2 Electric Outlets have stopped working

[aemail4sue]

We have 2 outlets that are not working on our Sunseeker MH. Both are on the driver's side, one is in the bedroom and the other is on dining wall, a bathroom separates the two if it means anything. Everything else seems to be working. Have checked breakers and nothing has tripped, I don't think they would operate on fuses! Anyone have other ideas to check?

[Mr. Dan]

Those outlets are protected by a master GFCI outlet probably in the bathroom. Find it and press the reset button.

[aemail4sue]

Even if they themselves are not GFCI receptacles?

[wmtire]

Originally Posted by aemail4sue

Even if they themselves are not GFCI receptacles?

Yes, they wire them so the outlets downstream of the GFCI outlet are protected by it. If there is a fault(current imbalance) in ANY of the protected outlets or the GFCI outlet, it trips the GFCI outlet, thus killing power to all.

This isn't the best/accurate schematic, but you will get the idea.

[BobHanke]

Perfect picture above of the GFCI outlet but the downstream outlets could also be in on one screw and out on the adjacent one. It is possible for an "out" connection to come loose as I had happen in my house.

[DouglasReid]

Yes, the GFCI can be wired to protect only itself or itself and all the downstream outlets. MOST campers it protects all the downstream outlets as well.

I, betting yoru outside outlet/s are not working either.

[aemail4sue]

Originally Posted by DouglasReid

Yes, the GFCI can be wired to protect only itself or itself and all the downstream outlets. MOST campers it protects all the downstream outlets as well.

I, betting yoru outside outlet/s are not working either.

DouglasReid checked the outside outlet this morning, all outside and inside receptacles are working but these two

[aemail4sue]

[QUOTE=aemail4sue;1681991]DouglasReid, We checked the outside outlet this morning, all outside and inside receptacles are working but these two.

[PenJoe]

Originally Posted by wmtire

Yes, they wire them so the outlets downstream of the GFCI outlet are protected by it. If there is a fault(current imbalance) in ANY of the protected outlets or the GFCI outlet, it trips the GFCI outlet, thus killing power to all.

This isn't the best/accurate schematic, but you will get the idea.

I would have to agree with Mr Dan and wmtire. I have wired several outlet circuits protected by one GFCI outlet. A bit of advice. Many of the GFCI outlets show red when they are tripped-but not all. We have two in our garage that do not show red when they are indeed tripped. What I would suggest is finding the GFCI outlets , manually trip them with the buttons and reset them. There should be one in the kitchen area and one in the bathroom (bath vanity area), generally "wet areas" where a shock is most likely.

[sasems]

When our 5th wheel RV was new 3 living room outlets quit the night of the first frost in So Maryland. Turns out there is a junction box in the "engineering area" under the bathroom where these were connected to the circuit with the usual wire nut. The cold caused the improperly secured wire nut to loose a wire. Good thing it was not the hot lead from the circuit breaker.
I let Forest River know directly that wire nuts are not a good option in a vehicle that flexes, subject to lots of vibration, and is subject to large temp changes. The yachting world has long since quit using wire nuts for those reasons and only use a mechanically crimped connector and/or terminal boards.

[dryflycaster]

Originally Posted by Mr. Dan

Those outlets are protected by a master GFCI outlet probably in the bathroom. Find it and press the reset button.

Great Hint/tip. On our last trip of the year we had two receptacle go dead. Both were in walls on the outside of the bathroom. I never pursued the fix because it was time to put baby to sleep for the winter. It was at the top of the check and fix list before our first trip in 2018.

Neither receptacle needs to be GFCI protected but to save money I'm sure they very well could have wired them to the closest feed and that would have been the bathroom. I hadn't give it much thought and I'm not sure I would have come up with this scenario for a fix.

Thanks for the idea. I might even get in there and check it out in the next day or two. Baby is sleeping right behind the house and access is quite simple. I can plug it in to house power and see how it goes. Hopefully it will be one thing off the Spring FixIt Check List.

[aemail4sue]

Originally Posted by dryflycaster

Great Hint/tip. On our last trip of the year we had two receptacle go dead. Both were in walls on the outside of the bathroom. I never pursued the fix because it was time to put baby to sleep for the winter. It was at the top of the check and fix list before our first trip in 2018.

Neither receptacle needs to be GFCI protected but to save money I'm sure they very well could have wired them to the closest feed and that would have been the bathroom. I hadn't give it much thought and I'm not sure I would have come up with this scenario for a fix.

Thanks for the idea. I might even get in there and check it out in the next day or two. Baby is sleeping right behind the house and access is quite simple. I can plug it in to house power and see how it goes. Hopefully it will be one thing off the Spring FixIt Check List.

