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Old 11-15-2021, 09:05 AM   #29
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Originally Posted by amosnandy View Post
Sorry, but if you remove the cover on either my ATS or distribution panel both the white (neutral) and green ( ground) both go into the same bussbar.

And if you pull the cover off my distribution panel, the #6 wires that come from L1 & L2 go into a lug with a hex Allen screw connected to the spade the breaker pushes into. The wire that screws to the bottom of the breaker goes to a bar on each side of the panel, which puts 1/2 the breakers on L1 and 1/2 on L2.

Just went all through this this spring when I was troubleshooting my L1 low voltage.
That is improperly wired. Ground/neutral bond should only occur at the service panel. Your ATS becomes the service panel when the generator is on, and only then should ground and neutral be bonded by the switching action of the ATS. You NEVER bond the neutral and EGC at two points.
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Old 11-15-2021, 09:15 AM   #30
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Originally Posted by mrjasont View Post
There is no transfer switch...
Is it a residential fridge? IE 120VAC only?
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Old 11-15-2021, 09:16 AM   #31
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Loss of neutral

Lots of good advice above! Possibility of loss of neutral is high. Once this has happened, any appliance connected at the time may have serious damage even if somehow neutral was restored. Lightning can cause the same or worse damage.

Low voltage on one leg of a 50 amp service is often accompanied by high voltage on the other leg. The situation can disappear and re-appear as different appliances are connected and disconnected. This mysterious and confusing effect is a symptom of lost neutral.

It can be specially confusing if you are not expecting the voltage to change and you rely on the reading you took under a different loading condition.

https://www.dutchmen.com/resources/m...erter_info.pdf
Sparking and smoke can have multiple causes. Loss of neutral or lightning can cause sparking and smoke. Remove 120 volt power from the system.

Open service entrance covers and inspect wiring inside. Burned insulation, eroded, and corroded wires need correcting.

Remove 12 volt supply. Open converter/charger cover inspect wiring inside. Burned insulation, eroded, and corroded wires need correcting.

Even if the above are corrected, the converter/charger may still be compromised. Components inside may be toast.

Continue tracing both hot legs and neutral wire from main breaker all the way to the pedestal. Inspect for damage. Pay special attention to any connections or contact points. Plug blades, sockets, and contactors on cord reels are weak points.

There should be no connection between system ground and the neutral wire in the RV until the RV is connected to shore power. It can often be difficult to find find these ground faults, especially the ones between neutral and ground. Hot to ground faults often show up as sparks, smoke, or tripped breakers.

Appliances damage by high voltage when neutral is lost or lightning strikes often develop ground faults or worse.

Note: Loss of neutral in the pedestal, campground system, or local grid can cause all these problems. You may not know if or when the loss was corrected.

I wish you good luck and happy trails ahead!
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Old 11-15-2021, 09:30 AM   #32
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Originally Posted by oscarvan View Post
Is it a residential fridge? IE 120VAC only?
Yes.
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Old 11-15-2021, 09:37 AM   #33
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Originally Posted by Persistent View Post
Lots of good advice above! Possibility of loss of neutral is high. Once this has happened, any appliance connected at the time may have serious damage even if somehow neutral was restored. Lightning can cause the same or worse damage.

Low voltage on one leg of a 50 amp service is often accompanied by high voltage on the other leg. The situation can disappear and re-appear as different appliances are connected and disconnected. This mysterious and confusing effect is a symptom of lost neutral.

It can be specially confusing if you are not expecting the voltage to change and you rely on the reading you took under a different loading condition.

https://www.dutchmen.com/resources/m...erter_info.pdf
Sparking and smoke can have multiple causes. Loss of neutral or lightning can cause sparking and smoke. Remove 120 volt power from the system.

Open service entrance covers and inspect wiring inside. Burned insulation, eroded, and corroded wires need correcting.

Remove 12 volt supply. Open converter/charger cover inspect wiring inside. Burned insulation, eroded, and corroded wires need correcting.

Even if the above are corrected, the converter/charger may still be compromised. Components inside may be toast.

Continue tracing both hot legs and neutral wire from main breaker all the way to the pedestal. Inspect for damage. Pay special attention to any connections or contact points. Plug blades, sockets, and contactors on cord reels are weak points.

There should be no connection between system ground and the neutral wire in the RV until the RV is connected to shore power. It can often be difficult to find find these ground faults, especially the ones between neutral and ground. Hot to ground faults often show up as sparks, smoke, or tripped breakers.

Appliances damage by high voltage when neutral is lost or lightning strikes often develop ground faults or worse.

Note: Loss of neutral in the pedestal, campground system, or local grid can cause all these problems. You may not know if or when the loss was corrected.

