DX3 - Hall light as a nightlight?

WanderingPhoto · 08-14-2019, 07:40 PM

2018 DX3 - 37TS - Okay, I feel dumb asking this as I know I must be missing something. The hall light next to the bathroom is "dim" when off. It actually seems on purpose like a night-light, though I certainly didn't turn that on intentionally and have not seen it before. When I turn the light "on," it functions normally and is bright as ever. Turn it back off and it stays on just slightly.

What am I missing?

rskeans · 08-14-2019, 09:18 PM

Ours doesn't do that. Off is Off. Weird.

**bclemens** · 08-14-2019, 09:50 PM

LED's take very little power. So it is likely a bad light that is letting some amount of current through. I have the same thing at home with a couple of my LED bulbs...residential not 12V, but same "halo" or "glow" effect. replace the light, should be fine.

tesalu · 08-14-2019, 11:08 PM

We had similar problem light would be dim , pulled fuse panel out and found that a pin in the plug set up was loose and called Persion plex they said a little dialectic grease , plugged back together works great no more dim light

WanderingPhoto · 08-15-2019, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tesalu

We had similar problem light would be dim , pulled fuse panel out and found that a pin in the plug set up was loose and called Persion plex they said a little dialectic grease , plugged back together works great no more dim light

Thanks, two questions:

1) was the pin on the back of the panel?

2) did you have any other lights that were getting low levels of electricity?

WanderingPhoto · 08-15-2019, 05:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bclemens

LED's take very little power. So it is likely a bad light that is letting some amount of current through. I have the same thing at home with a couple of my LED bulbs...residential not 12V, but same "halo" or "glow" effect. replace the light, should be fine.

Thanks, will try that!

I just noticed the "porch light" (over the stairs) is getting very low levels of electricity as well. When I turn on the hall light, the porch light gets slightly brighter.

Could that be a switch? Or are the lights in series and the defect hall light is allowing electricity to get to the porch light?

**bclemens** · 08-15-2019, 07:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WanderingPhoto

Thanks, will try that!

I just noticed the "porch light" (over the stairs) is getting very low levels of electricity as well. When I turn on the hall light, the porch light gets slightly brighter.

Could that be a switch? Or are the lights in series and the defect hall light is allowing electricity to get to the porch light?

Very well could be a pin issue as mentioned above. A call to Precision might be able to identify where, or a dealer can take a look.

The way Multiplex works the data cable carries some power and that cable is what tells what to turn on and off. Instead or running power from home, to switch to light (like normal wiring), Multi-plex just runs power from home to light, then you use a MUCH lighter data cable, daisy chained to all the switches that tell the home base what to turn ON/Off. That reduces the big heavy power wire.

So, if a pin is loose there could be a power leak and it doesn't take very much for an LED to glow.

tesalu · 08-15-2019, 08:39 AM

Yes the pin was in the back of the panel

WanderingPhoto · 08-15-2019, 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tesalu

Yes the pin was in the back of the panel

Are you on multiplex system or the "old" standard switches?

WanderingPhoto · 08-15-2019, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bclemens

Very well could be a pin issue as mentioned above. A call to Precision might be able to identify where, or a dealer can take a look.

The way Multiplex works the data cable carries some power and that cable is what tells what to turn on and off. Instead or running power from home, to switch to light (like normal wiring), Multi-plex just runs power from home to light, then you use a MUCH lighter data cable, daisy chained to all the switches that tell the home base what to turn ON/Off. That reduces the big heavy power wire.

So, if a pin is loose there could be a power leak and it doesn't take very much for an LED to glow.

I should have clarified, I'm on the "old" switches (I'm early 2018, without multiplex). Does that change potential root cause?

tesalu · 08-15-2019, 02:58 PM

No
My rig is a 2019
I’ve got the never version

Larry-NC · 08-15-2019, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WanderingPhoto

I should have clarified, I'm on the "old" switches (I'm early 2018, without multiplex). Does that change potential root cause?

I don't understand the circuitry in a Dynamax without multiplex. If it is really just wiring and switches, the only thing that could cause this is current getting through or around the switch. If you pull the switch from the wall and remove one wire (either one), does the light go out?

If it does, first check the two wires and see if they have somehow chafed their insulation and crossed. If not, put your multimeter on ohms. The switch should read less than 1 ohm when On and off-scale (infinity, often indicated by a "1" at the left and the rest of the scale blank) when the switch is Off. If it reads a few hundred ohms when Off, the switch is defective.

If the non-multiplex Dynamax isn't separate switches and wires, then ignore this post.

rskeans · 08-15-2019, 08:30 PM

My '18 is also an older version. The hall light in question is also controlled by the entry switch panel, top row 2nd from the left. Just leaves some more possibilities for the source of the problem.

SusieR · 08-15-2019, 09:30 PM

Sounds like a small power bleed. Don't LED lights operate on those small power bits?

Quote:

Originally Posted by WanderingPhoto

2018 DX3 - 37TS - Okay, I feel dumb asking this as I know I must be missing something. The hall light next to the bathroom is "dim" when off. It actually seems on purpose like a night-light, though I certainly didn't turn that on intentionally and have not seen it before. When I turn the light "on," it functions normally and is bright as ever. Turn it back off and it stays on just slightly.

What am I missing?

Larry-NC · 08-15-2019, 09:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SusieR

Sounds like a small power bleed. Don't LED lights operate on those small power bits?

That bleed could be leakage across the switch. When it is ON, there is less than one ohm of resistance across it. When it is off, there should be millions of ohms. But if there were a manufacturing defect, or metallic contamination inside, it could be just a few hundred ohms and the light would be dim.

This is easy to diagnose. Expose the switch, disconnect it, and measure the resistance across it (in On and Off states) with your multimeter. I've spent more time typing this than it takes to do the test.

M T Pockets · 08-16-2019, 11:11 AM

I had the same issue on my 18 Force HD but mine just continued to get brighter over time. Changed the light fixture and problem solved

WanderingPhoto · 09-05-2019, 10:44 AM

Thanks for everyone's input, I now have resolution and wanted to share. After significant investigation on my own, I gave up and took it to a shop. They did a fantastic job of going thoroughly through the coach to find the actual root cause (that also cost a fortune). There were two issues.

Issue #1: There is an electrical connection in the very back, under the coach, that has has a "quick connect" (perhaps the wrong term, but its two black plastic pieces that connect a number of wires). It is not sealed and got water in the housing that unfortunately stayed there. The pins were all rusting out and some were almost disintegrated. That was clearly problem #1.

Issue #2: The fuse board also had a short. Perhaps caused by the issues in #1.

Both replaced. Everything now works. I'm so glad I went forward with the investment before everything failed on a trip.

You may also like: