Paula
Thanks for the info on the circuit breakers. When I checked last night, I just saw that they weren't flipped all the way down and closed the box. I will check again and individually flip them off then on. What is LEDS?

Glad you made it home safely. Golden Gate bridge on first voyage. Impressive! I think you are probably on track ensuring the breakers have not tripped. Turn off, then back on (as already discussed) and you may eliminate the problem. And look at your converter/inverter to ensure it is actually charging the batteries. Everything you mentioned is a 12 volt item so I believe you are chasing a battery system related issue. As to why they tripped??? Lordy....

LED's are lights. They are the newest thing in energy conservation. Light Emitting Diodes. They create very little heat and a bright white light. They are expensive and have some issues of their own. But if you have any in your Airstream, according to a poster above, you might want to check them and ensure they are still plugged in properly to their sockets. Vibration is a fact of life on any trailer being towed, so...things get loose.

Hang in there, and as a fellow forum member once told me, "Don't get discouraged, we will all figure this out together".

[Phoenix]

The ceiling lights (the ones mounted against the roof) are powered by wall switches, besides the switches on the lighting fixtures. If you have FantasticFans or other brand large vent fans, these are frequently wired into the ceiling lights, so they will also be controlled by the wall switch. Make sure the wall switches AND the switches on the fans and lights are all on.

By the way, we have towed through San Francisco, too; and the first time is a little nerve-racking because of the traffic. However, if you have a full-sized pickup or similar vehicle, your Airstream is only about six inches wider on either side; so even though your rig seems really wide, it isn't much bigger than your tow vehicle. Just be careful going down really narrow streets (like in Chinatown); as long as you don't hit anything yourself, the other traffic will give you a little extra room. It's kind of hard to miss an Airstream, and they'll move over a little in their lane to allow you to use all of yours. Just watch for the doors popping open from people parking against the curb. We've had a couple of close calls on that. My wife's job is to watch for people inside of those cars to see what they are doing; and I keep one hand over the horn, just in case.

Since there really isn't any parking for RVs in the city, we usually drop our 19-foot Bambi at a relative's house in Fremont before heading into town.