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JanVanDen's avatar
JanVanDen
Explorer
Mar 23, 2014

need another brain

Ok, went out to open the camper for the season. Just to check things out. Hooked up the battery (which is new)turned on propane, plugged into the electric. Lights work, microwave works, plugged in clock to make sure plugs worked. good ... Then tried to turn on furnace ..... nothing..... looked at refrigerator and nothing.... hit the on button on fridge... nothing.... checked the fuses all good... checked the plug in the bathroom good.... the only thing we disconnected was a sensor at the bottom of the fridge and beside the furnace because it was beeping before we shut it down for the winter. hubby hooked it back up and the little green light that was on is no longer on. So any brains out there who can think of what we need to look at or for.
  • Francesca Knowles wrote:
    wa8yxm wrote:
    You disconnected the explosive gas (Propane) Detector... On many RV's this device controls an emergency cut off solenoid near the propane tank (one or the other side of ye-old regulator) disconnect it and..... No propane.

    Didja read any of the responses before posting, Wa8? Post #6 may be of special interest...;)


    'Hubby' also hooked it back up (mentioned in OP
    And it's a trailer...LP Detector is Alarm function only....no emergency trip solenoid with propane cylinders.
  • wa8yxm wrote:
    You disconnected the explosive gas (Propane) Detector... On many RV's this device controls an emergency cut off solenoid near the propane tank (one or the other side of ye-old regulator) disconnect it and..... No propane.

    Didja read any of the responses before posting, Wa8? Post #6 may be of special interest...;)
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    You disconnected the explosive gas (Propane) Detector... On many RV's this device controls an emergency cut off solenoid near the propane tank (one or the other side of ye-old regulator) disconnect it and..... No propane.
  • Don't forget those reverse polarity blown fuses at the converter fuse panel or converter--replace all of them (might be two or three-even four is possible on some.)
  • JanVanDen wrote:
    thank you thank you thank you all.. Problem solved.. hooked up backwards.. thank god it was something simple.. this forum has NEVER failed to solve my problems.. have a wonderful day and a great camping season


    Okay, I highly suspect that you have another problem now. Most converters have reverse polarity fuses. Here's a simple way to check if they have been blown:

    1. Disconnect your rig from shore power, and make sure the cable between the trailer and tow vehicle is disconnected..
    2. Check the battery voltage.
    3. Reconnect your rig to shore power, and check the battery voltage again. If the converter is working properly, you'll probably have around 12-12.5 Volts when disconnected, and 13.5 Volts while connected to shore power.

    If you don't see the voltage increase, you almost certainly blew the protection fuses. To get to mine, I have to remove the converter panel, and slide it out (Shore power disconnected). I have two 40amp blade type fuses.

    Note: You can't just check to see if the 12 Volt lights are on, and say your converter is working properly. If the fuses are blown, the battery will still have 12 Volts, but it won't be charging, so eventually it will run down. You may not notice right away, especially if you are towing because the tow vehicle will charge the batteries too.
  • thank you thank you thank you all.. Problem solved.. hooked up backwards.. thank god it was something simple.. this forum has NEVER failed to solve my problems.. have a wonderful day and a great camping season
  • Francesca Knowles wrote:
    Not being a smartypants, but:

    First thing I'd check is the battery hookups. Not uncommon for folks to hook them up backwards, especially if they've been disconnected for awhile.


    IF hooked up backwards.....also check the reverse polarity fuses on converter......they blow when battery is backwards


    And even thought that battery is NEW..........is it (was it) fully charged/maintained while being disconnected.

    Sounds like a dead battery, reversed cables OR BOTH
  • Not being a smartypants, but:

    First thing I'd check is the battery hookups. Not uncommon for folks to hook them up backwards, especially if they've been disconnected for awhile.
  • our last TT had 2 cables that went to the positive side of the battery. make sure they are all hooked up. look for an in line fuse that might be tripped.
    are any of the 12 volt lights working? also double check the battery to make sure it is charged up. the fridge and furnace work off the 12 volt system.
  • I can supply half a brain (all I have, I am told)

    The thing down there with the green light is the propane warning alarm. It will make a fuss if the battery voltage gets too low. No fuss, no nothing with no battery at all. It can be reset once you have "12v" again either from battery or converter. Find the user's manual for it.

    Look for your battery disconnect switch to make sure it is closed and also check to make sure your converter is supplying 13.6 volts with shore power plugged in. If not, there are things to check on that like its 120v circuit breaker. Make sure the battery is connected right. Red on pos, white on neg. Unless you have black and white--now black is pos and white is still neg. Unless you have red and black! Now red is still pos and black is neg.

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