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Old 11-16-2018, 04:34 PM   #1
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12 volt. Cigarette lighter adapter

The television in the bedroom of our 2018 3051S Forest River Forester suddenly stopped working. The fuse worked bedroom TV seems to be fine, but the cigarette lighter adapter that the tv plugs into is not working. Anyone have any ideas on troubleshooting this problem?
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Old 11-16-2018, 05:53 PM   #2
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It sounds like you're saying your 12 volt outlet in the cabinet stopped working. If so, the fuse would be in the panel below the refrigerator.

Does the TV work if you plug the 12 volt cord into a different 12 volt outlet? If not, there may be a blown fuse in the TV cord end (the tip should unscrew, revealing the fuse.) If this fuse is blown, replace it with the same amperage fuse.
Ours has a red light that verifies 12 volts to the tv when both fuses are good.
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Old 11-16-2018, 05:58 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kirk S View Post
It sounds like you're saying your 12 volt outlet in the cabinet stopped working. If so, the fuse would be in the panel below the refrigerator.

Does the TV work if you plug the 12 volt cord into a different 12 volt outlet? If not, there may be a blown fuse in the TV cord end (the tip should unscrew, revealing the fuse.)
Ours has a red light that verifies 12 volts to the tv when both fuses are good.
Hi Kirk, we did check the fuse under the refrigerator, it is showing as good, we have checked, and it definitely the outlet not the tv.
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Old 11-16-2018, 07:47 PM   #4
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My bedroom tv (12v outlet) on my 2801 suddenly stopped working and I was scratching my head until I got a signal tracer and found the outlet was wired to the bathroom light switch. It only worked when the bathroom light was on lol. I fixed that pretty quick.
I don’t imagine that is your problem but you never know [emoji12].
I would pull the plate of the outlet and test the wires for power those outlets can go bad pretty easily and are easy to replace.
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Old 11-17-2018, 01:57 PM   #5
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Try this

Most of those 12 plugs have a built in fuse. Try unscrewing it. If a fuse falls out that might be your problem
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Old 11-17-2018, 03:22 PM   #6
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Get a multimeter if you don't have one. (Inexpensive is fine...most tests are yes/no tests. You have voltage or you don't. You have continuity or you don't.)
Set it on DC Volts.
Use the probes to test the voltage in the socket. The center should be positive (red) and the barrel on the side should be negative (black). Make sure the probes are making good contact with both socket contacts. A little caution is in order, because if you short the socket with the probes, it may blow the fuse....but then you'll know the socket works.

If you read 12 volts, the issue could be the connection between the 12-volt TV plug and the socket. These 12-volt cigarette-lighter style sockets are not the best idea. In automotive uses, there are many situations where the plug and socket don't mate properly, and the power is intermittent or just not there...even though the socket is live. I have an excellent USB charger in my truck that must be coaxed to make a solid connection. It has a pilot light that betrays it loosing contact, and I have to reseat it somewhat regularly. Sometimes it's necessary to strengthen the bond between the negative pole on the plug and the negative pole in the socket (barrel) by bending the tang on the plug. If the negative pole on the plug is a kind of spring-loaded button, some electronics cleaner may improve the connection.

Since this is just a simple socket, failure is possible but unlikely. Of course the socket can be replaced, but I'd exhaust all other options first. If you can remove the socket easily, do so and examine the wires connecting to the socket. Maybe one of the wires has a "cold" (bad) solder joint. Hitting the connections with a soldering iron may do the trick. If nothing else, you'll know how to replace it. Sometimes just being a bit ham-fisted and pushing hard while twisting the plug does the job.

About that fuse....so, the fact is, many people struggle to get a true reading on a blown 12 volt spade (automotive-type) fuse. The best way to read the fuse is to pull it and shine a flashlight through it from behind. I once solved a camp neighbor's electrical problem that way. He was absolutely sure the fuse was fine, but it wasn't. Shining the flashlight from behind is the most reliable way to verify that it's not blown. An alternative is a continuity test (ohms tests) with the multimeter.

P.S. on the fuse...check them all. My camp neighbor was also absolutely certain that his failed circuit was on a particular fuse. It was not. It was on another fuse. Check all of them. It takes only about 60 seconds to do the whole panel.

This system is super simple. Aside from the mystery fuse in the TV plug that others mentioned and you checked, you can see from the e-Trailer items that some sockets also come with a fuse...nothing like triple redundancy! Perhaps there is another in-line fuse that failed.

In the end, if the fuse in the panel is good and the socket is dead, and if it's possible to do this easily, cut the wires that connect to the socket in such as way that you can reconnect them easily with a crimp tool. It would be very unfortunate, but it's possible that the wire between the panel and the socket is damaged. Use the multimeter to test the voltage on the wires feeding the socket. Before you perform this test, pull the fuse on the circuit so you don't cause a short when you cut the wires. Replace the fuse, perform the test, and then pull the fuse before you splice the wires back to the socket.

In my rig, I had a screw driven thru the floor into the fill pipe for my fresh tank. I also found a cabinet screw driven straight into a 120 volt wire...then backed out again and left there! Don't rule out anything, because this is the simplest of circuits and having the socket fail is possible but very unlikely.
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Old 11-17-2018, 07:44 PM   #7
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I would suggest two things. Remove the male TV plug from the socket, then insert it back in in a back/forth twisting motion. If it is fully seat and it does not function, pull it back slightly. We have a GPS that wants to act funcky occasionally. Also, no one has mentioned checking the ground which is just as important as the positive wire. If the fuses are good, it may be a ground issue.
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Old 11-18-2018, 09:13 AM   #8
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I would suggest two things. Remove the male TV plug from the socket, then insert it back in in a back/forth twisting motion. If it is fully seat and it does not function, pull it back slightly. We have a GPS that wants to act funcky occasionally. Also, no one has mentioned checking the ground which is just as important as the positive wire. If the fuses are good, it may be a ground issue.
Our LV TV does that,,, twist & turn,,, making grounds make good contact !!!
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Old 11-24-2018, 08:50 AM   #9
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So, we did discover the problem, the ground wire was loose, when we got the outlet cover off of the wall, the hole for the outlet looked like a madman went crazy with a Drexel. So disappointed with the workmanship in the unit.
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Old 11-24-2018, 08:57 AM   #10
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Thanks for the follow up!! So often we never know what the "rest of the story" was.
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Old 11-24-2018, 09:21 AM   #11
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Thanks for the follow up!! So often we never know what the "rest of the story" was.
That's a Big 10-4 Dan !!!

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Old 11-24-2018, 09:22 AM   #12
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We are taking up a collection of $$$ so we can buy Forest River some hole saws. Then they won't use a screw driver or whatever is handy to punch holes.
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Old 11-24-2018, 09:27 AM   #13
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We are taking up a collection of $$$ so we can buy Forest River some hole saws. Then they won't use a screw driver or whatever is handy to punch holes.
They would not use them,,, takes to long !!!
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