Inverter problems (I think)

[Silver45]

Having some difficulties figuring out my newly purchased 5th wheel. I picked up a 2017 Sierra 354 RET. I got the rig home and realized while going through it the Inverter was not on. Next day went and purchased 2 new batteries 12v ACM.
I hooked back up and still nothing. Fuse box fuses good, breakers on, etc. I pulled out the inverter and opened it up because it did not have an external fuse but did have a circuit overload button on back which was fine. Inside the inverter had 4 40a fuses soldered to the board, all blown. My thought is it may have happened while transporting the coach home due to the way the guy had the batteries sitting in the batt box. Positive post right next to metal and were not secure. SO i replaced them and reinstalled. Connected to batteries and it fired up and began to run, the fans and lights were on on the device and fridge worked in the trailer. Next day I came out and power on inverter out again but this time when I disconnected battery the 100a circuit breaker between the battery and the inverter reset making a click. Re-hooked up the inverter and worked for a few mins then breaker popped. Now here is where it gets confusing. if I hook up shore power inverter runs.

Question is is there something wrong or am I screwing up somewhere.
No power to fridge without shore power.
The inverter is a Arterra WF5110hp 1000 watt and I believe is factory for the trailer. It has a separate converter if that matters. Any help appreciated.

 

[dalford]

Welcome to the forum...

What breaker tripped? Are you talking a breaker on the dc side or ac side?

 

[Silver45]

It’s the 100a DC breaker between the battery and inverter.

 

[dalford]

It’s the 100a DC breaker between the battery and inverter.

That does not sound good. Is it an actual,breaker? I have the same inverter and it does not have a breaker but a 100 amp ANL type fuse.

If it is blowing that breaker and you also found internal fuses blown it sounds like your inverter is Gone bad.

I had to replace the inverter in my 2016 33IK last year. It would run and then not. If I unscrewed the fuse on the front panel and reinstalled it would run again. Finally crapped out.

The inverter operation is pretty straight forward. There is the shore power ac and then there is inverter ac. When plugged into shore power the shore power goes to the inverter. The inverter senses you are on shore power and just passes the ac thru to the fridge. This is standby mode.

When shore power goes away the inverter senses this and creates ac from the battery. It has internal switch that switches the ac output to be supplied by the inverter and not just bypassed thru from shore power.

Lol...you May already know this and if so, sorry for TMI..

You said it works when on shore power. Actually it is just in standby and is passing the ac thru.

Sounds like the dc side is bad...

 

[dalford]

Is this you inverter.... https://www.amazon.com/Arterra-WF-5110H-1000W-Pure-Inverter/dp/B00HESYSRC

 

[Silver45]

Yes that is the same one except mine does not have the external fuse holder

 

[dalford]

If you do determine that it is defective which it appears to be make sure and you are going to replace it with the same inverter make sure you order the right model. This particular model I think has 2 different output connections for the ac. Mine was hard wired. I think they have a plug in output type but not sure anymore.

From the manual...

The WF-5100 Series Inverter is available with
12Vdc input (WF-5110H, WF-5110G) or
24Vdc input (WF-5120H, WF-5120G). Both have 115Vac 60Hz output.
The WF-5100 Series Inverter is also available in two different versions of output wiring:
Model: WF-5110H and WF-5120H are hard wired outputs.

This is what I purchased...

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HESYSRC/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Silver45]

Will do. Thanks for the info.

I think if I have to replace it, it will be a good time to upgrade to lithium and solar. Sense I will be coming out of pocket anyway.

 

[dalford]

Will do. Thanks for the info.

I think if I have to replace it, it will be a good time to upgrade to lithium and solar. Sense I will be coming out of pocket anyway.

That sure makes sense. The WFCO inverters are not the best. Upgrading now to get what you need for the solar/lithium setup is optimum.

I’m sure others will chime in with recommendations for solar/lithium setup. Plea to of knowledgeable folks on this site with that exper.

Good luck and let us know what you did. Enjoy the RV!

 

[stepdad]

Inverter issues

Try seeing if your GFCI is tripped. On the unit itself. Also check to see if transfer switch is working, mine has a reset breaker. Check to see if wires are loose. Check the fuses on the inverter. Good luck!

 

[stepdad]

Inverter issues

My recommendation is to get a true sine wave inverter.

 

[Tom48]

Will do. Thanks for the info.

I think if I have to replace it, it will be a good time to upgrade to lithium and solar. Sense I will be coming out of pocket anyway.

When ever I have more than one problem appear I like to spend more time checking for the source of the problem, before I start buying things.

Before buying, check your ground at every point beginning at the batteries. Then look at that DC breaker. Chinese make a lot of OUR stuff and a lot is junk. We installed a 60 amp DC breaker for a friend and it kept popping. Discovered that it tripped at 13 volts and 51 amps. And today we chased every connection to a towed Jeep that had been fine for ten years. Suddenly we lost ground at two different spots and damn near went nuts before we found both points of failure.

Good luck.

 

[Tom48]

My recommendation is to get a true sine wave inverter.

IF, you find that it is a bad inverter, definitely upgrade to pure sine if that is an option with comparable or better quality unit.

 

[dalford]

When ever I have more than one problem appear I like to spend more time checking for the source of the problem, before I start buying things.

Before buying, check your ground at every point beginning at the batteries. Then look at that DC breaker. Chinese make a lot of OUR stuff and a lot is junk. We installed a 60 amp DC breaker for a friend and it kept popping. Discovered that it tripped at 13 volts and 51 amps. And today we chased every connection to a towed Jeep that had been fine for ten years. Suddenly we lost ground at two different spots and damn near went nuts before we found both points of failure.

Good luck.

Good point on the breaker. May be junk. As far as ground goes an inverter, on the dc side, only has two ground connections and 12 volt connections. They are at the battery and at the back of the inverter. Make sure the connections are good at both ends....