Electrical Schematics

[KristenDavid208]

Where can I find the complete ELECTRICAL schematics for a 2011 Forest River Flagstaff T12 RB hard sided pop-up camper? Thanks! The email links of the Forest River website are not working....

[gbaldwin]

in your dreams I am afraid.

[pgandw]

Originally Posted by KristenDavid208

Where can I find the complete ELECTRICAL schematics for a 2011 Forest River Flagstaff T12 RB hard sided pop-up camper? Thanks! The email links of the Forest River website are not working....

It's not going to happen. However, the early A-frames were pretty simple electrically unless stuff was added by the dealer or a past owner.

There are a maximum of 6 AC circuits and a max of 6 circuit breakers. Chances are only 4 or 5 are used.

1) 30 amp - incoming from the shore power.
2) converter - may be combined with another appliance, like the fridge AC
3) Cool Cat air conditioner - will not run without DC to the thermostat, but AC powers it.
4) fridge AC
5) microwave
6) AC outlets

On the DC side, there are also 6 circuits, 7 fuses in the WFCO 8735 DC panel and converter. One of the fuses (30A or 40A) is for reverse polarity. One fuse will go to the fold down switch and feed any item that is mounted on the roof. One fuse will feed the DC side of the fridge, and another is for the water pump.

After that, it depends on the electrician who wired your unit. If you are lucky, the inside of the converter cover has a label and a color code, and the actual wiring matches the labels (in my cases, it did).

For additional information on DC circuits, see the 2 stickies at the top of the A-frame forum.

Fred W
2019 Flagstaff T21TBHW A-frame. I replaced the converter and panels with a PD 4135, so got to transfer circuits and rewire as desired.
2008 Hyundai Entourage minivan
camping Colorado and adjacent states one weekend at a time

[KristenDavid208]

Thanks. We think we have a broken wire in one of the walls. When we switch to DC the breaker pops. We have an electrician who works on RVs check it out. He said we need the electrical schematics or its a needle in a haystack. Bummer...looks like no more boon-docking.

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by KristenDavid208

Thanks. We think we have a broken wire in one of the walls. When we switch to DC the breaker pops. We have an electrician who works on RVs check it out. He said we need the electrical schematics or its a needle in a haystack. Bummer...looks like no more boon-docking.

Which breaker pops?

[KristenDavid208]

According to my husband its a 20amp, yellow color, that goes to inside/outside lights and stereo. We have traced back every wire the correlates but cant find anything.

[pgandw]

There are very, very few wires in the wall of an A-frame (or PUP), and NONE are buried in the wall - unless they made A-frames very differently in 2011 than in 2014. If you pull the microwave out, you will expose all the wiring in that area of the A-frame - it all sits in the cabinet behind the microwave. From the microwave cabinet, wiring either goes under the floor, or on the floor in the forward part of the bed area to get across to the distribution panel on the other side.

The amber porch light, stereo, white tongue light, and night light (if you have one), are usually all on the same circuit. The porch light and stereo wiring is behind the microwave inside the cabinet. The thermostat (assuming you have a Dometic electronic thermostat) is usually on a separate fuse, and will have separate wires running to it. My thermostat (in both A-frames) was installed in the microwave cabinet.

There is a wire pair that goes to the left front corner, where there is a plunger switch that turns off power to anything on the roof (interior lights, vent fan) when the roof is lowered. The vent fan and interior lights will be on the same circuit, and usually separate from anything else.

When you enter the Forest River A-frame forum, there are 2 "sticky" posts at the top that have a lot of information about A-frame wiring.


There is only 1 DC circuit breaker - that is outside on the tongue wired between the battery and the converter/distribution panel.

If an AC breaker is popping when you plug in the camper, that's an AC problem, not a DC problem. Have you got a battery? Is it tested and charged? What is the DC voltage reading when you unplug from shore power.

Fred W
now: 2019 Flagstaff T21TBHW A-frame
then: 2014 Rockwood A122 A-frame
2008 Hyundai Entourage minivan
camping Colorado and adjacent states one weekend at a time

[KristenDavid208]

When unplugged from shore power, the battery reads 11.74 on the voltage meter. The battery is one-month old.

[pgandw]

Unfortunately, you are not giving us enough information to understand what is happening.

These are my assumptions, based on what you have posted. These could be way off base. Please correct me where I'm wrong.
- you bought a used 2011 A-frame a month or 2 ago.
- you replaced the battery, which is now almost dead (11.74V)
- under some conditions, a circuit breaker pops
- when you bought the A-frame, seller did not demonstrate everything working to you.

I'm not sure where to start to help you. But this is where you should start - tires, wheels, and brakes.
- look up the date code on the tires. If they are older than 2014, you need to replace them - sooner rather than later. A blowout on the highway will not be fun. Carlisle is the only name brand that makes D load rating 13" tires (what you need) that will fit your A-frame for a reasonable price. Replace the spare too if it's out of date. I suspect the A-frame sat for a while before the seller got rid of it, and it has the original tires. Replace the spare tire at the same time.

- jack the trailer - one side at a time is fine, but don't put the jack under the axle itself. Spin the wheels, checking to see if the bearings are in decent shape. There may be a slight drag if the brakes are properly adjusted. If you have a larger tow vehicle, brake adjustment isn't as urgent as other things. If the wheel wobbles or makes strange noises, you need to replace and lube the wheel bearings.

If you have done these things or had them done since you purchased the trailer, I apologize.

Moving back to the electrical, the 11.74V is a nearly dead battery. At 50%, a battery reads about 12.1V, and 12.7 when fully charged. With the camper plugged in, you should see about 13.6V at the battery if everything is working correctly. However, the WFCO OEM converter may not bring a battery back from that low a charge.

If that's the case, remove the battery, and have it charged separately.

With the battery removed, and the camper plugged in, measure the voltage at the battery terminals. Again, expect to see around 13.6V. Anything wildly different means the converter is not working correctly.

For further trouble-shooting, we need to know what "pops" when you plug in, or disconnect. Also, what is working and not working, both when plugged in and when not plugged in.

hope this helps
Fred W
now: 2019 Flagstaff T21TBHW A-frame
prev: 2014 Rockwood A122 A-frame

[KristenDavid208]

Sorry - let me explain better...

We bought a 2011 FR in 2011 -- We are original owners. On our cross-country trek we started having issues with the yellow 20 amp fuse popping when on DC (when we are plugged into shore line there are no issues). The Yellow fuse goes to inside/outside lights and stereo. All other components you identified previously we had checked out with a multimeter. And all are fine.

The exceptions are that there are "some" wires in the wall, as well as under carriage, and some that run to the roof. What I am seeking is the actual manufacturer schematics as that will show the routing for that particular 20amp line.

Does that make sense?

[rbq]

Just a quick history here. When tent camping in Yellowstone a long time ago we had a fuse blow on our station wagon. Couldn't figure what was wrong. Took it to shop in the park. They eventually found that one of the light bulbs was shorted out & causing the fuse to blow. You might want to remove all of the bulbs that are on the circuit that keeps blowing. If the fuse does not blow then you can assume it may not be the wiring. A 2011 trailer probably has old incandescent bulbs and not LED's unless you have replaced them. If the fuse doesn't blow, then put one bulb in at a time. Continue until the fuse blows and you can then determine which part of the line the problem is on or the bulb needs to be replaced. Continue until you have checked all of them. On a pop up or A frame there can't be that many to check. My first guess would be the outside light.

[KristenDavid208]

Now that's one we havent checked yet....thanks

[Scrapper]

You won't find "actual manufacturer schematics" as two of the same model with the same options coming off the assembly line, one behind the other, will not be wired the same.

[rbq]

In reading back through the posts you said that everything works when plugged into shore power, but when you go off of battery then the fuse blows. All of the electrical lights in and outside the trailer & the radio are all 12 volt with power coming through the converter to convert the 120 to 12 volt. Only 120 should be power outlets in the trailer that only work when hooked to shore power. In thinking this through you probably don't have a wiring issue, but rather have either a battery issue (if you are only showing 11 volts) or you have a converter issue. Recharge the battery off of the trailer & check the voltage. Should be 12.6 volts or above. Battery could be beyond use & you will need a new one. You probably also have WFCO converter. If there is a question about the converter call WFCO at 1.877.294.8997. They should be able to assist you to determine if your converter has gone bad, but I would check the battery first. Also make sure that the battery is connected correctly.

[KristenDavid208]

You're awesome, RBG. Thank you so very much for spending so much time helping us. I keep forwarding your messaged to my husband who is outside checking everything you are sending. Points in heaven for you...if you are around Yellowstone, message me. We are about 15 minutes from West for the summer and fall.

[pgandw]

Originally Posted by KristenDavid208

Sorry - let me explain better...

We bought a 2011 FR in 2011 -- We are original owners. On our cross-country trek we started having issues with the yellow 20 amp fuse popping when on DC (when we are plugged into shore line there are no issues). The Yellow fuse goes to inside/outside lights and stereo. All other components you identified previously we had checked out with a multimeter. And all are fine.

The exceptions are that there are "some" wires in the wall, as well as under carriage, and some that run to the roof. What I am seeking is the actual manufacturer schematics as that will show the routing for that particular 20amp line.

Does that make sense?

I sincerely apologize for guessing wrong about your situation.

Makes a lot of sense - except for why the fuse blows on battery, but not on converter. Even if the converter was not working (and it may not be), the battery should be continuing to furnish power to make the fuse pop (which it does when you are unplugged) whether you are plugged in or not.

The converter does not have a switch. It comes on whenever the camper is plugged in, and supplies 13.7V to your 12V system, which powers all your 12V stuff, and recharges the battery. The battery takes over whenever the camper is unplugged, supplying 12.0 to 12.7V depending on state of charge. Which makes your short circuit on battery power only a mystery.

I'm going to take a wild guess (could be wrong, but nothing else makes any sense) that the propane/CO detector is where your problem is. Your description of what your yellow fuse powers (the color stands for 20A, not anything else) matches what I called "all others" on the fuse panel. On my A-frames, the porch light, the tongue light, the night light (which you may not have), the stereo, and the propane/CO detector were all powered by this fuse/circuit.

The propane/CO detector has an advertised lifespan of 5 years to match the expected lifetime of the CO detector element. When working correctly, it also serves as a low voltage detector, and will alarm with low voltage (generally starts sounding at 10.5 - 11.5 volts). They have been known to overly sensitive and/or fail early.

If you have not changed out the CO/propane detector, unhook or cut the 2 wires going to it, make sure they are not touching, and see if the problem persists. In my 2014 A122, the CO/propane detector is next to the converter, and the wiring is accessed by removing the left side dinette seat.

I pray you have a great trip despite this issue.
Fred W

[sundancer330]

Send off an email to FR and ask for the electrical drawings along with your VIN. I did this when mine was new and needed to know if there was a wire buried in the roof for a fan, they emailed back the drawings.

[cpttimerstraint]

Originally Posted by sundancer330

Send off an email to FR and ask for the electrical drawings along with your VIN. I did this when mine was new and needed to know if there was a wire buried in the roof for a fan, they emailed back the drawings.

They don't have these for aframes. The old warranty rep stuff that would make his job a lot easier, but they don't have them.

[KristenDavid208]

Finally heard back from Forest River....as expected and as everyone said...NO SCHEMATICS are available. How does that even happen?!?! GRRR.

[KristenDavid208]

You’re not gonna believe this one...we think it’s the pig tail!!!!

We could not get the schematics but we were able to talk to the technical manager at Forest River.

We bought a new pig tail from amazon...and it’s working! Fingers crossed.....