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Martindale123's avatar
Martindale123
Explorer
Nov 12, 2017

Power Issues

Ok so I have an old FEMA trailer that I bought for my deer lease. I have had it since 2013 and have always used power from the ranch. I have never had a battery on my camper. I went down to the ranch a couple of weeks ago, I pulled out the power cord, plugged it in, went inside and there was no power. I checked the power supply outside and had power so I went back inside to see if the breakers were tripped and they were not. I said well lets see if the microwave works, when I turned on the microwave the whole trailer fired up and I had power. Does this sound like a ground issue? Is the power converter like a alternator on a vehicle where it either works or it doesn't? This is the first time this has ever happened. Where is the ground wire is it mounted to the frame of the trailer? I had a lady from CCRV tell me I had to have a battery to run the trailer which I have NEVER had I have always plugged the trailer into the power supply at the ranch since 2013. Can someone please help me? Thanks Jeff
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    Nov 13, 2017
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  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    Nov 12, 2017
    Sounds like a loose screw to me.. Ground, not likely, but check all the screws in the electrical system starting with the breaker box.. Both breakers and bus bars (UNPLUG FIRST!!!!) also if the plug is not molded check it, also check the outlet you plug into. CAUTION VOLTAGE PRESENT unless you can turn it off too)

    Last week I had no 120 volt power in the RV for several hours.. Then suddenly it came back on...... Power company issue.. Whole park dark.
  • DrewE's avatar
    DrewE
    Explorer II
    Nov 12, 2017
    That does not sound like a ground issue to me. In normal operation, the ground connection should not be part of the circuit at all; it's there for safety in case something electrical goes wrong (like a short circuit to the trailer frame).

    I think you have a loose connection somewhere. One place to start is with verifying that all the screws are tight on all the wires in the electric panel. Obviously, you need to disconnect the trailer from power before monkeying around there with a screwdriver!

    The power converter is more like a battery charger than anything; it takes 120V power in and produces 12V (nominal) power out. Some models do need a battery connected to work properly. It should operate independently of the microwave.

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