2016 DS 4369 Stumped by Electrical Problem :-(

[flyingcash]

Yes, I am down to the wiring and GFI outlets themselves, have tried everything else.

Thanks everyone for your input, I will certainly post what I find and how I fixed it.

Happy Holidays everyone !!!

Cheers,

Curt

[10 fan]

There are two sides to a gfci, line (gfci outlet) and load (power out to feed other non gfci outlets making them gfci protected). I have had a gfci work, trip and reset but no power to the load side. You have to pull it out to check the load side. If you don't know which one feeds the nonworking receptacles it's trial and air. Maybe someone with the same model and year can narrow it down for you.

[10 fan]

Just noticed mine should be the same. I will go see which gfci feeds the ones not working.

[flyingcash]

Originally Posted by 10 fan

Just noticed mine should be the same. I will go see which gfci feeds the ones not working.

Great, thanks so much !!!

[Sealyn]

Originally Posted by Dutch Star Don

I have two above the circuit breaker panel in the half bath and the one in the cabinet.

Attachment 351773

Some other thoughts......have you checked your power panel up front, do you have power coming in on both legs of shore power....cord reel issue? What happens if you run the generator?

I believe those GFI's are for the heated floor circuits and not tied to any receptacle.

[doublechevy]

are the GFCI circuits fed thru your inverter
if so can you check the line/load connections at the inverter

I found that when my GFCI circuit stopped working It was a burnt neutral wire on my inverter load connection ( In the inverter connection block )

[Persistent]

Are there GFI outlets behind the refrigerator or microwave? This would not be good design, but you never know what installers are going to do.

Other causes for power loss to a group of 120 volt outlets:

Loose connection or broken wire. This is a common occurrence in RV's. Check for output power on circuit breaker for this group of outlets.

Are any of these outlets in a slide out or connected to an outlet in a slide out (normally on the same breaker)? One daisy chained outlet may still have power if a connection after that outlet is loose. Frayed, broken, loose connections in slide outs are often a problem.

Some inverters have circuit breakers on the input and possibly more than one on the output. See inverter owner's manual.

Some RV's are wired with two 120 volt circuit breaker panels. Is it possible yours has a second circuit breaker panel?

Your issue seems to be a common one. Possibly you can find further solutions in previous threads?

I wish you good luck and happy trails ahead!

[10 fan]

My half bath receptacle next to the toilet and bedroom are fed from the half bath gfci in the cabinet above the sink.

[flyingcash]

Ok, found the problem !!! I decided to look at the first bad non-GFI outlet in the 1/2 bath.

I pulled it out of the wall and found that the wires in the outlet had popped out of their connection clips...what a cheap way do do this !!!

This would never pass code in a house and to bad this type of outlet is being used in our RV's. Looks like the outlet got hot at somepoint and the insulation started to melt and the wires popped out. I just did a temp fix until I find a better replacement outlet.

Thanks for all your input and help !!! Hopefully, finding what caused this will help someone else trouble shoot a problem they might have.

Merry Christmas everyone...this is such a great group, people helping people :-) Cheers, Curt

[Dutch Star Don]

Originally Posted by 10 fan

There are two sides to a gfci, line (gfci outlet) and load (power out to feed other non gfci outlets making them gfci protected). I have had a gfci work, trip and reset but no power to the load side. You have to pull it out to check the load side. If you don't know which one feeds the nonworking receptacles it's trial and air. Maybe someone with the same model and year can narrow it down for you.

Good catch and explanation. I'm not an electrical guy, so I always read these and stick them in ole memory bank. I fought a GFI for several months until I narrowed it down to the rear Girard awning causing the issue.

[TandW]

Originally Posted by flyingcash

Ok, found the problem !!! I decided to look at the first bad non-GFI outlet in the 1/2 bath.

I pulled it out of the wall and found that the wires in the outlet had popped out of their connection clips...what a cheap way do do this !!!

This would never pass code in a house and to bad this type of outlet is being used in our RV's. Looks like the outlet got hot at somepoint and the insulation started to melt and the wires popped out. I just did a temp fix until I find a better replacement outlet.

Thanks for all your input and help !!! Hopefully, finding what caused this will help someone else trouble shoot a problem they might have.

Merry Christmas everyone...this is such a great group, people helping people :-) Cheers, Curt

Have argued against use of this type of electrical connection for years. Property has been consumed in fire due to the high resistance these devices develop when full rated electrical loads are plugged in.

[flyingcash]

Originally Posted by TandW

Have argued against use of this type of electrical connection for years. Property has been consumed in fire due to the high resistance these devices develop when full rated electrical loads are plugged in.

Yes, it is unsafe that these are used in our houses on wheels...we are living in these just like a house and why have an electrical system that can easily fail and maybe cause a fire is installed is beyond me. :-(

Cheers,

Curt

[amosnandy]

Originally Posted by flyingcash

Ok, found the problem !!! I decided to look at the first bad non-GFI outlet in the 1/2 bath.

I pulled it out of the wall and found that the wires in the outlet had popped out of their connection clips...what a cheap way do do this !!!

This would never pass code in a house and to bad this type of outlet is being used in our RV's. Looks like the outlet got hot at somepoint and the insulation started to melt and the wires popped out. I just did a temp fix until I find a better replacement outlet.

Thanks for all your input and help !!! Hopefully, finding what caused this will help someone else trouble shoot a problem they might have.

Merry Christmas everyone...this is such a great group, people helping people :-) Cheers, Curt

Actually it has been proven many times over that in mobile applications these self contained outlets are far superior to a residential outlet installed in a box.

The one you have a picture of either has been repaired or not properly installed. RV self contained outlets should never have two wires on top of themselves. The proper way to install those is to have the wire stripped back and pass through the connection on the outlet. The copper is not supposed to be cut.

The proper way is to remove the outer insulation n the Romex so that no non insulated Romex is outside the enclosure. I don’t even see how they could get the back cover to snap on with 2 Romex on top of each other. Properly done you should see no copper showing at the connection. You just push the wires onto the clips without stripping any insulation except the outer Romex cover.

From this point now that it has been cut your only option is to get a thin box and put all the connections inside the box.

[TandW]

Not the first punch-down outlet that has been wired in such fashion. How is polarity handled/assured on the RV factory floor? How is this superior to a wire looped around a screw and torqued down?