Co detector elect issue

[rotorhead1250]

Memorial weekend we were in the woods camping and sunday morn the carbon monoxide detector went off (4 adults and 2 dogs + heater on). In my scurry to get it to shut off I pulled the wire loose (dummy). After reconnecting the detector I was without 12 volt power?!?. No fuses were blown and the c/b weren't popped. Couldn't figure out why no power so I fired up the gen to see if I could get some power. I had 120v power so I shut the gen off and was pleased to see that 12v was restored. Does anyone know why it seemed that 12v reset itself or did I over look something. Want to figure this out incase it happens again (no, not me pulling the detector wiring loose). Thanks.

[Timex]

I can't answer your question about the electrical issue but I can about your CO sensor. (MODERATOR you can censor this if you must.)

A friend of mine had his sensor go off on 2 separate occasions. It seems, as he told/bragged(don't know which), he was having quite a time with (how you say) a gas issue....the human kind.

It has never gone off since those 2 times. Now his wife insists he go outside.

I will confess; mine has only done that once. And I had not even turned the gas bottles on!

[LadyWindrider]

CO detector won't go off with a human gas issue, but the propane detector will. The CO detector is usually mounted up near the ceiling, and may have a battery. The propane detector is mounted near the floor, and runs off the 12 battery in the camper. Since you pulled a wire loose, it was probably the propane detector. Sometimes a dog will set off the propane detector also, as will certain aerosol sprays.

[papap]

Some of us have dual detectors. CO2 and gas in one. It is mounted by the door going out camper down low.

[rotorhead1250]

Yea, this one is mounted low, below the fridge. I'm just curious to know what reset to allow the 12v power. Do these detectors trip power and after the gas dissipates it resets itself?

[LadyWindrider]

Only a guess, when you pulled the wiring loose, you caused a short that tripped the main breaker for 12 volts, out on the tongue. Could be an auto reset model, and running the genny had nothing to do with it, but only time allowed it to reset itself. You mentioned none of the c/b's were popped. The house looking circuit breakers are just that, AC voltage only. The fuses are DC voltage only. There are one or two, or more, 12 volts circuit breakers, usually somewhere under the tongue or king pin, that handle 12 volt power to the camper.

There should also be a rest button on the detector that you can push, that will shut it up for a little while.

[papap]

Do not think so. I had to remove mine completely and all it had was a hot and ground wire. All it was for is alarm only. Had to send it in for repair.