Forum Discussion
DrewE
Jan 30, 2015Explorer II
A sparking connection won't cause a surge in the RV, but a brownout and generally noisy AC. Generally speaking, I wouldn't expect that to fry the inverter or converter, though it's not completely beyond the realm of what's possible.
Is your inverter a charger/inverter, or do you have a separate converter/charger? Obviously whatever is supposed to be charging the batteries and working as a 12V converter isn't doing its job. Before just spending money to replace it, I'd do some basic troubleshooting first: is 120V AC power getting to it? Are all the connections and fuses on it good? Is there 12V output on its output terminals?
Have you checked that all the RV 120V circuit breakers and GFCIs are not tripped? Sometimes the converter/charger is on its own dedicated circuit.
Some smarter chargers don't like to charge a battery that's too run down. It may be necessary to connect a normal battery charger to the house battery for awhile (assuming it's undamaged from being discharged) and getting it up to a low charge before the converter unit will do its job properly.
I would also suggest checking that the RV 30A plug isn't getting overly warm. It may need to be replaced after the arcing next to it due to heat damage, even if such damage isn't immediately obvious externally. If it's staying reasonably cool (cool enough to touch when unplugged after having a moderate load for awhile, say), it's probably okay.
EDIT: The WF-8955 is a converter/power center, not an inverter. I don't think there's an inverter involved anywhere. (An inverter converts 12VDC to 120VAC, while a converter/charger converts 120VAC to 12VDC.)
Is your inverter a charger/inverter, or do you have a separate converter/charger? Obviously whatever is supposed to be charging the batteries and working as a 12V converter isn't doing its job. Before just spending money to replace it, I'd do some basic troubleshooting first: is 120V AC power getting to it? Are all the connections and fuses on it good? Is there 12V output on its output terminals?
Have you checked that all the RV 120V circuit breakers and GFCIs are not tripped? Sometimes the converter/charger is on its own dedicated circuit.
Some smarter chargers don't like to charge a battery that's too run down. It may be necessary to connect a normal battery charger to the house battery for awhile (assuming it's undamaged from being discharged) and getting it up to a low charge before the converter unit will do its job properly.
I would also suggest checking that the RV 30A plug isn't getting overly warm. It may need to be replaced after the arcing next to it due to heat damage, even if such damage isn't immediately obvious externally. If it's staying reasonably cool (cool enough to touch when unplugged after having a moderate load for awhile, say), it's probably okay.
EDIT: The WF-8955 is a converter/power center, not an inverter. I don't think there's an inverter involved anywhere. (An inverter converts 12VDC to 120VAC, while a converter/charger converts 120VAC to 12VDC.)
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