possible converter problem or ?

[shane102]

when hooked to shore power the battery monitor will not read full and the voltage is 12.2 on DC side. when the converter fan kicks on then the monitor will read full and the voltage is 14.36 on DC side. Also when the converter fan kicks on the lights will dim and when fan goes off the lights will come back full. I put new batteries in and new battery cables. yes the batteries are hooked up correctly (+ feed to one battery and - feed to other battery and in parallel + to + and - to - all grounds at batteries are clean and reattached. Any Ideas?

[Bobbo]

shane102 wrote:
should I run a surge/voltage/current protector. I use shore power some times and generator power quite often as I dry camp mostly.

I have a Progressive Industries EMS-HW30C hardwired into my RV so it protects from both shore and generator power.

Never leave home without it! I highly recommend this.

[BFL13]

I use a surge guard for shore power. Not needed for the Honda gen, but the Honda works through the surge guard ok, as does my inverter on "whole house". The surge guard is costly, but it could pay for itself anytime, you just don't know when, on shore power in strange places.

[shane102]

whoops, its the powermax pm4-55.

both the powermax and progressive dynamics are highly rated. I chose the powermax because it is made-to-fit to replace wfco converter lower half. although the progressive dy converter is also easy to put in.

should I run a surge/voltage/current protector. I use shore power some times and generator power quite often as I dry camp mostly.

[Bobbo]

BFL13 wrote:

shane102 wrote:
ordered a powermax 4655 4 stage converter. waiting for it to show

Typo? What did you really order?

Either the:

Progressive Dynamics PD4655V. That is the unit I have. Nice unit. It is actually 3 stage, but they run the boost voltage every 21 hours for 15 minutes and call it a fourth stage.

OR:

It could be the Powermax PM4-55. Has the same charging voltages as the PD4655V above, but they don't describe the fourth stage.

[BFL13]

shane102 wrote:
ordered a powermax 4655 4 stage converter. waiting for it to show

Typo? What did you really order?

[shane102]

ordered a powermax 4655 4 stage converter. waiting for it to show

[shane102]

Converter is a wfco 8955

[shane102]

Converter is a wfco 8955

[DrewE]

What model of converter is it? Some (mostly older) converters required a battery, or something else sufficiently close in response to a battery, to be connected in order to produce a reasonable output voltage.

Progressive Dynamics 9200 (deck mount) or 4600 (replacement for many converters built into the distribution panel) converters are very well regarded. Functionally, the two series are basically equivalent; they differ mainly in their packaging.

[shane102]

The monitor is a kib.

14.36 volts is measured at the converter output side of the fuse panel where battery cables hook up.

When hooked to shore power and batteries disconnected and nothing on the output volts of converter are 14.36 volts. If I turn on lights the volts drop to 5.73 volts and lights are very dim.

Converter is a WFCO.

Thanks for the replies. I am guessing that the converter is bad because the voltage dropped from 14.36 with no load to 5.73 with a load??????

If so what is a good replacement converter. And I would prefer to spend the money and end up with a good reliable fix.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

This needs to be troubleshot a lot more thoroughly than what is listed above. More voltage tests at different places in the system.

[DrewE]

While it certainly sounds like a failing converter (and that would be my first guess), a malfunctioning self-resetting circuit breaker between the converter and the battery could also conceivably lead to the symptoms described, I think. The voltage measures would have to be at the converter output in this case.

[RJsfishin]

Yes, if the name on the conv starts w/ a "W", replacing it is definently the place to start.

[time2roll]

If the fan and voltage are jumping up and down in a random pattern the converter is probably shot. Most converters should also hold voltage steady with no battery... try it. WFCO?