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Old 09-15-2021, 10:57 AM   #1
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poor voltage

I have a 2004 travel supreme Class A.
There is a power post with 12V with generator hooked up to it. There is also a line going to fuse panel that controls slides, jacks, etc. Generator works if I do not use the line to fuse box. When the line to fuse box is attached voltage drops to 2V and nothing works. There is a breaker on this line that is good. Any suggestion's as to what could do this.
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Old 09-15-2021, 11:53 AM   #2
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The generator does not make 12v DC power. It makes 120 AC power. Your 12v power comes from your batteries. My first gues is that you batteries (house) are bad. The batteries can go bad from age, no maintenace (check water every month), inverter/charger not charging, or poor connections, or a combination of all 4.
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Old 09-17-2021, 11:55 AM   #3
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Thanks I know that generator produces 120. the problem is starting. unhooking line to fuse box generator starts. batteries are good, cleaned all terminals.
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Old 09-18-2021, 04:39 AM   #4
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How have you tested batteries? They should never measure 2v.

Do you get an electrical arc when you disconnect/reconnect the line to the slides/jacks?

If your batteries are OK, there is seemingly something wrong with the hydraulic system that operated your sliides/jacks.

I don't have a Travel Supreme RV. I'm giving possible answers to problems based on how my RV works. If you could provide more detail others might could help you.

The photo shows how things are wired in my battery compartment. The line from the house batteries to the slides and jacks, labled HWH system, is shown on the top right. The line from the house batteries to the generator (for start power) is on the lower left.

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Old 09-18-2021, 06:42 AM   #5
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You say there is a post with 12 volts on it. Where is that post? Is it one of the posts on the battery or is it somewhere else in your coach? Does it just have two cables attached to it or are there at least three (one to the battery, one to the generator and one to the fuse panel you are talking about? Are they large gauge cables, like 1/0, or so? If it is not at the battery, do you know the cable route from the battery to the post? You are only talking about the chassis battery, right? Not the coach battery? Does anything happen any differently if you press the "Boost" switch while trying to start the generator?

For you to have 2 volts on a normally 12 volt location, with a presumably healthy battery, there is a large voltage drop happening somewhere, either in a cable due to high current or at a connection that has loosened or deteriorated. For that voltage drop to be from a high current situation, the conductors involved should be getting pretty warm, pretty fast, and voltage measured at the battery terminals should read significantly lower than 12 volts, as well. When you are seeing 2 volts at your "post", can you take a quick reading at the battery and see if it is good at the battery or low at the battery? That would be a very valuable reading to take to help figure out whether it is a cable issue or a connection issue.

I am suspecting that if you haven't recently touched or disturbed any of your connections or devices but so far have just taken some readings, you probably have a poor connection, somewhere rather than an overload. You also don't say if you are reading 2 volts WITHOUT cranking the generator starter or if the 2 volts is what you have while you ARE cranking the generator.

Lots of questions, especially not knowing how your coach's primary 12 volt circuits were designed. But I really am suspecting and hoping that it is just a poor connection somewhere that has developed due to vibration, or corrosion, or just not having been adequately secured in the first place.
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Old 09-18-2021, 08:46 AM   #6
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thanks. batteries are in the back and the post is at the front by the generator. 2v reading is without cranking gen. since it will not crank over at 2v. I have cleaned all battery and the post connections. the cables do not get hot. this is the coach batteries. the jacks are not on this post only the controls. yesterday I went to see if I could do something and it all worked fine without doing any thing? I will check again in a day or so.
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Old 09-19-2021, 08:15 AM   #7
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As Shania says in her son, "Man, I hate that!" Things don't "fix" themselves, but sometimes they seem to. Dang! Unless you have some drawings to help you, it is probably difficult to positively identify the other end of the physical cable that lands at that post near your generator. That connection may be at your battery or it may be at a disconnect switch or other high current controlling device.

If you have 2 volts at your generator post and you have 12 volts (nominal) at your source, and you do not have high current (well over 100 amps), it has to be a poor connection or a cable damage problem. Finding the next connection going "towards" your battery would be the ideal next step. Drawings? Following cables? (Pretty difficult!) Then, if you try to start the generator and only have 2 volts you could again try to start the generator at that next connection and see what you have. At some point you will successfully isolate the place where the voltage drop is happening.

One last comment. I am assuming you actually read the 2 volts while trying to crank the generator's starter, and that it is not the "resting" voltage on that stud.
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Old 09-19-2021, 08:47 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by baldonnel View Post
thanks. batteries are in the back and the post is at the front by the generator. 2v reading is without cranking gen. since it will not crank over at 2v. I have cleaned all battery and the post connections. the cables do not get hot. this is the coach batteries. the jacks are not on this post only the controls. yesterday I went to see if I could do something and it all worked fine without doing any thing? I will check again in a day or so.
Your set up sounds like mine , so I'll throw this into the mix .
Any power cable of length needs circuit protection ,be it a 12 volt fuse or circuit breaker.
The 30'+ cable from your batteries will have a high amp circuit breaker within the first 3' from the battery positive post .
Mine is on the frame rail behind the battery tray , 135 amp looks like the photo ,only visible from under the coach, connections to the C/B have to be cleaned too. .

EDIT: I see Andy , has a generator breaker in his 12 volt diagram too.
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