Magnum inverter/charger not charging batteries

janstey58 wrote:
Figured it out, I used a heavier ext cord to plug into 10A plug, so the voltage drop must have been too much with the lighter cord. Glad I am now charging in this frigid weather, thanks all!!

Jeff,
Glad you got it all figured out. You asked if the Inverter needs to be "ON" in order for your Inverter/Charger to charge the house batteries? The answer is NO. I also have a Magnum 2012ME MSW Inverter/Charger and I have plugged into 15A services many times and the Charger side of the Inverter/Charger has continued to charge the house batteries as normal. I don't know how much you know about your ability to control just how much your Inverter/Charger can put into your batteries at any given time but, in your Remote for that unit, you can limit the amount it puts out. That will draw less on your extension cord, even a smaller one. Just an idea.
Scott

Figured it out, I used a heavier ext cord to plug into 10A plug, so the voltage drop must have been too much with the lighter cord. Glad I am now charging in this frigid weather, thanks all!!

Before I would spend much time looking for a problem that may or may not be there, I would plug in to a 50A outlet and see what happens. I would suspect there is an automatic switch in there that is not powering the inverter due to the lack of amperage available. A 10A service is way too small to run your MH. If the batteries are in decent shape, they won't freeze at single digit temps.

You are plugged into a 10 amp circuit and wonder why you are having problems? You are not INVERTING anything. Inverting is converting 12V to 120V. Are you talking about CONVERTING? Using 120V to charge your 12V batteries?
Are you expecting to get things within your 50 amp service to work while connected to 10 amp service?
Please give us some additional details.