Hey dryflycaster I'm curious, let me know if it fixes it, resetting didn't work for me, I'm still searching

[dryflycaster]

Originally Posted by aemail4sue

Hey dryflycaster I'm curious, let me know if it fixes it, resetting didn't work for me, I'm still searching

Maybe tomorrow. It's been raining cats and dogs here all day, plus I'm tired from the metal detecting I did yesterday.

[Flybob]

If resetting the GFCI does not resolve your issue, you may have to pull the outlet from the wall and check the wiring. Most all RV manufacturers use the punch downs on the outlets rather than the screws to connect the wiring. These can be unreliable especially if not done right. If you have room in the wall, I would replace the outlets you remove with good quality home style outlets. CAUTION: be sure to disconnect the power before removing the outlet.

[aemail4sue]

Originally Posted by Flybob

If resetting the GFCI does not resolve your issue, you may have to pull the outlet from the wall and check the wiring. Most all RV manufacturers use the punch downs on the outlets rather than the screws to connect the wiring. These can be unreliable especially if not done right. If you have room in the wall, I would replace the outlets you remove with good quality home style outlets. CAUTION: be sure to disconnect the power before removing the outlet.

Sounds good Flybob but how the heck do you remove the receptacle plate on the two not working, the plates do NOT have screws holding them in

[keith52]

Originally Posted by aemail4sue

Sounds good Flybob but how the heck do you remove the receptacle plate on the two not working, the plates do NOT have screws holding them in

Flat screw driver or a putty knife, just get it under an edge and pop it off.

[dryflycaster]

Originally Posted by aemail4sue

Hey dryflycaster I'm curious, let me know if it fixes it, resetting didn't work for me, I'm still searching

Well I nudged baby a little this morning, plugging her into our house power (110VAC). I verified that there was indeed 110 VAC in the camper using a plug in drill.

I then proceed to crawl across the dinette seats (Slide is in at the moment and I did not wish to disturb it) and went to the bathroom in the camper rear. Sure enough there was a very dim yellow LED/Light lit on the bathroom receptacle. I tried the drill there and at the other known dead receptacles and they were all still dead, including the one at the kitchen sink area.

After pressing the "Rest' button at the Bathroom Receptacle, I tested all them again and they were now all in working order . I tripped the GFCI again and tested the receptacles and they once again had no power. After another reset they were again all working fine.

Cross off one To-Do before camping starts in 2018.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by dryflycaster

Well I nudged baby a little this morning, plugging her into our house power (110VAC). I verified that there was indeed 110 VAC in the camper using a plug in drill.

I then proceed to crawl across the dinette seats (Slide is in at the moment and I did not wish to disturb it) and went to the bathroom in the camper rear. Sure enough there was a very dim yellow LED/Light lit on the bathroom receptacle. I tried the drill there and at the other known dead receptacles and they were all still dead, including the one at the kitchen sink area.

After pressing the "Rest' button at the Bathroom Receptacle, I tested all them again and they were now all in working order . I tripped the GFCI again and tested the receptacles and they once again had no power. After another reset they were again all working fine.

Cross off one To-Do before camping starts in 2018.

9 out of 10 times the cause is the bathroom GFI tripped.

[aemail4sue]

Originally Posted by dryflycaster

Well I nudged baby a little this morning, plugging her into our house power (110VAC). I verified that there was indeed 110 VAC in the camper using a plug in drill.

I then proceed to crawl across the dinette seats (Slide is in at the moment and I did not wish to disturb it) and went to the bathroom in the camper rear. Sure enough there was a very dim yellow LED/Light lit on the bathroom receptacle. I tried the drill there and at the other known dead receptacles and they were all still dead, including the one at the kitchen sink area.

After pressing the "Rest' button at the Bathroom Receptacle, I tested all them again and they were now all in working order . I tripped the GFCI again and tested the receptacles and they once again had no power. After another reset they were again all working fine.

Cross off one To-Do before camping starts in 2018.

Well lucky you, we have done all that and still scratching our heads living among two dead receptacles but making the best of it.

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by Flybob

If resetting the GFCI does not resolve your issue, you may have to pull the outlet from the wall and check the wiring. Most all RV manufacturers use the punch downs on the outlets rather than the screws to connect the wiring. These can be unreliable especially if not done right. If you have room in the wall, I would replace the outlets you remove with good quality home style outlets. CAUTION: be sure to disconnect the power before removing the outlet.

If you do this, be aware you must install standard electrical boxes to enclose the new home style outlets to protect the bare wiring/screws.

(Since the "punch downs" have the wiring connection internally, they don't need electrical boxes. Another reason the manufacturers use them.)