Power to RV won't work. PLEASE HELP!

[Mr. Dan]

I agree with Crankshaft. The tiniest bit of water in an outlet or any connection controlled by a GFCI circuit with trip the GFCI outlet and kill every outlet on the loop. If you drove home through the rain or washed off the trailer or splashed water from a sink into one of these outlets, you could have the situation Crankshaft described. Ignore any and all advice about an inverter unless you can convince yourself you have one. Don't waste time worrying about having your cord plugged into your truck. That affects the 12volt part of your trailer and your issue seems to be in the 110 AC side. That never causes a problem with my trailer. Your CONverter allows those two systems to play together. I don't yet understand your findings regarding your microwave unless your extension cord is bad.


Sent (I think)

[Tom48]

Let's go back to the begining. I have a little yellow three pronged tester. Cost less than 10 dollars. It will tell you if your home outlet is properly wired. Did you hurt a simple three light system to detect open ground for reverse polarity. If the outlet checks okay then go to the down range end of the xx tension cord, to be sure there are no shorts or open circuits in it. A friend went crazy with a similar problem only to discover that he had both a bad outlet and a bad extension cord. If the outlet and the extension cord are good and you're using an appropriate gauge cord for the distance, then and only then you know the problem is in the coach. You might have got snookered by the seller, but before you assume that do a proper test

[jtstromsburg]

Also check what else is on the same circuit in your house outlet that your camper is plugged into? If there are more items on it it's possible with just the converter and other parasite draws you were over amperage

[Krawler]

What is the length of the extension cord?

Here is the difference in a 15 and 20 amp outlet. AC or the microwave will draw quite a bit and with the cord being used, should be used with a 20amp outlet.

Did you try resetting the main on the camper and plugging into a different outlet?




Jim

[5picker]

Let's go back to the original post and dissect a couple of things...

1. per your post... you plugged your camper into a 12ga. extension cord and then plugged the extension cord into a GFCI outlet which then tripped the GFCI outlet.
a. You would have needed a 30 amp to 15/20 adapter or dog bone to accomplish the connection between the camper wire and the extension cord. Is the adapter good? Maybe it is shorted out?

2. You then said... you plugged it into a 'regular adapter'. What does that mean?
Does it mean you plugged the 12ga. extension cord into a non-GFCI outlet or does it mean you used a different adapter between the 30 amp trailer wire and the 12ga. extension cord? If so... (again) is this 'regular adapter' OK.

3. You then said... you unplugged from the truck, flipped off the breakers and plugged back into the GFCI outlet.
As mentioned, you really shouldn't be utilizing a GFCI outlet to 'feed' your camper.
You CAN use a non-GFCI 15 amp circuit to feed your camper but you'll need to be cautious of what you can and/or can not turn on inside the camper.
You won't want to run the A/C or the hot water heater (on electric) or even possibly the microwave. but the outlets should work and the converter should provide 12v to that side of the system as well as charge the battery. A 20 amp outlet is better than a 15 but the vast majority of houses don't even have them.

Also, you didn't hurt anything by leaving the truck wire plugged in.

Give us a little more info on the scenarios I posted above and maybe we can help get to the bottom of this.

[jch2122]

Originally Posted by 5picker

Let's go back to the original post and dissect a couple of things...

1. per your post... you plugged your camper into a 12ga. extension cord and then plugged the extension cord into a GFCI outlet which then tripped the GFCI outlet.
a. You would have needed a 30 amp to 15/20 adapter or dog bone to accomplish the connection between the camper wire and the extension cord. Is the adapter good? Maybe it is shorted out?

2. You then said... you plugged it into a 'regular adapter'. What does that mean?
Does it mean you plugged the 12ga. extension cord into a non-GFCI outlet or does it mean you used a different adapter between the 30 amp trailer wire and the 12ga. extension cord? If so... (again) is this 'regular adapter' OK.

3. You then said... you unplugged from the truck, flipped off the breakers and plugged back into the GFCI outlet.
As mentioned, you really shouldn't be utilizing a GFCI outlet to 'feed' your camper.
You CAN use a non-GFCI 15 amp circuit to feed your camper but you'll need to be cautious of what you can and/or can not turn on inside the camper.
You won't want to run the A/C or the hot water heater (on electric) or even possibly the microwave. but the outlets should work and the converter should provide 12v to that side of the system as well as charge the battery. A 20 amp outlet is better than a 15 but the vast majority of houses don't even have them.

Also, you didn't hurt anything by leaving the truck wire plugged in.

Give us a little more info on the scenarios I posted above and maybe we can help get to the bottom of this.

Thank you for your detailed response. Here are the answers I have. Please excuse any terminology, as I don't know the proper name of some things.

1. I am using an adapter from the RV that adapts it to the grounded extension cable. I'm not sure if that's what you're meaning, though. The adapter was the same one the seller used to demo the RV to me, so I'm assuming it is working.

2. I plugged the same extension cable into a non GFCI outlet, using the same original adapter from the RV. The outlet functions normally for everything else it's used for. The extension cable is 80ft and does have a couple places that I've hard to wrap electrical tape around because of wear.

3. To word what I originally said a little better, when I plugged it into the GFCI outlet outside of my house it tripped the outlet immediately. When I plugged it into the non GFCI outlet inside of my house and tried to turn any switch on at the breaker in the RV it either didn't work or it flipped the breaker in the RV. I get no response at all either way out of my AC, fridge, or inside lights.


Hopefully I answered those enough to offer additional assistance.

If this continues to not work, am I able to run at least the AC and lights off of the 12V?

Thank you

[B and B]

Originally Posted by jch2122

Thank you for your detailed response. Here are the answers I have. Please excuse any terminology, as I don't know the proper name of some things.

1. I am using an adapter from the RV that adapts it to the grounded extension cable. I'm not sure if that's what you're meaning, though. The adapter was the same one the seller used to demo the RV to me, so I'm assuming it is working.

2. I plugged the same extension cable into a non GFCI outlet, using the same original adapter from the RV. The outlet functions normally for everything else it's used for. The extension cable is 80ft and does have a couple places that I've hard to wrap electrical tape around because of wear.

3. To word what I originally said a little better, when I plugged it into the GFCI outlet outside of my house it tripped the outlet immediately. When I plugged it into the non GFCI outlet inside of my house and tried to turn any switch on at the breaker in the RV it either didn't work or it flipped the breaker in the RV. I get no response at all either way out of my AC, fridge, or inside lights.


Hopefully I answered those enough to offer additional assistance.

If this continues to not work, am I able to run at least the AC and lights off of the 12V?

Thank you

You answered your own problem (red). The cord is providing the ground fault.

Most likely enough leakage with the abrasion in the cord in the grass would cause a GFCI to trip like it suppose to. Adding leakage from the RV itself would cause more.

[Tom48]

NO A/C on 12 volt everything 12 volt. Usually the lights, water pump and the Carbonmonoxide, propane and smoke detectors But to do that for very long, you need to be able to charge the batteries. Start with that cord! IS it the cord the seller used for the demo? OR is it your old cord that was perhaps cross wired under one of those tape patches. That is where I would start. Klein Tools Receptacle Tester-RT100 - The Home Depot one of these from any hardware, radio shack etc. Check the polarity of the power at the end of the cord. Not likely two outlets in your house, both wrong so must be that cord.

[5picker]

Thanks for the updated info. It is going to be REALLY difficult for us to diagnose your problem because so much of what you say simply doesn't make sense.

I agree that your extension cord (with its frayed/repaired spots) could be the culprit as to why the GFCI would be tripping but that cord's condition wouldn't cause the breakers in your R/V's box to trip. If the cord was shorted out, it would cause the house breaker to trip that feeds the outlet you are plugging the cord into.

Have you plugged something else into the outlet you are trying to plug the R/V into?
A light or a fan, or anything to be absolutely sure the outlet's circuit is OK?

You mentioned once you plugged into the non-GFCI you could flip a few breakers on in the R/V but others would trip as soon as you tried. What were those breakers labeled? If a breaker in your R/V trips it is because it is protecting a circuit inside your R/V NOT anything that is feeding it. Are you sure you didn't plug something, anything into a receptacle in the camper you are not thinking about that could be bad and causing the problem?

I simply can't believe the entire wiring went bad in the R/V all at one time. Each breaker protects various things. Turn one on (leave all the others off) and check if the things on that circuit work. If they do, turn another on and check. If you can't get any of them to stay on without tripping, you'll likely need to call an electrician to start checking internal wiring in the R/V.

[Krawler]

I had a frayed and patched extension cord that would work for power tools, but would kick the breaker every time I try to plug in the engine heater on my truck.

My guess is the patchwork and the length of the cord is your problem. Are you using a regular extension cord, or RV extension cord? If you are using a regular extension cord, I would suggest getting a couple of RV 10 gauge cords.


Jim

[Witch Doctor]

Just buy a new extension cord. make sure it's 20 amp. Also by the way you shouldn't plug into another gfi. You could have a wire shorting out and tripping the GFI. by your description of your extension cord.

