Dash power feeds?

[oneknight]

Today's project is to install a pair of small digital meters in the dash to show house and chassis voltage always.

So I need a chassis hot (not ignition hot) and a house hot, here under the center dash.

If anyone knows, or has tips on finding. (Currently plugged in, magum charger on, most likely the bluesky battery tie is engaged, blah blah)???

Also have 2 young grandchildren who like to play with keys and lighter sockets. Any idea where the fuse or breaker for the lighter socket is?
( And if it is house or chassis power)?

[oneknight]

I found the lighter fuse right where it's supposed to be

Fuse#2 in the fuse panel in the front driver side Bay.

[oneknight]

I sure do wish Entegra would share with us real schematics for our coaches!

I installed the voltmeters in the dash.
I connected both black leads to the ground side of the lighter socket.
With a temporary jumper clip, I connected both meters to the hot side of the lighter socket.
Both meters read 13.1 volts.

I have all the breakers for the house turned off. (4 plus the inverter, located on the pass side basement rear bay.
I also have both chassis breakers off (located by the chassis batteries, one obvious the other around the corner.)

Voltmeters still happily reading 13.1.

Found another big breaker up front, in the bay below the drivers seat.
Turned that one off, the voltmeters died. OK, good. But I've no idea if that is house or chassis!

According to the schematics I have, ALL the house power goes thru those 5 breakers

I finally took the negative lead off the chassis batteries, and the voltmeters are still reading!
I took the positives off, still reading!

My schematic shows house power going thru the 120 amp switch/breaker labelled "generator and fender compartment" up to and thru an 80 amp switch/breaker unlabelled on the schematic and then to "ignition loads".

And yet that unlabelled 80 amp breaker is providing power to the dash lighter socket regardless of the position of the "generator and fender compartment" breaker.

No wonder they won't give us schematics. Joe and BillyBob wires these things up gowever they feel like it any particular day.

I'm still looking for a "chassis battery hot all the time" feed near the center of the dash, if anyone is bored?

[oneknight]

So the last thing I turned back on is this Blue Sky switch, it's back by all the other house breaker stuff.

And suddenly the radio turned back on, and my voltmeter, connected across the dash light socket, went from 13.1 volts to 14.3 (matching the reading on the magnum rc50 with the charger on)

Now as far as I can tell, this Blue Sky device isn't shown in my schematic, and it isn't mentioned in my coach user guide.

What is it and what does it do?

And where do I find house power is the dash?

[jmorse1]

Originally Posted by oneknight

So the last thing I turned back on is this Blue Sky switch, it's back by all the other house breaker stuff.

And suddenly the radio turned back on, and my voltmeter, connected across the dash light socket, went from 13.1 volts to 14.3 (matching the reading on the magnum rc50 with the charger on)

Now as far as I can tell, this Blue Sky device isn't shown in my schematic, and it isn't mentioned in my coach user guide.

What is it and what does it do?

And where do I find house power is the dash?

Do you have the chassis battery jump terminals in the run bay under the drivers seat? It might be possible to pick up chassis power there and run it up to the dash....

[oneknight]

Spent way too much time on this over the weekend, without a complete resolution.

Again, I'm installing 2 digital voltmeters in the dash, 1 for chassis, 1 for house.

I have them mounted, both grounds on the lighter socket, power lead from one on the lighter power.

I'm having considerable trouble determining for sure what is house and what is chassis power under the dash.

I'm checking with the inverter/charger on and the battery tie breaker off, expecting to see house at 14 and chassis at 12.6ish.

Not working out the way I planned though.
Voltage at the lighter socket exactly matches reading on the magnum remote, 14.2v. (house power?)
The plug into the radio screen has a red wire, 13.4 volts.
Yellow wire 12.2 volts.
Even the headlight switch, at 11.5 volts, is trying to make me nuts.

Anyone have a "for sure" on what is powered by what?

[MRUSA14]

The easy way would be to disconnect the lead(s) to your chassis batteries and then see what the meters show.

[oneknight]

Originally Posted by MRUSA14

The easy way would be to disconnect the lead(s) to your chassis batteries and then see what the meters show.

It seemed no matter what, everything still had power.

Chassis batteries disconnected.
Battery tie switch tripped, seemed everything still had power, until I tripped the 80amp switch in the front run bay.
And that killed everything.

CS sent me 3 schematics, can't wait to look at them.

[DeWat]

Originally Posted by oneknight

It seemed no matter what, everything still had power.

Chassis batteries disconnected.
Battery tie switch tripped, seemed everything still had power, until I tripped the 80amp switch in the front run bay.
And that killed everything.

CS sent me 3 schematics, can't wait to look at them.

Solar panels?

[MRUSA14]

I assume your coach is not plugged into shore power when doing these tests, to eliminate 12V power coming from the inverter/charger.

If you had the chassis batteries disconnected and still showed power, then both of your meters are connected to the house batteries. You need to find a hot wire to the chassis batteries. Look around in the electrical bay beneath the driver's station and check with a test light or meter for a normally hot contact that is now cold with the chassis batteries disconnected. Then reconnect the chassis batteries. If that lug now shows hot, you have found your meter source.

[oneknight]

Done. This took way longer than planned. I finally turned off the battery tie switch and disconnected the chassis battery.

The lighter socket was on the house.

Found constant chassis b+ on the red wire to the ignition switch.

One pic engine running, the other not

[MRUSA14]

Congratulations. Nice looking gauges, where did you get them? Did you have to cut a square hole, or do they sit on the surface?

[jmorse1]

Looks great!....another project to add to my list...
Where did you get the gauges?

[oneknight]

Thanks!
The meters are Laskar emv1200. They are readily available for under $30 each.

They have a hollow 1/4" mounting stud, and the wires go thru the stud. Super easy.