Converter Question

[pistonslap]

I'm new to pop-ups and I have a 1978 Rockwood. There are no manuals with it and the person I bought it from moved out of state. My question is, on the converter there is a 3 position switch - on, off and battery. I assume off is for when you are hooked up to 110, on is for when you are hooked up to 220 at a trailer park and battery is to run off a 12v car battery. The problem is that there are no battery cables to connect to a battery. There is no battery box on the trailer either. When I rewired the trailer lights to connect to my truck, I replaced the old 6 wire plug with a 4 wire. Was the 6 wire set up to use my towing vehicle battery? If so, can I wire it to battery cables and put a car battery in the storage area next to the charger or would it be better to install it in the other storage area away from the charger?
Thanks,
Tom

[CAPEd CODger]

The 3 position switch layout is like this: "OFF" is off; no output to any 12volt devices. "ON" is on the shoreline power which is 110 VAC, NOT 220 VAC. 220 will make much noise and smoke!! The lights and other appliances operate on 12 volts DC, that is what the converter produces when in the "ON" position. The "BATTERY" position is to run the 12 volt devices off the coach battery.

There should be a pair of wires at the trailer tongue to hook up a battery. They would not normally be in with the trailer running/ brake-lights wires.

You may want to remove the converter and locate the 12v INPUT lines.
Rockwood may have put the battery in a different location, but the "A" frame of the trailer is the usual place.

BTW, your AC outlets will not work when operating on the battery, only when the shoreline is plugged in.

One last note, be certain that the shoreline is disconnected when working on the electrical system.

Best of luck.

Bob

[pistonslap]

The reason I thought it might be 220 is because there is an extension that came with the trailer has a 110 female end and what looks like a 220 male end. I thought that maybe the converter changed 220 into 110. Is this just what the 110 sockets are like at the trailer camp? Good thing I asked before plugging into 220! Also, with the converter set to off, I plug it into an extension cord from my house and my outlets work.

[wavery]

The reason I thought it might be 220 is because there is an extension that came with the trailer has a 110 female end and what looks like a 220 male end. I thought that maybe the converter changed 220 into 110. Is this just what the 110 sockets are like at the trailer camp? Good thing I asked before plugging into 220! Also, with the converter set to off, I plug it into an extension cord from my house and my outlets work.

The plug doesn't look different (just) because of the voltage. It is different because of the amperage (also).

Your normal 3-prong appliance plug is for a max 15A outlet. You can't plug your camper plug into a 15A outlet because your camper is designed for a max of 30A service. Therefore, it is equiped with a 30A plug that can only be plugged into a 110V - 30A outlet (unless you use an adapter).

You wouldn't be able to plug your 30A - 110v plug into a 220v outlet anyway. They are also different for the very same reason......so that someone can't mistakenly plug the wrong plug into any given outlet.

[austinado16]

The original 6-way plug may have included the ability to run the refrigerator on 12v via the Tow Vehicle, while enroute to and from the camp site.

I'll bet if you look at the wiring coming out of the convertor, you'll find where 12v was supposed to come "in" via an onboard battery.

[pistonslap]

I understand what you're saying wavery, but actually my converter has a normal 15 amp plug. Also there is a 10 amp fuse in my converter. It's the the right fuse because the cap has 10 amp marked on it. The adapter I have makes the 15 amp plug into a 30 amp. My house circuits in my house are all 20 amp. All that is in the trailer are a few outlets and the refridgerator. For testing purposes I wouldn't think the fridge would pull more than 20 amps. I'm going to try out the fridge today. Hopefully it won't pop a breaker.

[wavery]

I understand what you're saying wavery, but actually my converter has a normal 15 amp plug. Also there is a 10 amp fuse in my converter. It's the the right fuse because the cap has 10 amp marked on it. The adapter I have makes the 15 amp plug into a 30 amp. My house circuits in my house are all 20 amp. All that is in the trailer are a few outlets and the refridgerator. For testing purposes I wouldn't think the fridge would pull more than 20 amps. I'm going to try out the fridge today. Hopefully it won't pop a breaker.

If you are referring to your PUs 3-way fridge, I think it draws about 10A on the 110v circuit. I'll double check that for you.

[tlhdoc]

My guess is that the adapter is there in case the campground only has 30 amp service and you need to plug the camper into the 30 amp service.  Older trailers did not come with 30 power cords.

[wavery]

I understand what you're saying wavery, but actually my converter has a normal 15 amp plug. Also there is a 10 amp fuse in my converter. It's the the right fuse because the cap has 10 amp marked on it. The adapter I have makes the 15 amp plug into a 30 amp. My house circuits in my house are all 20 amp. All that is in the trailer are a few outlets and the refridgerator. For testing purposes I wouldn't think the fridge would pull more than 20 amps. I'm going to try out the fridge today. Hopefully it won't pop a breaker.

That 10A fuse is probably for your 12v circuit in your camper. The converter probably has a 20A or 30A circuit breaker in it for the 110V circuit..