No power when connected to Shore

EHalpern · 01-19-2014, 09:52 PM

Hello,
No power when connected to shore . The 12V works off the Battery which are new. No fuses blown all GFI outlets pressed to reset. A/C doesn't work, Microwave doesn't power up, or none of the outlets have power. I used a home outlet tester and it showed "open hot" (I have no clue).

Recap:
power source is good
All fuses are good
Battery is new 1day old

what is not working:
power outlets on trailer
A/C
Microwave

Frig works but on 12v and gas only

My gut is telling me the converter is shot.

looking for any feed back
Thanks
Eric

**wmtire** · 01-19-2014, 10:31 PM

The most obvious place to start is with the outlet at the power pedestal.

1. What are you plugged into for shore power, and have you confirmed power at the pedestal/outlet first (ie breakers on). Are you using a multi-tester?
2. Are you using any adapters (ie 30 amp to 15 amp)?
3. Have you checked the main breaker in your RV to see if it is turned on?
4. Do you have a detachable power cord, and are you sure it is attached correctly (ie twistlocked)?
5. Have you replaced any ends on your RV power cord?
6. Do you own and/or can operate a volt meter (aka multi tester)

onetonford · 01-19-2014, 10:36 PM

Converter is not for 120v it is for 12v and charging batterys I doubt it is bad on my trailer yours also you have breakers for the 120v system I would check there first.

EHalpern · 01-19-2014, 10:41 PM

shore power check was at the camp site and at home both confirmed power.
no adapters
no modified cords
all breakers were checked and in the on position
check the power cord at least 4 times to make sure connection was correct.

side note: when connected to shore at my home we had a couple of nights where electricity went off and on several times. May be to cause to my problem.

wrvond · 01-19-2014, 10:41 PM

You may find that your battery is not charging. Having 12vdc available with a brand new battery is misleading. Check to ensure you have 110 at the power pedestal then at the junction box where the shore power cable connects to the camper, then at the breaker panel input.

**wmtire** · 01-19-2014, 10:43 PM

Is your RV of the 30 amp (3 prong cord) or 50 amp (4 prong cord) variety?

What exactly did you plug into at your house? Keeping fingers crossed it's not what I think.

onetonford · 01-19-2014, 10:51 PM

Sounds like a loose connection I would unplug it and check at the twist lock on camper then where the main wire to breakers comes into it I would not use the trailer until this issue is fixed because it could turn into a fire hazard. Bad main breaker is also possible.

EHalpern · 01-19-2014, 10:51 PM

30 amp plugged in to a breaker 120 set just for it. Also plugged in at the campground this weekend where we noticed power was not working correctly.

**wmtire** · 01-19-2014, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EHalpern

30 amp plugged in to a breaker 120 set just for it. Also plugged in at the campground this weekend where we noticed power was not working correctly.

Are you absolutely positive this 30 amp outlet at your house is wired for 120 volts and not 220/240 volts?

The reason I am asking, is we have seen many professional electricians miswire these outlets, mistakingly thinking they are 220/240 volts. When you plug into a 220/240 volt outlet...........it usually ruins your converter, television and microwave right off the bat.

The following site has lot's of useful info concerning this:

http://www.myrv.us/electric/index.htm

That's also another reason I asked if you own and can use a voltmeter/multi tester to verify?

EHalpern · 01-19-2014, 11:11 PM

Was wired correctly. It's been plugged and working for the past 8months perfectly.
I'm certain the power outage had something to do with it. Most likely gonna suck it up and have a mobile rv repair guy come out and solve my problem in 15min and charge my out the wazoo...

**wmtire** · 01-19-2014, 11:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EHalpern

Was wired correctly. It's been plugged and working for the past 8months perfectly.

Good deal.

litgrep · 01-19-2014, 11:55 PM

If you have power at the rv hookup, it's down to plug, cable, wiring in coach or main circuit breaker in the rv. If you power was going on and off I'd look hard at the plug. The prongs take a lot of abuse.

iceblaze580 · 01-20-2014, 09:31 AM

Did a gfci outlet trip by any chance

elind · 01-20-2014, 10:02 AM

You might try turning off all the 120 volt breakers and turn on one at a time. If it trips then that could be a bad circuit. If doesn't trip, test it to see what powers up. Test each breaker one at a time to see what works.

rattleNsmoke · 01-20-2014, 10:13 AM

Excellent idea starting your search from the pedestal out. With your meter, make sure you have electrical power on the other end of the cord. If so, I would take the cover off the elec panel and CAREFULLY test the exposed cable leads into the back of the breaker to see if you have power going in. From there it's a matter of checking on down the line(s).

David 01 · 01-20-2014, 11:14 AM

had a similar issue, drove me nuts, some stuff worked some didn't. turns out it was the GFI on the outlet outside the Trailer that got wet. Then I learned it's kinda common. I replaced that GFI cause it was no good any more, reselaed around the outlet and Bingo no more issues!

Good luck please post your resolution to the problem se can all learn something!

Dave

EHalpern · 01-20-2014, 02:04 PM

Issue resolved:

Disconneted from shore and used multimeter to test post power (120v)
Checked rv plug for continuity. Replaced new rv plug/cord.
Check battery have 12.9v.
Connected new plug back to shore power and TT.
Walked inside and pressed all the GFCI outlets which didnt even light this weekend.
Now ALL items work A/C, Microwave, 120V in all outlets.

So I will say it was a faulty plug/cord/connection that caused my issue.

Thank you all for the input!!

avolnek · 01-20-2014, 03:52 PM

This is going to sound like a lie but just stumbling upon this thread I was literally getting ready to suggest you measure the voltage at the end of the cord with it plugged in to see if it was the cord that was the problem!

Glad you found your solution!

**wmtire** · 01-20-2014, 04:00 PM

The detachable twistlock cords are known to go bad if you don't do the final twist, when attaching them. The connections will arc just a little, up until it finally can't make connection anymore due to the connections being burned. I think Herk has some good pics of this.

Not saying that's what happened in your situation, but pointing it out for future readers.

Glad you got it solved.

You may also like: