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Old 05-21-2013, 07:16 AM   #1
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Arctic pack power is out

Regarding 2013 3170DS...

I noticed that at the control panel over the fridge, flipping the arctic pack switch no longer lights the switch. I took off the panel, just above the fridge, and verified 12 volts is not coming into the switch.

I checked all the fuses at the bed where the electrical center is at and they are all good.

So, anyone know how the arctic pack is wired in the 3170DS? I think the arctic pack power cable is a white/yellow cable. Before I tear this thing apart I'd like some hints. I assume the cable is continuous from the light switch to where it draws power from. In other words, I assume there is no connection done to lengthen the cable internally in a wall or cavity that I do not have access to. That could be tricky to fix.

Maybe this is a question for Bryan to float up to engineering?

Thanks everyone
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Old 05-21-2013, 07:41 AM   #2
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Try removing the electrical center from the wall. There might be one (or several) "pigtail" fuses back there. They add them when they run out of circuits in the power center.
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Old 05-22-2013, 01:28 PM   #3
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Could also be voltage drop. Not 100% sure but if the batteries drop below a certain voltage I think it cuts out power to prevent draining the batteries really low. Not sure where the cut off is but I'd guess before that switch.
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Old 05-22-2013, 06:49 PM   #4
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Factory Rep on the tour told me they won't come on if above 40*. That is what mine does. Light goes off when temp is above 40.
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Old 05-22-2013, 06:54 PM   #5
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yes, that too. Plus you have the fan forced heat...frankly I would rely on that before I would the pad heaters. The pad heaters ONLY heat the black and gray tanks. Whereas the fan forced heater shoots right into the cavity where the water pump, water filter and tanks are.

If it gets cold...I wouldn't be worried about the black/gray tank...you can put pink antifreeze in there.

In fact, when we enclosed the tanks, we were going to take the pad heaters off and not even option them...but people sure do love the term "arctic pac". So by dealer & consumer demand, we left it on there.
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Old 05-22-2013, 09:14 PM   #6
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The "O" in ofranco is out of town right now, but it was definitely over 40degrees when he tested it. Hopefully that's the answer
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Old 05-26-2013, 09:19 AM   #7
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follow-up

camping in VA mountains this weekend. Arrived about 2am. Hit arctic button out of curiosity and sure enough, it lit. Proving the point that you have to be at lower temps
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Old 06-03-2013, 04:21 PM   #8
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My tanks are enclosed and I still got the tank heaters. As for the water pump, my previous RV was a Sunseeker 3120 with enclosed tanks, plus arctic pak, 2011 model, and my water pump froze on me. I had to put a "light" in the compartment to unfreeze it.
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Old 06-03-2013, 09:53 PM   #9
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IMHO, the Arctic Pack is the dumbest system I ever saw. My '02 Georgetown has one and I couldn't believe how the stupid thing was set up. The heater, just on grey and black tanks, come on at 40 deg F and don't go off again until 65 Deg F. Who in hell wants to heat up the sewage tank to 65 degrees? Why isn't the potable water system protected?

When I first saw the switch, I expected something like the "Frost-stat" systems you can get for vulnerable plumbing lines in residential structures. They come on at about 34 F and go off again at around 38 F.

Since the Arctic pack thermostats are embedded in the pads and aren't adjustable, I just disconnected the entire system. We don't camp in freezing weather anyway, and the systems are drained before our "wimpy" winter sets in. In Anacortes, winter days rarely stay below 40 F and overnights rarely get below about 25, and there aren't very many where it's below 32 F for more than a couple of hours.

Additionally, I was concerned about drawing 28 amps from the house batteries (4 pads each pulling 7 amps at 12 V dc) and about the risk of so much power into a relatively small area maybe melting through the polythene tank walls.

Don't need it, don't want it - it's gone.
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