i bought a used 2015 starcraft ar-one and I go to install the battery and there are black, white, and green wires. I can see that white is the ground, so i hook that to the negative and from what i understand the black to the positive. The green wire has a fuse on it so i am under the impression that also goes on the positive. Can someone tell me what the green wire is for? what should all work with the battery hooked up? thanks.

StarcraftNick wrote:i bought a used 2015 starcraft ar-one and I go to install the battery and there are black, white, and green wires. I can see that white is the ground, so i hook that to the negative and from what i understand the black to the positive. The green wire has a fuse on it so i am under the impression that also goes on the positive. Can someone tell me what the green wire is for? what should all work with the battery hooked up? thanks.If it's fused, it's a positive connection. Tongue jack, maybe?

Since it's used I would try and track it see where it goes may be something the previous owner had in it that no longer goes to anything.

You should check all the wires for continuity to frame ground. That will definitively expose the (-) phase wire to be connected. There is no answer to what the green wire is for as one would need to trace it to find what, if anything, it powers. With the battery correctly connected your lights, fans, water pump, electric ignition water heater, and electric ignition furnace should all operate. You should also have a path of current to the onboard converter for charging. There should be a circuit breaker or fuse for the battery main cable within a few feet of the battery.

I would guess, the two wires from positive battery terminal are for 12 volt power supplied to the trailer, and power supplied to the break away switch.

You REALLY REALLY need to trace the wires to see where they go. On 12v systems, black is USUALLY negative, and green is not usually used.

Battery wires- black white and green | Good Sam Community

17 Replies

bobndot
Explorer III
Nov 18, 2017
What kind of jack is on your TT ? If electric , its a 12v jack and uses a wire , a fused wire and it might be green.
Bobbo
Explorer III
Nov 18, 2017
YC 1 wrote:
One has to be very careful assuming any color is positive or negative in an RV. Electrons are color blind and often RV builders think of the black wire as being the "hot" wire and continue with that into the 12 volt side of life.

Too many folks have smoked things making assumptions connecting up batteries on the fronts of their travel trailers.

Which brings us back to my previous post (#6 on page 1).

Bobbo wrote:
You REALLY REALLY need to trace the wires to see where they go. On 12v systems, black is USUALLY negative, and green is not usually used.
YC_1
Nomad
Nov 18, 2017
One has to be very careful assuming any color is positive or negative in an RV. Electrons are color blind and often RV builders think of the black wire as being the "hot" wire and continue with that into the 12 volt side of life.

Too many folks have smoked things making assumptions connecting up batteries on the fronts of their travel trailers.
LVJJJ
Explorer
Nov 18, 2017
On RV's positive wires are usually red and black negative. Green would seem to me to be a ground, except for the fuse in this case, unless someone thot ground wires should be fused. Since the wire is fused, you could try and touch it to the positive battery terminal, if it's not supposed to go there it'll blow the fuse.
time2roll
Nomad
Nov 17, 2017
YC 1 wrote:
time2roll wrote:
Any color is probably connected to positive.
You can leave the green off until something does not work.
Could be a bad deal if it is the break-away cable.

It should be easy to follow the green wire to the break-away switch if that is it.
Yes very good point. Easy to check continuity on the brakes.
rrupert
Explorer
Nov 17, 2017
The green wire may be for the fridge on twelve volt and/or the control board. I know tongue jacks have an inline fuse. I don't think breakaway switches are fused.
westend
Explorer
Nov 17, 2017
StarcraftNick wrote:
should the microwave or the AC work on the battery? thanks.
12V powers lights, fans, water pump, etc. The microwave is 120V AC, so no. The 12V system and the 120V system are separate. Your Air Conditioner needs a 12V signal to turn on from the thermostat.
GrandpaKip
Explorer II
Nov 17, 2017
StarcraftNick wrote:
should the microwave or the AC work on the battery? thanks.

Neither. Battery is 12v DC. Microwave and A/C are 120v AC.
YC_1
Nomad
Nov 17, 2017
time2roll wrote:
Any color is probably connected to positive.
You can leave the green off until something does not work.
Could be a bad deal if it is the break-away cable.

It should be easy to follow the green wire to the break-away switch if that is it.
StarcraftNick
Explorer
Nov 17, 2017
should the microwave or the AC work on the battery? thanks.