Electrical gremlins in 228bh

[frankenkj]

We took our 2014 Flagstaff 228bh popup out this past weekend for it's maiden voyage, and had a bunch of electric issues. We were plugged into shore power, and at night with the fantastic fan on and one ceiling light on ( I have led bulbs in the 3 overhead ceiling lights ), the breaker inside the camper would occasionally trip. I'd reset the breaker and it'd be fine for a while then trip again.

We also had issues with the internal outlets working intermittently. Traced it to the gfi outlet under the dinette table tripping. There was no rain/water getting into any outlets so not sure why the gfi outlet would trip.

Any thoughts as to why the breaker would trip with the fan + one overhead light on, and also why the gfi outlet would trip ?

[gruss01]

Is this a new camper? I'd take it in if so and have them check it out.

If breakers were tripping that you could reset those would be for the AC side of it, and you mention only running DC stuff so it was either something in the campground wiring or something shorting in your camper on the 120V outlets.

[wmtire]

Originally Posted by frankenkj

We took our 2014 Flagstaff 228bh popup out this past weekend for it's maiden voyage, and had a bunch of electric issues. We were plugged into shore power, and at night with the fantastic fan on and one ceiling light on ( I have led bulbs in the 3 overhead ceiling lights ), the breaker inside the camper would occasionally trip. I'd reset the breaker and it'd be fine for a while then trip again.

We also had issues with the internal outlets working intermittently. Traced it to the gfi outlet under the dinette table tripping. There was no rain/water getting into any outlets so not sure why the gfi outlet would trip.

Any thoughts as to why the breaker would trip with the fan + one overhead light on, and also why the gfi outlet would trip ?

The circuit breaker to "what" was tripping? The lights and fan run off of 12 volt DC...and would not be controlled by a circuit breaker but fuses.

Now, however, you have a converter that converts 120 volt AC to 12 volt DC to power these things when plugged into shore power so that they don't run solely from the 12 volt battery, and depleting it.

If the converter is causing a breaker to trip, then it may have problems...and they commonly do.

Also, it can happen that the water heater electric element has shorted due to being turned/left on by someone with no water in the heater. This situation can also cause the circuit breaker that controls the circuit the water heater is on to trip too.

Being a maiden voyage, this happens a lot too...with the water heater, if it has the electric heating element. You may want to make sure the element is off as per this FAQ:

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ore-36197.html

[frankenkj]

Originally Posted by gruss01

Is this a new camper? I'd take it in if so and have them check it out.

If breakers were tripping that you could reset those would be for the AC side of it, and you mention only running DC stuff so it was either something in the campground wiring or something shorting in your camper on the 120V outlets.

The camper was part of the dealer's rental fleet and was used for one season, so we assumed that since it was part of their fleet things would be working properly when the went to sell it.

We also found that the water pump leaked, and the propane hose that connects to the lp tank leaked, so this was a first time out filled with learning experiences.

We are going to take it back to the dealer soon to get those other issues taken care of.

We did have the fridge turned on the entire time running on 120v. Could that have influenced our breaker/gfi issues ?

[wmtire]

Here are some informational links to help you understand the electric part of your RV, to go with the links I provided in post #3 above. You can read at your own leisure.

Basic RV Electricity - RV Information (RV Maintenance)

RV Converters and Amp Draw - RV Information (RV Maintenance)

[frankenkj]

Originally Posted by wmtire

Here are some informational links to help you understand the electric part of your RV, to go with the links I provided in post #3 above. You can read at your own leisure.

Basic RV Electricity - RV Information (RV Maintenance)

RV Converters and Amp Draw - RV Information (RV Maintenance)

Thank you for the links. I'll take a look.

Since the water pump leaked, I didn't have water in the holding tank and never even considered something amiss with the water heate being on. I know the master switch in the cabin for the water heater was off the entire trip. I'll take a look next weekend when I get it setup again to look for what you mentioned with the heating element.

The breaker that kept tripping was the right most one, closest to the fuse panel. I think it was a 20 amp. I know the door panel had a label stating what it was for, but im drawing a blank atm.

[gruss01]

If it was popping AC breakers, something is wrong and it would be hard to diagnose on the internet...if the fridge on 120V was the cause, there is still something wrong. You could turn it off or run it on propane to see if the problem goes away. that's about the only thing I could suggest for now if you need to fix.
I would make sure this is all documented and let the dealer track it all down though if I were you.

[wmtire]

Originally Posted by frankenkj

I know the master switch in the cabin for the water heater was off the entire trip. I'll take a look next weekend when I get it setup again to look for what you mentioned with the heating element.

Yes, the switch inside the trailer controls the propane side of the water heater...or actually the direct spark ignitor.

If you RV has a Suburban water heater that also has an electric heating element (your RV may not have this)...then the switch is on the face of the heater as per the link in post 3. It's common for this switch to get left on.

Just something to check.