Power Converter Issue/Questions

[jconway1006]

Hey All,

So this weekend at camp it appears my converter went. Woke up Sunday to no power in my fridge, no lights, heat, or hot water. Plugged into shore power so I still have some functions.

Do these things go bad normally? I actually think I did this myself but with the luck I've had I hope I didn't do anything else. I had a wire mixed up when I connected my battery. And I am guessing I shorted out the converter. I ran on battery this weekend (not knowing) until Sunday morning when it finally died.

I already ordered a new converter and hoping to get it here tomorrow. I guess I am looking for piece of mind on this and hoping nothing else is bad. When i was on battery everything did operate normal.

Thanks for the input!

Jesse

[jconway1006]

Pretty sure the issue is the converter itself. However I already bought the correct fuses and will try that first.

beemerphile1 wrote:

jconway1006 wrote:
...the two 30 amp fuses were blown. I put 20's in because I didn't have the 30's and they blew just as fast...Starting with the converter is the quickest solution to fix the problem.

You would rather buy and replace the converter than install the correct size fuse? :h

[beemerphile1]

jconway1006 wrote:
...the two 30 amp fuses were blown. I put 20's in because I didn't have the 30's and they blew just as fast...Starting with the converter is the quickest solution to fix the problem.

You would rather buy and replace the converter than install the correct size fuse? :h

[jconway1006]

I'll have to look them up. I'm just praying this fixes my issues. I've have a rough two weeks of bad luck and I'm hoping this doesn't continue the trend. LoL

time2roll wrote:
The Wizard is better for the battery in all conditions.

The 12 Volt Side of Life

[time2roll]

The Wizard is better for the battery in all conditions.

The 12 Volt Side of Life

http://www.bestconverter.com/Charge-Wizard

[jconway1006]

No charge wizard yet. I'm always plugged into power where we camp. Plus I'm new to this. LoL.

[time2roll]

PD9100 is excellent. Do you have a Charge Wizard? Huge improvement for $25.

[rrupert]

The 20 amp fuses may have blown because the battery was dead and the charger was going at max. Perhaps with the proper fuses it will work fine.

[jconway1006]

Roy,

Going back to last Sunday I hooked it up wrong at first. Only tried to put my slide and realized I had something wrong. Moving forward to this past Friday I got back to camp and had no issues whatsoever. I ran my hot water, lights, and inside fridge without any issues. It was only Sunday morning I realized we didn't have any power to the fridge, then I tried the lights and thought I had a bad 75amp push/pull switch in my fuse box. We tested for power at that fuse box and had nothing. Eventually we traced the wires to the converter. If you saw the above posts the two 30 amp fuses were blown. I put 20's in because I didn't have the 30's and they blew just as fast.

I'm ok with ordering a new converter. The part of me just wanted to know if I'm going to blow the new one out. Since I ran off battery up until it died I believe the rest of my "system" is going to be ok.

I really wasn't unsure of what the problem is or was at this point. Starting with the converter is the quickest solution to fix the problem.

[RoyB]

I suspect the noise you heard was a tone from the converter to warm you that a fuse has been blown... I believe my PD9260C does that...

I added my PD9260C to a WFCO WF8900 series Power Distribution Center so i have REVERSE POLARITY in two locations.... On the WF 8900 Series unit and also another set on the PD 9260C chassis as well...

There probably isn't anything wrong with your converter/charger unit but having a new one doesn't hurt. If you had asked the community here before ordering a new one I imagine all would have said to get the PD9200 series which has the smart mode wizard built-in...

You want these units to do the 14.4V-13.6V-13.2V smart mode voltages when charging your battery. If you only see 13.6VDC being used then the smart mode is bypassed somehow. Maybe you are not using the WIZARD unit that plugs into the PD9160C chassis...

You confirm this by using a multimeter across the battery terminals when charging...

I have this WFCO 8900 series Power distribution Center but do not use the chassis in the bottom compartment. You can see the two REVERSE POLARITY FUSES off to them self on the ATC 12V FUSE Panel. The 120VAC Breaker for this unit which is a WF8945 model is turned off.

Google Image

I use a PD9260C unit stand alone mounted in a different location by itself. It also has three Reverse Polarity fuses on its front panel as shown here...


Google Image

You may also have a in-line blown fuse closer to the battery bank but you did say you was using the batteries after you hooked them up wrong so that says the 12VDC Power Distribution Panel was getting 12V from the battery perhaps???

This is a quick drawing of my converter/charger layout and battery connections.


Roy's image

Hope some of this helps... Everybody does it slightly different...

Roy Ken

[jconway1006]

I'm charged back up for now and I have it disconnected till I get the new converter. Seems like it took a little beating. I'm gonna keep an eye on it once I get everything back up and running.

Thanks for all the help guys. I feel a little better about this issue.

[MFL]

That is a good brand converter, and is reverse polarity protected. Like I mentioned, batteries do not like being discharged below 50 percent, and will shorten life if not recharged.

Jerry

[jconway1006]

In case ya missed it I posted the photo of the converter above.

Also forgot the Camper Model.

"2004 Sunnybrook Solanta 3610"
I bought this used. In great condition. However I'm noticing a few lack of care issues from the previous owners.

This camper stays on a seasonal site. Doesn't moved and hasn't moved in like 10 years at least. Dam thing is near perfect. Had to replace a "Heating Tube" in the heater last year but thats really about it.

MFL wrote:
There should be some sort of fused protection for your converter. You are not the first one to connect the battery cables improperly. If you totally discharged your battery, you need to charge it ASAP.

Good luck!
Jerry

[jconway1006]

Here is the link to the new one.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BRFTLC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I'm new to owning a camper and still am not familiar with the wires. LoL. Well I am now cause I have everything marked. Its only my second full year in this camper and had some help opening it up last year from the previous owner.

I want to be able to fix all of this myself instead of having to call a local RV shop to come out and fix it cause its expensive if they do. I'm not worried about installing it and stuff. Just when I turn the Main Breaker back on if everything is going to work.

I've had a rough few weeks in my personal life and I just want one thing to go right for once.

[MFL]

There should be some sort of fused protection for your converter. You are not the first one to connect the battery cables improperly. If you totally discharged your battery, you need to charge it ASAP.

Good luck!
Jerry