Electrical Outlet

[chevy604]

We have a 45H American Eagle. Is there anyone that has experienced a problem with the electrical plug located directly under the upper cabinet to the left of the convection / microwave oven? I have ruined 2 coffee pots and finally came to the conclusion it has to be the plug.

[nbounder]

Grab your Digital Volt Meter & measure the voltage at that
receptacle. Then if possible, attach an extension cord that will allow you to measure the voltage as you both wiggle the plug in it's socket and turn on & off the coffee pot. It may well be a crappy socket.

[RV Wizard]

Coffee pots and toasters are fairly heavy loads and the wiring to the receptacle could be burnt casuing heat that is transmitted to the coffee pot power cord as well.

[hamdave]

Why not just change out the duplex !! ??

cheers

[alvinc]

Quote:

Originally Posted by hamdave Why not just change out the duplex !! ?? cheers

This will also give you the opportunity to inspect the wiring behind the cover plate. If it shows any sign of heat damage, you will need to follow up.

How were the coffee pots "ruined".... "ruined" is a bit vague? Plugs over-heated, coils burned out, etc.

[jetfromtn]

Don't know if this is your problem, but unplugging a coffee pot while it is still in heating mode will cause problems at the receptacle and the pot itself. I would take it out and have a look.

[Good man]

All above responses are very good... Add to them;
Confirm the correct POLARITY of the outlet. Appliances with electronic components can be "ruined" if not properly polarized and grounded. Be careful with all elecrical work. Have heard many rumors that it can be dangerous... strongly suspect that is true. Since it is a wet location, consider GFCI outlet if you need to replace it.
Best of luck and let us know what you find out. We worry about each other, bro.

[hamguy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jetfromtn Don't know if this is your problem, but unplugging a coffee pot while it is still in heating mode will cause problems at the receptacle and the pot itself. I would take it out and have a look.

What problem "will" it cause? It may create a small arc when the separation occurs which can, over time, damage the plug and/or outlet. I don't believe it will harm the pot.

[Bob (WA0MQE)]

Have you checked the circuit breaker for this particular circuit. Is it 15A or 20A? Take the receptacle apart and make sure the screws (if used) are tight. If it's the push in type, make sure they have good contact. If all this checks out okay go back to the breaker box and find the proper circuit breaker and make sure the screws holding the wire to the breaker is clean and also good and tight. If all of this checks okay, then replace the circuit breaker itself. The can build up corrosion internally and over time start causing problems that aren't all that noticable.

[chevy604]

Thanks for all the input. We have a number of options, but thinking something is shorting in the plug itself.
The 1st pot we had, just quit working, lights would come on, but would never make coffee, and was only 2 months old. No big deal, bought a new one. Used one morning, left the coach for a few hours, came back could smell something hot. Lifted the pot, there were black marks on the corian and the back splash! The element had burned...we were very lucky to have a coach to come home to.

[RV Wizard]

Are you running these "new" coffee pots off of the inverter? Is the inverter a modified sine wave by chance? If so, this could be the problem as some electronics do no like a modified sine wave power input and can cause overheating issues.

[Clay L]

Shorting in the plug will cause a breaker to open but won't ruin your coffee pot.

[Gary RVRoamer]

Nothing you have described about the coffee pot sounds like a problem in the receptacle. About the only thing that would "burn" it is excessively high voltage, and that would affect all the house circuits. Possibly it is wired backwards (hot & neutral reversed), but even that should not cause the pot to burn.

I suggest plugging in one of those $3-4 electrical outlet testers that show whether an outlet is properly wired. Lowes, Dept or any hardware store should have them. No skills needed - plug it in and read the lights.

Now if using the inverter as RV Wizard mentioned, that could mean other types of problems.

By the way, what year Eagle is it?

[TXiceman]

As RV Wizard noted....Lots of electronic items do not like modified sine wave inverters. Is that the issue?

Ken