Forum Discussion

peted123's avatar
peted123
Explorer
Jul 12, 2016

Converter not working

I have a 2013 R-Vision Crossover. I'm on my 2nd battery and now it is not charging while connected to shore power. I've read other posts about checking the converter and resetting the fuse or the switch because it could be affected from the vibration etc.

Where would I look to reset the converter

  • You could post the name an model of your converter. I have never seen a converter with a reset feature. Most TT's have a circuit breaker close to the battery that may fail or some may have a circuit breaker that has a manual reset. This breaker is located by the tongue, sometimes on the frame or in a box on the frame.

    Some converters have two fuses, one for overload and one for opposite polarity connection. They may be located on the back panel of the converter. Some TT's have these fuses located on the distribution panel. Look for two 40 amp green fuses to the left of the other 12V fuses.

    All converters have a 120V circuit breaker to interrupt 120V should there be an overload or short in the device or wiring. Sometimes this circuit breaker also protects other circuits like receptacles, etc., i.e. it is shared. Some converters have their own, separate 120V circuit breaker.

    The easiest way of diagnosing a converter failure is to use an hand held meter. First step is to measure voltage at the battery when the 120V power is removed from the converter, i.e. shore cord not connected. A full battery is 12.7 V. Nest is to plug in your shore cord, make sure all circuit breakers are "on" and measure again at the battery. You should see at least 13.2V. If not, while still connected, measure voltage at the output of the converter. 13.2+ is what you want to see. If the converter is not outputting 13 V or better you can assume the converter has failed. A second check after the converter is removed will confirm failure.

    Sometimes, the repair is not that complicated ( a couple of capacitors or resistors on the circuit board). The problem is that repair costs are close to buying a new one and you are able to buy a better replacement than what you had. A lot of folks recommend Progressive Dynamics converters, myself included. My PD 808 is working fine and is 45 years old.

    Good luck on your converter work.
  • Have you pulled and checked that 15amp fuse for continuity that yiu can see in the picture. Have you metered the 12V output lugs on the converter to check for power with the battery disconnected?
  • On my converter (different than yours) the fuses are on the end where the wires that connect to the battery are. That would probably be the logical place to look first. The 120V input to the converter has a breaker in the load center in the bedroom.