prowatt 2000 GFCI tripping only when on battery powe

[coolnuke]

i have a 364 and when on shore power no problem, or when running the generator. but when i am just trying to power the fridge off the inverter, the GFCI, on the inverter, trips after 30 seconds. no error codes on the inverter. i have read a few forums about a possible ground issue but doesn't make sense to me since it not there when on shore power or generator. thinking it related to the prowatt 2000 inverter. this is a new inverter.


any suggestions?


BTW i was a Mech in the Navy so basic electrical is not foreign to me

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by coolnuke

i have a 364 and when on shore power no problem, or when running the generator. but when i am just trying to power the fridge off the inverter, the GFCI, on the inverter, trips after 30 seconds. no error codes on the inverter. i have read a few forums about a possible ground issue but doesn't make sense to me since it not there when on shore power or generator. thinking it related to the prowatt 2000 inverter. this is a new inverter.


any suggestions?


BTW i was a Mech in the Navy so basic electrical is not foreign to me

What brand is a 364? What type of RV is a 364?

[TitanMike]

Could well be an issue with the Inverrter wiring.

Here's an excerpt that might explain:

When you connect the neutral and ground upstream, some of that current returns down the ground wire instead of the neutral wire, and that can easily be enough to trip the GFCI. Because touching the neutral (white) to the ground (copper) is a ground fault.

.

https://www.ecmweb.com/content/artic...est%20circuit.

Check wiring of inverter output side.

[coolnuke]

Originally Posted by bikendan

What brand is a 364? What type of RV is a 364?

sorry its a 2015 Georgetown Forest River Class A

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by coolnuke

i have a 364 and when on shore power no problem, or when running the generator. but when i am just trying to power the fridge off the inverter, the GFCI, on the inverter, trips after 30 seconds. no error codes on the inverter. i have read a few forums about a possible ground issue but doesn't make sense to me since it not there when on shore power or generator. thinking it related to the prowatt 2000 inverter. this is a new inverter.


any suggestions?


BTW i was a Mech in the Navy so basic electrical is not foreign to me

The best troubleshooting technique for any problem is "Divide and Conquer."

Isolate the problem in this way.
Unplug the refrigerator
Reproduce the situation: inverter on, no shore power or generator
If GFCI trips, problem is in the wiring. Check connections at the refrigerator outlet and at plug of GFCI, and check for moisture in these areas. WD-40 is a good drying agent--apply with power off.
If GFCI doesn't trip, problem is at the refrigerator. Check plug, cord at both ends, and maybe even control board areas for moisture. Using your ohmmeter on the highest scale, measure resistance at the cord's plug between neutral (wider flat pin) and ground (round pin). It should be infinity (blinking 1). Also try turning the fridge off and (a) measuring resistance again, and (b) see if it trips the GFCI when off.

[Half Ton Heavy]

BTDT, My issue was I bought a cheap inverter that was not UL/ ETL compliant, and thus was not tolerant of having the ground, negative terminal, and neutral all at the same potential. Yours has a gfci so maybe it does meet the basics, but if not....

[coolnuke]

Originally Posted by Larry-NC

The best troubleshooting technique for any problem is "Divide and Conquer."

Isolate the problem in this way.
Unplug the refrigerator
Reproduce the situation: inverter on, no shore power or generator
If GFCI trips, problem is in the wiring. Check connections at the refrigerator outlet and at plug of GFCI, and check for moisture in these areas. WD-40 is a good drying agent--apply with power off.
If GFCI doesn't trip, problem is at the refrigerator. Check plug, cord at both ends, and maybe even control board areas for moisture. Using your ohmmeter on the highest scale, measure resistance at the cord's plug between neutral (wider flat pin) and ground (round pin). It should be infinity (blinking 1). Also try turning the fridge off and (a) measuring resistance again, and (b) see if it trips the GFCI when off.

so here is what i found:
!. made a pigtail with a GFCI and a GFCI outlet. plugged into fridge outlet and on shore power tripper after ~30 seconds.
2. plugged the fridge into the Bathroom GFCI no issue didnt trip
3. plugged directly to the invert via extenstion cord popper GFCI in ~30 seconds

4. unplugged the auto transfer switch from inverter and plugged directly into inverter popped GFCI in ~30 seconds

there was a little bit of standing water in the compartment where the inverter is, same as the hot water heater. made an additional drain hole to drain the water.



thinking it might be something to do with the auto trandfer switch or wiring in the compartment with the inverter and switch.


right track?

[CHICKDOE]

i believe the prowatt 2000 has a gfci receptacle on its face where you plug the load into. there will also be a small transfer switch that plugs into this gfci outlet and the shore power circuit. the refrigerator plugs into this small transfer switch.

there is no gfci device in the shore power path so there is no gfci to trip when running on shore power (or generator).

unplug the transfer switch from the inverter and plug in some other device like lamp or small heater and see if the inverter will run without tripping. if it does plug the transfer switch back in and unplug the refrigerator from the transfer switch. plug your test device in to the transfer switch and see if it will run using inverter power without tripping the inverter gfci. if it does it looks like you problem is in the refrigerator or its cord. see if you can plug the refrigerator into an extension cord and plug the refrigerator into a household outlet that is gfci protected. does the refrigerator trip the household gfci?

i do remember some posts about the gfci on the inverter face going bad. it can be replaced with a standard household gfci.