Possible Converter Failure

[2nd House]

Howdy!
2008 Cherokee Wolf Pack, Toy Hauler

So, it would appear my converter has stopped. I have not been to the camper for about 5 months. When I arrived, an interesting smell hit me as I entered. The refrigerator was not turned on, and the inside (of the refrigerator) was molded…I could not eat my Jimmy Dean sausage patties...
There are no 12 volt lights working, however, the AC outlets are reading good voltage, all 120 volt appliances work.

This is the typical WFCO 55 amp unit (non-plug in) with lower section underneath the fuses. 8995 I think
Here’s what I’ve checked:
1. The battery is good (deep cycle Interstate)
2. I removed the two screws, and slid out the lower section, and checked AC voltage at the PCB which is reading good voltage at 119 volts.
3. I checked DC voltage at the battery cables, at the other end of the circuit board, this is only reading 3.74 volts DC.

It would seem to me, that if the converter is getting good AC voltage, then the battery cables area should be reading, I’m guessing, 12 – 13+ volts.
Is the converter bad?

Thanks for the help

[2nd House]

Correction, 8955, not 8995...I just looked

[Flybob]

Please clarify. You said the 12V lights are not working but the battery is good? If the converter died and the fridge was on and you were away that long, you have killed the battery. When you measured the output of the converter, was everything disconnected? Do you have a way to determine if shore power was off for an extended period of time while you were away?

[2nd House]

While away, the camper remained connected to shore power, shore power never went off, because I receive a notification from the electric company. I believe the problem was fairly recent. The battery voltage is good, and I removed the battery and hooked up to a charger, the charger registered over 80% charge, and the battery charged to 100% quickly.
When I measured voltage at the converter, shore power was hooked up, and 120 volts to all circuit breakers and the input at the converter are good, all reading 120 volts. Measuring output 12v voltage at the converter (to battery), shore power remains on, however, battery is disconnected, and only 3.74 volts DC is reading. So, only about 3.74 volts was getting to the battery to recharge, while I was away. Because the battery was still in good condition, I believe the converter failure was very recent, or the battery would be drained. Additionally, all 12 volt fuses are good.
So that is another question, if shore power is disconnected, and I have a good battery, then why do my lights not work? Is there a circuit or some type of transfer circuitry, within the converter that moves to battery only when shore power is disconnected?

All fuses are good, so I should have lights as if I were boondocking...but I don't.

Again, back to troubleshooting. Battery good and disconnected, shore power on, converter 120volt input reads 120 volt. Battery output reads 3.74 volts.
Thanks for the help

[pgandw]

Originally Posted by 2nd House

While away, the camper remained connected to shore power, shore power never went off, because I receive a notification from the electric company. I believe the problem was fairly recent. The battery voltage is good, and I removed the battery and hooked up to a charger, the charger registered over 80% charge, and the battery charged to 100% quickly.
When I measured voltage at the converter, shore power was hooked up, and 120 volts to all circuit breakers and the input at the converter are good, all reading 120 volts. Measuring output 12v voltage at the converter (to battery), shore power remains on, however, battery is disconnected, and only 3.74 volts DC is reading. So, only about 3.74 volts was getting to the battery to recharge, while I was away. Because the battery was still in good condition, I believe the converter failure was very recent, or the battery would be drained. Additionally, all 12 volt fuses are good.
So that is another question, if shore power is disconnected, and I have a good battery, then why do my lights not work? Is there a circuit or some type of transfer circuitry, within the converter that moves to battery only when shore power is disconnected?

All fuses are good, so I should have lights as if I were boondocking...but I don't.

Again, back to troubleshooting. Battery good and disconnected, shore power on, converter 120volt input reads 120 volt. Battery output reads 3.74 volts.
Thanks for the help

1. When connected to shore power, the converter puts out a higher voltage than the battery, to both charge the battery and to run the camper from the converter. WFCO converter voltages are:
- bulk 14.4V (hard to catch a WFCO in bulk mode);
- normal 13.6V;
- trickle 13.2V (only after 44 hours of stability in normal mode)

2. When not connected to shore power, battery supplies power to 12V system because converter is turned off (0 volts).
- 12.7V battery full
- 12.1V battery 50%

3. If battery is good, and camper unplugged, there are fuses power has to flow through. In the fuse panel, including the two 30 or 40 amp "reverse current" fuses, and a resettable 12V DC circuit breaker usually mounted on the trailer tongue. Items like slide-out motors and electric tongue jacks are wired separately from the main fuse panel and have in-line fuses somewhere in the wiring. You may/may not also have a disconnect switch which will prevent power getting to the main fuse panel.

4. The battery charging to 100% "quickly" is not a sign of good battery health. It should take at least 3 hours to get from 80% to 100%. The other problem is that battery voltage takes a couple of hours after being taken off the charger to settle down to it's true value. Reading the specific gravity of the cells is a much more accurate measure of battery health.

You probably do have a bad converter. But I don't think you have a good battery either. I'm thinking your battery will indicate voltage, but the voltage drops very quickly under load (battery lost its capacity). Best check is either specific gravity of each cell or a load check at a car parts place that sells batteries.

Fred W

[2nd House]

re settable 12V DC circuit breaker usually mounted on the trailer tongue

and

You may/may not also have a disconnect switch which will prevent power getting to the main fuse panel

These may be an issue. I do have a disconnect switch. How can I test this disconnect switch?
I have not seen a re settable circuit breaker you speak of. Does it normally reside in an enclosed box?

Question:
With Shore Power hooked up, and the battery disconnected, if the converter is working correctly, I would be getting 12volts to my lights and appliances, correct? Or another way to ask. I would still have lights even with a dead battery because the converter is supplying voltage...right?

[2nd House]

not that I think about it, you speak of a battery disconnect, and I was thinking of the pull disconnect, which I believe applies the trailer breaks if the trailer were to come unhooked from the tow vehicle. So, my camper does not have a typical battery disconnect to disconnect batteries from the camper for camper / battery storage.
So, onto the resettable circuit breaker...which I've not seen.
thanks for the help

[dward51]

If I'm reading what you are saying correctly.....

With battery disconnected, and converter on 120v AC, you are getting 3'ish volts DC out of the converter. Correct?

If this is right, the converter is toast. WFCO converters are not the best quality product out there. Just buy a Progressive drop in upgrade model (PD4655). It uses the same converter housing and AC breaker panel you have, but replaces the WFCO converter with a much better Progressive unit and a new DC distribution/fuse panel. The Progressive is a true 4 state charger where the WFCO is only 3 and more prone to issues. The Progressive units also have a lifetime warranty, which they actually stand behind. There are a number of youtube video's showing the work involved. Take a look at a couple of them before you decide to order one.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[myredracer]

The WFCO converters are a known failure problem. Ours failed in only it's 3rd season! Until yours does, you never think it will happen to you...

We replaced our WFCO 8955 with a Progressive Dynamics converter. When you put the two converters side by side, it's obvious how much beefier the PD is.

Our WFCO died when hundreds of miles from home. Ordered a replacement from bestconverter.com and had it shipped to the next CG on our route. I also took the opportunity to upgrade to an AGM battery which I moved inside (vented) instead of being in the A-frame. The WFCO also killed the original lead acid battery. The PD converter is a perfect match for an AGM.

FWIW, I've also installed a DC voltmeter to more accurately monitor state of charge.