12V Electric Issues - Inverter?

[fullydeuce]

Hi Everyone,

I am new to this forum and fairly new to owning a recreational vehicle. We purchased a 5th wheel back in May of this year and have been living it ever since. We plan to live it for another year or so until we complete construction on our house. We live in Calgary, AB, Canada and have winterized the trailer but have lately been having some electrical issues..

When the furnace fan is kicking on, the lights will dim and sometimes kick the fan off. The odd time, power to the 12V system will completely stop (no lights, fridge, furnace, etc.).

I checked all the 12V fuses and none are blown. If I switch the battery disconnect to on and back to off it will fire the 12V system back up...

Could this be a sign the power inverter is going?

If anyone is interested in seeing our trailer setup we have some posts about it https://www.hidenseekglobal.com/tiny-home-living

[fullydeuce]

Good news to report. I replaced the old Converter with a PowerMax PM4 100A Converter and have no issues since!

Thanks everyone for all the feedback.

[ChuckSteed]

Trying to run you rig without a battery is simply a recipe for failure... converters, even brand new ones wit( smart technology will not handle the current load ...

That is the purpose of having a battery in place... it stores DC for use and demand... if yo7 run that converter very long with no battery it will fail....pla8n and simple....

[ksg5000]

fullydeuce wrote:
Thanks for all the feedback on this!!

I checked last night and the battery terminals had bad corrosion. I am going to clean them up and get the battery charged. Hopefully, this is contributing to the problem and I don't need a new converter.

Almost all modern converters don't need a battery to operate - which would indicate your rig has old converter. If you have an antique converter you might consider upgrading as they don't cost much and are easy to install/replace. Reliable converter is considered essential by many RVers. Just a thought.

[SailingOn]

For sure, a multimeter makes tracking stuff like this down easier.
Here's one at Amazon.

[fullydeuce]

Thanks for all the feedback on this!!

I checked last night and the battery terminals had bad corrosion. I am going to clean them up and get the battery charged. Hopefully, this is contributing to the problem and I don't need a new converter.

[jerseyjim]

I have a Parallax 55AMP CONverter (as oppsed to a INverter). $209US and no problems.

[sch911]

fullydeuce wrote:
The trailer is permanently parked and connected to shore power so we really don't have a need for the battery.

Yes you really should have one. Think of it as a big capacitor (filter) for the 12V side of life. Converters will run without them but you're subject to extreme voltage ripples, spikes, etc. Definitely not good.

[fullydeuce]

The trailer is permanently parked and connected to shore power so we really don't have a need for the battery.

[time2roll]

fullydeuce wrote:
Any recommendations for a "good" converter?

Do you ever expect a fast charge on generator power? If so how many batteries do you have?

Otherwise Progressive Dynamics, IOTA and PowerMax are all good.

www.bestconverter.com

DO NOT get a WFCO.

[BobKrogstie]

After having to replacing two WFCO-9875 converters, I switched to a PD-9270C. Alles gut!

[ScottG]

Check out Progressive Dynamics units at Bestconverter.com.

[time2roll]

fullydeuce wrote:
I am hooked up to shore power, that is why I was thinking it was the converter. I know the battery isn't holding much of a charge either. What is the best way to troubleshoot each one?

Disconnect a battery cable to separate. Converter should hold 13.6 volts DC in the fuse panel running everything.

If the battery is below 12.6 volts... charge it and then see if it holds 12.65+ volts for 2 to 7 days disconnected.

[kerrlakeRoo]

Going off altogether, and then coming back on can be just bad connections to the batteries. After you have verified you have a good battery and ensured you have good clean connections to the batteries check the voltages.
Converter off, voltage at the battery should be about 12.6.
Converter on, it should be 13.6 to 14.8
then determine if you want a new converter.

[laknox]

fullydeuce wrote:
Thanks for the reply Lyle!

I will pull off the battery tonight and charge it.

Any recommendations for a "good" converter?

I don't, but search around here and I'm sure you'll find many threads with suggestions for replacement converters. On my list to do after my new FW goes out of warranty. :B

Lyle