RE: Charger/Converter problems...

[Biskit4Camping]

 This weekend while setting up, I turned on the 120 to our fridge, then turned off the 12v.  Okay, before you tell me that  did this backwards, I know this already... the correct proceedure is to turn OFF the 12V, and then ON the 120.
 
 We didn t realize that we had a problem until 2 nights later when the lights in the camper started getting dim, and the bunk end fan was running slower than normal...
 
 Hmmm... Okay, I know the lights run off of 12v,  cuz the converter " converts"  the 120 down to 12V.  At the same time, the converter is spozed to charge the battery.
 The lights and fan had been draining the battery, but no charge was going TO the battery... how did I deduce this?  I opened the converter, and found blown fuse to the battery/charger.
 
 so, What I think happened is this... when I turned off/on the fridge in the wrong order, we blew the " battery/charge"  fuse.  We didn t realize this, because everthing seemed to be working correctly... A/C and Fridge (cuz they were on 120), and the lights were okay, till we noticed them getting dim... as soon as I replaced the fuse, the lights were as bright as they should be... UNTIL a few seconds later when the fuse blew... so I put in another one... and it blew...
 
 My DW had the idea of turning everything off, then putting the fuse in, then turning everything back on.  Didn t sound like it should work... BUT... it DID!
 
 Okay... here s my question... WHY did it work?  COULD it be that i was caught in the mysterious " startup amp"  mode?  That is to say... The charger, the lights, and the bunk end fans were all trying to " start up"  at the same time?  I m sure that the converter was having a heck-of-a-time trying to hit such a heavy charge load... but with the lights and little fan?  As far as i know... these are the only things that were running from the 12V side at the time.
 
 Any thoughts?  Ever run into this?
 
 Lemme know, please and thank you!
 
 Chuck(ie)
 
 *** When freedom is outlawed, only outlaws will be free!***
 
 
 

[Tim5055]

 Biskit4Camping
First of all, having the both the 12v DC and 110v AC turned on on the refrigerator probably NOT the source of your problem.  I know it s hard to believe, but the refrigerator makes cold from heat.  The " heat"  it uses can be the LP gas flame, a 12v DC heating element or a 110v AC heating element.  These two electric elements are separate, so having them both on for a short period of time only heated thins up a little too much.
 
 I suspect that one of your 12v DC appliances has a " swinging"  short, meaning it is not shorted all the time.  Sometimes it swings open and sometimes it swings closed, then bang the fuse blows.  These types of shorts are very hard to find.
 
 Carry extra fuses and if it blows again, note what was turned on at the time.  Slowly you should narrow it down to the problem item.

[Biskit4Camping]

 tim5055
Thanks Tim... kinda makes sense...
 
 What about the fuses blowing one right after another?  Any thoughts?  Could this be " start-up mania" ?
 
 thanky!
 
 *** When freedom is outlawed, only outlaws will be free! ***

[mike4947]

 Biskit4Camping
First, The thing to  check when fuses blow again and again is the polarity of the battery. It s not wired as would be for 12 volt with white being hot and black being nuetral or ground but black hot and white ground.
 Second, only motors have a " startup draw"  and the tiny one in the bunkend fan wouldn t even draw an extra amp on starting.
 Second, That " battery charger"  that the MARKETING people say is built into your converter is a joke. Please do not depend on it to do anything but what it was designed to do RUN 12 volt applications especially not to charge your battery.  Unless you enjoy buying new batteries every year. At most it puts out about 2 amps toward charging you battery and at a voltage that will only give you an 80% charge if your lucky.
 
 Here s a couple of links that are required reading for RV s with a battery:
 
 http://bart.ccis.com/home/mnemeth/12volt/12volt.htm
 http://bart.ccis.com/home/mnemeth/12volt/12volta.htm

[Biskit4Camping]

 Biskit4Camping
hmmm... just thought of something else...
 
 In our last camper, a Jayco, we didn t have a battery when we first started camping, and all the 12v stuff ran just fine...
 
 Okay, here now, we HAVE a battery, it obviously wasn t charged, BUT why wouldn t the 12V stuff work like there was NO battery at all?  I mean, if it will work WITHOUT a battery, why wouldn t it work WITH a battery... UNLESS, the converter was allowing current to be drawn FROM the battery, but nothing was going TO the battery...
 
 Okay, so... if the fuse had blown without any battery at all, we would have had NO power to any of the 12V stuff, huh?
 
 Mike... what do you recommend... a seperate " real"  battery charger?
 
 Thoughts?

[mike4947]

 Biskit4Camping
Now you ve got me confused. As for a seperate battery charger, YES.
 
 You can spend several hundred dollars on a charger, but you can also look for one that says it will charge deep cycle batteries or flooded cell batteries for around $50 and get just as much life out of the battery as one of the high priced models.
 My current battery is 6 years old and still tests out in the " new"  specs and I use a 20 year old 10 amp charger.
 
 Follow a few rules for the battery:
 
 Get a decent deep cycle charger
 Disconnect the battery when not camping
 Charge it when you get home
 Charge it before you leave
 Charge it at least once a month during the " off Season"
 Check the water level before and after charging.
 

[raven339]

 Biskit4Camping
Hmmm...
 
 Methinks I ve seen this advice before...[][][]
 
 Skol...

[topcat7736]

 Biskit4Camping
Biskit,
 The converter used by Coleman contains a built-in temperature protection circuit which will shut down the converter. If a short develops, it will give a buzzing alarm to indicate that one was detected. Once the converter cools, it will reset and supply 12 volts again. The converters also switch from AC to DC automatically and do not have a manual changeover switch.
 
 Plugging in the fuse, with the converter currently supplying current to other devices (lights=3 amps each & fan is probably another 3) probably caused a surge of current to the drained battery which popped the fuse again and caused the converter to suffer a temperature overload & shut down. (The charging circuit shares the same lines as the battery supplying 12-volts to the trailer).
 
 You probably won t have any more problems, but the initial popping of the fuse is a concern. It could be that the battery was connected backwards to the 2-prong plug for an instant or there is another problem with the circuit. If the problem re-surfaces, let your dealer check it out for you.