Ok so this will make me sound stupid, I guess I deserve it. We are in the middle of remodeling our 5w. One of the previous owners wired up a traditional 4ft fluorescent light ballast. In order to keep the Mrs happy I decided we would run down to home Depot and buy a nice fixture for the kitchen.... unfortunately my inexperience with rvs leads me to believe this will not work with the switches in the home. The only way to get it to light is to run it to the outlet the original owner used for the fluorescent fixtures. Soo where can I get nice esthetic fixtures that will work with traditional rv wiring. We have 22v at the switches..

Most RVs are wired for 12V lighting, not 22V. Could that be a typo?? Be sure and check for LED bulbs instead of the older hot incadesent ones. Most fixtures can have led bulbs substituted. take a look here:RV Lighting

On the meter it registered as 22v.. I plan on switching everything to led, but the fixture I had unfortunately had halogens.. maybe if I put led in it will work?

Sorry, I am only familiar with 12V and 120V circuits in RVs. Never have seen anything else. Maybe someone else can help. I have converted to several commercial LED lighting fixtures in out MH, all of which work on the standard 12V wiring. IKEA is a good, inexpensive source, and we have a new store opening soon in Memphis. I find that the LED lighting solutions at Home Depor and Lowes are too expensive and are all made to work with residential 120V sources, which is then converted down to 12V. In most of them, you can just throw away the 120v part, and wire the 12v part direct into the RV. I have posted some of our lighting upgrades previously, but will be glad to repost to you if you PM me.

Thank you for the links and info. Maybe there are other issues with my rv causing the higher reading, who knows. I appreciate the help though

Lighting question | Good Sam Community

25 Replies

Coach-man
Explorer
Oct 08, 2016
You do have a problem with that 22 volt reading! But in answer to your question, maybe My Cousin replaced the fluorescent fixtures in his rig with 12 Volt leds. Can't remember the name of the fixture but I am sure you can google 12 volt fluorescent replacement, and get the info you need!
MandMkuzie
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
Ok been spending most of the day researching and shopping and investigating. I've come to the conclusion that my power inlet is the problem. There were plenty of evidence of a short there. I've ordered a new one. Also will be replacing the puck adapter with a dog bone. Things are coming together quite nicely. Will be ordering a new converter as well. Y'all are great thanks for being so helpful to a newbie
Old-Biscuit
Explorer III
Oct 07, 2016
MandMkuzie wrote:
Excellent news... I think. I have perfect continuity in the ground of the power cord.. however when I put the adapter on, I can't get a consistent reading. Feeling pretty confident about it being the adapter, but may go ahead and replace the whole cord just for peace of mind

Buy a good 'dog leg' adapter vs a 'puck' type then check if you have good ground.........no tingle/shock

No sense in replacing a good power cord.

10V DC output from converter........connected or NOT connected to batteries means converter charger has failed.
Time for new converter (and new batteries as those are no good/damaged from lack of maintenance/charging)
MandMkuzie
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
Excellent news... I think. I have perfect continuity in the ground of the power cord.. however when I put the adapter on, I can't get a consistent reading. Feeling pretty confident about it being the adapter, but may go ahead and replace the whole cord just for peace of mind
SCVJeff
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
Back to page one...
You said that the RV is plugged IN but the batteries are disconnected, yes? That's never a good way to measure these systems as they are designed to see batteries hanging off the converter/ charger.

Have you looked at the DC voltage with everything hooked up? Sounds like maybe two different issues
MandMkuzie
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
Yes I checked the adapter, very suspicious of it as I couldn't get continuity, but still want to check the cord as well
RustyJC
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
Test the power cord and adapter with an ohmmeter for continuity as I suggested above before you replace them. Check from the respective RV power distribution center bus to the cord terminal and then the adapter terminal.

Rusty
MandMkuzie
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
Btw.. I did test the converter tonight as well and yes. Only getting about 10+ volts to the battery as well
MandMkuzie
Explorer
Oct 07, 2016
Thank you for the advice. You seem pretty confident about the ground fault being those 3 items. I'm not doubting you, just want to feel confident that if I replace the rv power cord and adapter that it will resolve the problem. :) is there ANY CHANCE that a ground to the chassis could be bad?
Old-Biscuit
Explorer III
Oct 06, 2016
MandMkuzie wrote:
So far y'all are hitting 1000% I failed to switch to Dc on the multimeter. We are at 10.83 give or take... I also noticed that somewhere along the life of this rv someone had wired 2 lights up to both the 120 outlet as well as the 12v switch I'm no certified electrician but I'm thinking that wasn't a good set up. I did get the new fixture to work on the 12v system though they aren't as bright

OK......good deal. Now that you are measuring DC and it is NOT 22V.
BUT
10.83V DC from converter is bad news.
Minimum DC output from a 'working' converter is 13.2V DC when NOT connected to batteries.
That is why lights are dim.low DC Voltage

Your converter is failing.......time for new replacement.
Check Best Converter and ASK Randy about replacement unit.

Next.......
NO 120V AC and 12V DC should NOT be wired to same switch.
Get rid of that mess ASAP

Next.....
That 'tingle/shock' you feel touching your RV
THAT CAN KILL YOU
Ground Fault.......either due to bad extension cord, bad adapter or bad RV power cord

FIND/FIX..........before you get really shocked! Not something to ignore or allow to continue :S