Trouble shooting 12v lighting issues
I am looking for some help troubleshooting a 12v lighting issue in an older travel trailer. I have a 33' travel trailer (built in 1988) parked on a remote property that I use to stay in while on th...
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I wanted to follow up on my original post. It looks like I was able to resolve the issue, but it ended up being multiple issues in the end.
Since my trailer is a few hours from me I decided to pack up a variety of tools including a meter. I also took a new 12V converter and RV electric panel since I knew I couldn't get one locally once up there. The old one was the original installed in 1988. The first thing I did was test the output on the converter and found that it fluctuated. It would output 12V on startup, but fall to 7.5V after a few minutes. It would then randomly not put out any voltage for a period of time. I swapped the converter and panel and immediately had a consistent 12+ volts coming out of the converter.
I also found that the battery was back-feeding the original panel through one of the circuits and fuses. It wasn't connected to the correct terminals on the 12V board, so this was also corrected when installing the new board.
During the swap, I realized someone had wired multiple lighting circuits together using a wire nut after the fuses to join 3 circuits. I cleaned this up so that each circuit was isolated from the other.
I decided to go ahead and check my battery more closely. While it was putting out over 12V, I discovered it was low on water. I topped it off, but will replace the battery with a new one after the winter (I don't use the trailer over the winter).
Finally, with everything up and running (so I thought :) ) I noticed that one lighting circuit at the back of the trailer would occasionally dim/flicker. Knowing there was 12V coming from the output to the circuit, I suspected a ground issue. I followed the 12V wiring to a cabinet under the sink and found a ground block. After checking all of the screws, I discovered one was very loose - yep, it was the lighting circuit.
I ended by inspecting all visible wiring I could find and confirming all connections were tight and there were no frayed wires. I feel much better after going through this exercise.
Thanks for all of the tips. It ended up being a bit more work than I thought it would be, but I'm happy I was able to resolve the issue.
Nick
Since my trailer is a few hours from me I decided to pack up a variety of tools including a meter. I also took a new 12V converter and RV electric panel since I knew I couldn't get one locally once up there. The old one was the original installed in 1988. The first thing I did was test the output on the converter and found that it fluctuated. It would output 12V on startup, but fall to 7.5V after a few minutes. It would then randomly not put out any voltage for a period of time. I swapped the converter and panel and immediately had a consistent 12+ volts coming out of the converter.
I also found that the battery was back-feeding the original panel through one of the circuits and fuses. It wasn't connected to the correct terminals on the 12V board, so this was also corrected when installing the new board.
During the swap, I realized someone had wired multiple lighting circuits together using a wire nut after the fuses to join 3 circuits. I cleaned this up so that each circuit was isolated from the other.
I decided to go ahead and check my battery more closely. While it was putting out over 12V, I discovered it was low on water. I topped it off, but will replace the battery with a new one after the winter (I don't use the trailer over the winter).
Finally, with everything up and running (so I thought :) ) I noticed that one lighting circuit at the back of the trailer would occasionally dim/flicker. Knowing there was 12V coming from the output to the circuit, I suspected a ground issue. I followed the 12V wiring to a cabinet under the sink and found a ground block. After checking all of the screws, I discovered one was very loose - yep, it was the lighting circuit.
I ended by inspecting all visible wiring I could find and confirming all connections were tight and there were no frayed wires. I feel much better after going through this exercise.
Thanks for all of the tips. It ended up being a bit more work than I thought it would be, but I'm happy I was able to resolve the issue.
Nick
