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Heylea's avatar
Heylea
Explorer
Jul 03, 2013

No power to coach -- 1996 Four Winds Class C - Help!

Can anyone suggest a fix for our power problem?

We are borrowing a 1996 Four Winds 350E from some friends of my parents, and after getting it set up alongside the house (we are plugging into residential power only), the refer and water pump were operational, but the breaker on the coach for the AC flipped off. After getting that back on, it took several tries to get the AC and fan to start working again. Got everything going, and within 15 minutes, all power to the coach was gone, and the panel on the coach was all fine -- no flipped switches. All the breakers in the home we are hooked up to are also fine. We are using a standard power-tool-type extension cord with adapter to the rv cord, which is what the owner told us to use. Do we need to look next @ fuses? There are two- 30amp, one- 20amp, and the rest are 15amp.

Any help for these newbies would be greatly appreciated. This is suppose to be our home for the next month while our home is being constructed.

Heylea
Class C

6 Replies

  • Bordercollie's avatar
    Bordercollie
    Explorer
    Jul 08, 2013
    You should buy a plug-in AC voltage monitor ( cheap accessory item ) Shut off the roof AC if/when voltage drops into red zone or below 100vac. Low voltage will damage the RV's roof AC.
  • Heylea's avatar
    Heylea
    Explorer
    Jul 07, 2013
    Thanks, All. Turns out it was a combination of needing the bigger extension cord and the GFI where we plugged into the house kept tripping. All is working now and we are being careful to turn off the AC before plugging anything else in. It's all a learning experience!

    :B
  • homedad's avatar
    homedad
    Explorer
    Jul 03, 2013
    Also check that you didn't trip a GFCI. If it is an outdoor outlet or garage outlet it should be GFCI protected. It can trip without the circuit breaker tripping.
  • tenbear's avatar
    tenbear
    Explorer
    Jul 03, 2013
    Check to make sure there is power at the end of your extension cord. It sounds that you might have burned it out.
  • j-d's avatar
    j-d
    Explorer II
    Jul 03, 2013
    We had a 20A outlet at our previous house. With a 20>>30 Adapter, it'd run the 13500 A/C we had on that coach, plus the Converter/Charger that handles your 12VDC system and battery.
    BUT!!! We kept melting Adapters. If you plan on doing much of this, and it's a "permanent" location, see if you can run a dedicated RV circuit to a proper RV Outlet Box. We did that, and no further problems. At our current house, I ran a dedicated 30A circuit, breaker, wire, box, outlet. It's very nice. But, many say if you do it, go all the way and set up for 50A, with a 30A socket also, like most campground pedestals.
  • ronfisherman's avatar
    ronfisherman
    Moderator
    Jul 03, 2013
    If you are using a standard extension cord. It will only handle 15 amps at best. Not enough to run AC and other items. Get a cord rated for 20 amps. You may have blown the circuit breaker feeding the extension cord.
    Even though end of 30 amp cord looks similar to a dryer or stove plug. Do not plug the RV into it. These items are wired for 220 volts. Not 110 volts that the RV is wired for.
    After AC shuts down. Most have a delay of 10 to 15 minutes before AC will run again.

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