More problems on our maiden voyage

[lunalupis]

Okay... So we made it to Sisters... It's late and no RV parks here are open or have availability... Without the RV running, and of course no shore line... When the RV is off, aren't the "house" batteries supposed to kick in for lights and outlets? Oh, and of course I cannot seem to start the generator.... What craziness for the middle of the night!!!!

[dengraham]

lunalupis, Do not give up. You need to find the battery disconnect switch (sometimes called a "salesman switch"). It is usually located near the door entrance. It appears your switch may be in the off position. I hope the batteries are charged. What brand of motorhome and model do you have?

[lunalupis]

I flipped the switch on, to no avail... Maybe they are dead now?... Hmmm. 88 Winnebago Superchief.

[GA Peach]

This happened to me too, on my first trip, and it did turn out to be the battery switch. But I didn't know that for a couple of days. So I just lit candles which I fortuitously remembered to bring. I had stopped at Cracker Barrel and they had a sale on candles, buy two and get one free, so I bought three. Plenty of light for my little Class C, and made the RV smell so nice.

Well, I hope you can resolve your situation and get some sleep.

[KatieVL]

Do you have an inverter switch? In mine I have to turn the inverter on seperately from the batteries. Do you have the ability to check the voltage of your batteries?

[Mike and Cha]

Make sure your battery disconnect switch is on while traveling otherwise your house batteries will not charge while the engine is running. The only time I shut that off is when the MH is being stored.

[lunalupis]

So, I think the battery disconnect switch was off during driving, so, no recharge, but I am now plugged into shore power at an RV resort type place (whew! They want lots of money, eh?), and everything seems to be on, however, the fridge isn't. The AC light on the fridge will work for a milli second if I wiggle the switch that turns it from electric to off. Oh yes, and our clock above our stove and the vent and light are no longer working either... Checked all the fuses and breakers, but everything seems good.... Sorry! We are so new at this!

[lunalupis]

I am going to go to bimart to get a fuse for my multimeter. Inverter switch? No, I think it is either automatic or just on.

[glbtrottr]

I feel your pain.

I had 2 flat tires on our maiden voyage. Flying a fast mover burning kerosene is a little different than an RV lol Along with an after the fact rotten floor and crappy slide out seal found, things weren't well.

All the AC outlets in my coach were wired to a factory "converter charger" - an unfortunate piece of equipment that needs to be powered by either shore power (a tasty 50Amp circuit on our 36' coach"), or our generator. The "Coach" batteries were operated by an Intellitec Battery Disconnect Box. That said, many things wouldn't work unless connected to the external AC circuit or generator. My fridge, like yours likely, runs off of propane. No propane, no running genny, no AC.

Our generator had squat for oil, so the bad boy wouldn't start. That took a while to sort out and get it up and running. As for the batteries, they were dead. For around $87 a piece, I bought a fair share of them at Sam's Club that got things moving quickly.

The other day, many months after having the coach, I decided to stay at an RV park for the first time. I didn't connect shore power, but at $125 a day, I think I'll be avoiding many parks in the future if I can help it.

Instead, I opted to install solar panels in my coach. You don't need that many; enough to trickle back the power you lose over a day or three or a few. In my case I put in around $700-$800 of solar panels, which translates to around 6 225W, 48V, Sunpower black panels.

With over 600AH (soon to be 800ah) of juice coming up, nearly 1400w of power on tap, and a new MS2812 Inverter Charger to replace the use of the inverter charger, life is grand.

Don't despair. These things happen...

[Giancarlo]

if it is in the middle of the night , you don't need lights, just go to sleep. LOL

[lunalupis]

Arggg!!! So, we made it to our destination. Unfortunately, only the lights and the outlets work while plugged in to "shore power". No hood vent, no fridge, cannot turn on the water pump so that I can get running water, cannot check tank levels. Basically anything in the middle of the coach has no power. I tested the house batteries with my multimeter, and they are fine. An I missing something? Is my power distribution unit broken?

[charliej]

Originally Posted by lunalupis

Arggg!!! So, we made it to our destination. Unfortunately, only the lights and the outlets work while plugged in to "shore power". No hood vent, no fridge, cannot turn on the water pump so that I can get running water, cannot check tank levels. Basically anything in the middle of the coach has no power. I tested the house batteries with my multimeter, and they are fine. An I missing something? Is my power distribution unit broken?

Is you battery disconnect switch on? Usually located by the door.

[charliej]

Sorry, did not read previous post :(

[Ted E]

Have you checked you GFI outlet plugs. One may have tripped. Usually located in the washroom and also the kitchen area. Reset if tripped. Good luck,
Ted