Inverter and/or electric troubleshooting help needed

2001 Holiday Rambler Ambassador 37' DP motorhome

2000 watt Nature Power PSW Inverter/charger (not OEM)

Residential refrigerator

This is a friends unit, they bought it in the winter and did not thoroughly check it out. They have now sold their house and moved into the MH.

Here is the story I got;
They parked at friend's home and plugged into 50a service. The refrigerator and microwave did not work. The inverter started getting very hot and the readout was flashing error codes and various craziness.

They called a mobile service tech, for $213 he told them the inverter/charger was bad and he couldn't help them. He separated the positive battery cable from the inverter. He left them disconnected from shore power and essentially dead in the water.

The owner claims the refrigerator works on generator but not on shore power.

Here is where I started;
*good 50a shore power verified at receptacle
*good 50a 240v at the main breaker in the MH breaker panel
*with shore power on but battery disconnected the inverter readings go crazy
*batteries are nearly dead at 11.8v
*verified that the inverter receptacles are dead on shore power

I found two receptacles behind refrigerator, one inverter and one shore power. By moving the plug to shore power the refrigerator started operating and made me their hero.

I did NOT reconnect battery power to the inverter.

I did turn off the inverter breaker in the panel.

The thing that really puzzles me is that the owner stated the refrigerator worked on generator power. If true, the inverter passes power on generator but not shore power. That does not make sense to me. I did not witness this but have to take the owner's word for it.

I instructed the owner to get a portable battery charger and put it on the house batteries.

I have owned many trailers with converters. I have installed stand alone inverters. I have also installed residential and commercial electric but none of that prepared me to work on inverter/chargers so I'm a bit over my head.

What can I troubleshoot further to narrow down what is wrong?

MrWizard
Moderator
May 25, 2018

Price:
$829.00
SKU:
KI-SW2012-55
Weight:
5.00 LBS

go look at the specs on an inverter you would recommend
any that get praise and good reviews on this forum or other forums

i think you will find they a weigh in a lot heavier

not enough 'copper' in the transformers not enough Alu in the heat sinks for the working mosfets
beemerphile1
Explorer
May 25, 2018
I was surprised to find out about the KISAE but it was straight from the tech, same inverter with a different label.
They will be leaving the state soon. Their home is sold and they are living in the MH. They bought a house in Tenn. But can't take possession yet.
BFL13
Explorer II
May 25, 2018
ISTR somebody here has one of those?

http://www.wegosolar.com/products.php?product=KI%252dSW2012%252d55-2000W-12VDC-Pure-Sine-Wave-Inverter-with-55A-Battery-Charger-

These guys usually don't sell junk, so I am surprised at the bad reviews on that other one. Maybe it is just too complicated for folks.

Is it LY who has that neighbour he helps who refuses to do things right? Full marks for helping those people out. Could be an endless task it seems. You will have to move away to be free! :(
beemerphile1
Explorer
May 25, 2018
I never could verify the difference between being on shore power and generator power so here is what I did;

Even though I told the owner to purchase a battery charger and charge the batteries, I had to make another trip back over there and do it myself. He purchased a Schumacher charger and couldn't figure out how to turn it on. I verified the charger worked but hooked mine up and told him to get his money back. He doesn't need a charger that is smarter than the operator. :B

After two days on my charger I went back to do some diagnostics. I reset the inverter/charger and all seemed to be working okay. It worked in bypass, it charged the battery, and it inverted when shore power was cut. The only problem observed is that it tripped with a load of 1,600 watts which is below the rating.

I also got suckered into installing a replacement water heater due to the original not being winterized last fall and rupturing. During the water heater replacement the inverter was in bypass mode for a couple hours and the built in transfer switch overheated throwing a code.

I advised the owner we should replace the inverter and after consultation with a tech at donrowe.com decided on the Xantrex XC2000.

I will also be installing a subpanel for the two circuits like should have been to start with. The inverter feed is 30a and can bypass the full 30a into the outgoing 12 gauge wires. Unlikely it would happen but it could. A subpanel with two 20a breakers will solve that.

I will probably take the old inverter and see if I can either fix it or turn it into a 55a battery charger. The owner needs a reliable automatic system that doesn't require fiddling.

BTW, the NaturePower is the exact same inverter donrowe.com sells as the KISAE.
BFL13
Explorer II
May 22, 2018
That manual has a lot of complicated stuff toward the end for settings and how to operate it. Perhaps the current owners have never read the manual or else didn't do it right.

Even if you got a new inverter, you would still have to figure out who does what to whom for the 120v wiring and breakers set-up same as with this one
beemerphile1
Explorer
May 22, 2018
Darryl&Rita wrote:
Failure happened between generator time, and pedestal connection?

As far as the owner knows it wasn't working when they bought it. They never tried the refrigerator before purchase. After not working on shore power the owner reported that it did work on generator.
Darryl_Rita
Explorer
May 22, 2018
Failure happened between generator time, and pedestal connection?
beemerphile1
Explorer
May 22, 2018
BFL13 wrote:
The manual says in by-pass mode, the AC input is passed to the AC output.

It says if in by-pass and overloaded, it will shut down and show error code 03. Some other shutdowns too.

It all could be he has too many things on for that inverter (20a max) thinking he is on 50a shore power. He is not, he is on inverter 20a and must reduce the load.

It says how to restart the inverter after a shutdown with a the load now reduced.

Everything was off and I pushed a 20a reset button on the unit. The reset did nothing.

I printed the manual and will go over and look at it in a day or two.

Based on the reviews of the thing, I have already talked to them about a separate inverter, converter, and transfer switch. They are onboard with the idea.

I still can't make sense of how it could bypass on generator and not on shore power. However, like I said, so far I am taking the owner's word for that. I would have to reconnect and verify to know for sure.
beemerphile1
Explorer
May 22, 2018
BFL13 wrote:
OK I read the installation instructions in that manual linked above. (But not the rest) It has an AC input port and AC output ports for hard wiring besides the receptacles.

The AC input needs a 30a breaker (not supplied) so is that connected so his 55a charger can work from shore power? (120v I assume)

Is there a wire from the output port to the breakers the original inverter used or to a sub-panel?

It appears the output may go directly to the receptacles. The wires left the inverter and disappeared into a wall, no sub panel was found.
BFL13
Explorer II
May 21, 2018
The manual says in by-pass mode, the AC input is passed to the AC output.

It says if in by-pass and overloaded, it will shut down and show error code 03. Some other shutdowns too.

It all could be he has too many things on for that inverter (20a max) thinking he is on 50a shore power. He is not, he is on inverter 20a and must reduce the load.

It says how to restart the inverter after a shutdown with a the load now reduced.

Forum Discussion

Inverter and/or electric troubleshooting help needed

About Technical Issues

Related Content

Electric

Inverter install

Electrical assistance

Electrical outlet issues

Travel Trailer electrical, - Inverter placement/hookup