I wish you good luck and happy trails ahead!
Thanks for your contribution. But isn't it weird that I never changed a single wire in the RV for the past two years and all of a sudden it stops working? I have been parked here for the past 2 years so no moving around at all...
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Old 11-15-2021, 10:42 AM   #34
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New findings...
In my pedestal I have another 30A and 20A breaker. I completely unhooked these from the panel and their grounds and neutrals from the bar. This made no difference.
I also unplugged every extra extension cord or distribution that I still had plugged into my outlets in the RV. With all breakers on I read 240v on all my outlets. With one single normal 120v lamp plugged in (I know risky). All outlets metered 130v.... Turning off breaker #4 everything would should off.
I have an RV repair guy coming out later today... cause I feel like I have tried a lot, and keep running in circles. So hopefully I have some good news later today. If you have any more ideas... please let me know.
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Old 11-15-2021, 11:14 AM   #35
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Yes.
So what powers the fridge when you're driving?
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Old 11-15-2021, 02:12 PM   #36
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So what powers the fridge when you're driving?
We're not driving. It is parked at a mobile home park constantly.
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Old 11-15-2021, 07:31 PM   #37
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GOOD NEWS! It's working again!

I had a RV repair guy coming out today. They (two people) spent two hours wrapping their mind around the problem.
They took apart the 50A cable that feeds the RV and reset the connection both at the end that connects to the RV as well as the cables inside the connector that receives that cable. That solved the issue. We have a shed directly next to the RV and it appears that it put some pressure on the connector...

The only unsolved issue is my outlet at the fridge. It is on breaker #4 together with a couple of others outlet. Every other outlet is just fine but this one reads 60v from ground-neutral and ground-hot and 120v from hot-neutral. Someone had an issue like that before?

THANKS EVERYBODY FOR YOUR HELP AND SUPPORT
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Old 11-15-2021, 08:39 PM   #38
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GOOD NEWS! It's working again!

I had a RV repair guy coming out today. They (two people) spent two hours wrapping their mind around the problem.
They took apart the 50A cable that feeds the RV and reset the connection both at the end that connects to the RV as well as the cables inside the connector that receives that cable. That solved the issue. We have a shed directly next to the RV and it appears that it put some pressure on the connector...

The only unsolved issue is my outlet at the fridge. It is on breaker #4 together with a couple of others outlet. Every other outlet is just fine but this one reads 60v from ground-neutral and ground-hot and 120v from hot-neutral. Someone had an issue like that before?

THANKS EVERYBODY FOR YOUR HELP AND SUPPORT
Does your residential refrigerator run from an inverter? It’s the norm on residential refrigerator installations.
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Old 11-16-2021, 07:29 AM   #39
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“New findings...
In my pedestal I have another 30A and 20A breaker. I completely unhooked these from the panel and their grounds and neutrals from the bar. This made no difference. “

120 volt circuits do not have the lost neutral issue. The lost neutral on a two hot leg 240 volt circuit is the one subject to significant damage from lost neutral. Also, the 30 and 20 amp outlets in the pedestal are not in the circuit.

“I also unplugged every extra extension cord or distribution that I still had plugged into my outlets in the RV. With all breakers on I read 240v on all my outlets. With one single normal 120v lamp plugged in (I know risky). All outlets metered 130v.... Turning off breaker #4 everything would should off. “

Having 240 volts on a 120 volt leg of a 240 volt system is typical of lost neutral. Voltage will shift dramatically as load are added or removed from one leg or the other.

“GOOD NEWS! It's working again!

I had a RV repair guy coming out today. They (two people) spent two hours wrapping their mind around the problem.
They took apart the 50A cable that feeds the RV and reset the connection both at the end that connects to the RV as well as the cables inside the connector that receives that cable. That solved the issue. We have a shed directly next to the RV and it appears that it put some pressure on the connector...”

Congratulations, the lost neutral was found and corrected!

“The only unsolved issue is my outlet at the fridge. It is on breaker #4 together with a couple of others outlet. Every other outlet is just fine but this one reads 60v from ground-neutral and ground-hot and 120v from hot-neutral. Someone had an issue like that before?”

Likely something in that circuit has been damaged by high voltage. It could be the circuit breaker, but is more likely something in an appliance that is connected. Disconnect the fridge and see if voltage returns to normal. Else, look for another appliance that may be connected. Finally, swap out the circuit breaker. There are other possible damages on that circuit from high voltage. They are less likely.

PS: A ground connector somewhere in the #4 breaker circuit may have been burned off. That in combination with a hot short to ground somewhere else could be the problem.
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Old 11-18-2021, 04:06 PM   #40
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120V Troubleshooting Guide

Amos and Andy, This is a very good 120v troubleshooting guide. I am copying for future use should I have a 120v problem. Thank you.
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Old 11-18-2021, 09:23 PM   #41
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First need to check VOLTAGE AT SHORELINE RECEPTACLE? It is common to have 160/80-volts when a pole transformer loses NEUTRAL, and this SMOKES 120v appliances. Problem may have NOT started in RV at all. and

it can also vary I believe if the RV POWER PANEL LOSES NEUTRAL, because the voltage will vary w/ the LOAD of any connected appliances. Make sure SHORELINE POWER IS RIGHT BEFORE PLUGGING RV BACK IN.. you want 120v of EACH Leg 2-VAC+/-, if more than 4-5-volts difference at RECEPTACLE, CALL THE UTILITY COMPANY. Corrosion or LOOSE can do weird things on their end. If you need an electrical contractor, they will tell you to call one.
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Old 11-18-2021, 09:45 PM   #42
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after storm

I did not see if you had surge protector. I've had similar issue. might look at your neutral buss bars in control panel. if you find both burned. you got fried during storm. I had to replace my panel. We use surge protector now ! If were hit again, All you do is replace protector. I hope you have easier problem. safe travels
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