[meganjoe]

Originally Posted by DDC

The rv has GFI's so you don't plug into another GFI, it will not work, so make sure you are not plugging into one that is also being fed from anotherGFI. Hope this helps.

Not sure about that.. I can't tell you how many times I've plugged into an outside GFCI recept and it's worked fine...

Joe

[meganjoe]

Originally Posted by gljurczyk

Just buy a new extension cord. make sure it's 20 amp. Also by the way you shouldn't plug into another gfi. You could have a wire shorting out and tripping the GFI. by your description of your extension cord.

If he has a wire shorting out it will trip anyway...

GFCI's detect a leak in voltage.. If everything is in good working order it should not matter if it's GFCI or not..

I may be wrong ...

Joe

[ScottBrownstein]

although this sounds a little like "who is on first" to me.

First off, an 80 foot extension cord with numerous taped sections sounds like, even if it worked, something you should replace if you are going to continue to connect to the house in the future. A nice 12 gauge cord will set you back but that long a run if you don't have 12GA and you need an 80to 100 foot run, it won't leave much at the RV end if you don't. Even if you do, that is a very long run for an 110 volt line.

As others have already said, try not to use a GFI outlet on the house since they will trip on a setup like you are talking about for little reason. If the GFI in the house is old, it might just trip while you are looking at it, besides with an 80 foot cord...who knows. RVs are not designed to require GFIs as they have their own for specific locations (kitchen, bath, basement...etc.)

Plug the RV into a regular outlet and turn off everything besides the main breaker. I am concerned that you said that you were tripping breakers in the RV panel itself as that would indicate either an incorrect wiring of the house plug, the cord or an adapter or something within the rv itself, or a voltage so low at the rv with your setup that the microwave or something won't work at the low voltage and is overloading things.

Bottom line is that with a 80 foot run(even 12Ga) and a regular outlet you can run some lights, your power converter to charge your batteries and MAYBE your reefer, but not much else and now way anything like the AC. If you want to do that you need to get closer to the house, get a heavy duty cord and use a really good outlet. I would even be concerned if you had a verified 20 AMP outlet on the house.

If you try to use the AC the voltage will drop and you might even fry the compressor.

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by meganjoe

Not sure about that.. I can't tell you how many times I've plugged into an outside GFCI recept and it's worked fine...



Joe

All the outlets in my garage and on my porches are on GFCI loops because of the possibility of water intrusion. Like Joe says, I can't tell you how many times I've plugged my 50amp trailer into one of these 15amp outlets and have never tripped a GFCI or a breaker in the house or in the trailer. I do NOT attempt any heavy 110v usage... no A/C, no water heater , no microwave, no hair dryer -- just the refrigerator and the converter for any and all lights and possibly battery charger.

It is incorrect to say that one cannot use a GFCI outlet since the trailer has internal GFCIs since I do it while I'm loading for every trip. It is incorrect to say you must use a 20amp outlet for these 12v features. I don't have 20amp outlets and all is well. I've used 100' 14 awg extensions, 50' 14 awg extensions and 50' 12 awg extensions. However, to repeat, I DO NOT run heavy 110v stuff. I have no tape on any of my cords nor any burned/melted ends, etc.


Sent (I think)

[Mr. Dan]

Is there any update on this issue?
Was it a bad extension cord with water getting into a cut in the insulation, etc.?

[jch2122]

Originally Posted by Mr. Dan

Is there any update on this issue?
Was it a bad extension cord with water getting into a cut in the insulation, etc.?

No, I'm not entirely sure what the overall issue was, but the got into the breaker box and started looking around and noticed that the wire going from the converter to the fridge breaker was spliced off to something else. I removed the splice and everything turned on, except for 4 power outlets don't work. I don't know what it was spliced to, as I didn't trace it, but it seemed to be most of the issue. I'll have to do some more work to figure out where it was going and why, but I'm content with it working for now.

[meganjoe]

Sounds like you've narrowed it down.. now you have to pull those devices out and do some real troubleshooting.. If they are the kind that crimp the wires instead of using a screw they can be a pain.. Let us know what you have..

Joe

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by jch2122

No, I'm not entirely sure what the overall issue was, but the got into the breaker box and started looking around and noticed that the wire going from the converter to the fridge breaker was spliced off to something else. I removed the splice and everything turned on, except for 4 power outlets don't work. I don't know what it was spliced to, as I didn't trace it, but it seemed to be most of the issue. I'll have to do some more work to figure out where it was going and why, but I'm content with it working for now.

Hey, thanks for the update.


Sent (I think)