Converter update successful-Almost

[jayemright]

Hello,

I just installed a new 45 amp converter/charger. It was very easy, but I did have some "Side Effects" On about a three hour trip we discovered that our right turn signal wasn't working. It seems to have lost ground. Turns out that the tail and brake lights are fried too. The filaments in the bulbs are gone, the the right turn signal appears to have lost it's ground. The biggest shock ( almost literally) was when after arriving and plugging in to shore power I tried checking the ground on the right tail light, I got a reading of 110 volts!! As soon as I took the fridge out of the circuit, the voltage disappeared, but still no ground. I had had difficulty in the past with the fridge tripping the circuit breaker, so I'm thinking that it is shorting against the frame somewhere and electrifying ground. So now I have to try to get this baby home with no lights. I'll go to the store and purchase a whack of 1157 bulbs and see if they work. I am getting power to the right turn signal, and when I jumper a ground wire to the frame, It works. Also the dash lights are gone, but none of the fuses appear to be blown. Does anyone have a fuse diagram for an 85 Sunrader? Any comments or suggestions would be welcome-especially a fast and nasty way to ground my turn signal. Thanks very much,

James

[Smity]

110vac your getting to the tail light tells me the isolator that prevents your shore power from going to your truck battery from the converter is failing. It should be located around the converter area. you might have to pull up the bench and look in the back to find it. With the truck pluged into shore power check the voltage to your truck battery. If you have a normal 12vdc than that means when you installed the converter one of the wires is hooked up wrong.

Edited August 10, 2008 by Smity

[Maineah]

Is your new converter part of the original unit or completely separate? There is a grounding lug on the converter that hooks to the ground on your shore power often hooked to other things in the camper and the truck frame. Most camp sites have ground fault breakers and if it’s wired wrong it should trip. It sure sounds like you have some thing backwards can you check the converter ground and see if there is 120 volts to shore ground? Try not to get in between the two in case there is! Then check to be sure if it is grounded to the ground pin on your shore power. That will tell you if some thing is wrong. Also there is a pack of ground wires for the coach 12 volt ground in the fuse panel maybe one of them is not properly seated and that’s your 12 volt wiring ground issue.

[turtle]

Check your main panel (the AC side) and make sure that there is NOT a jumper between the neutral lug and the ground lug (between the lug that has the white wires and the lug that has the bare copper wires). Motor homes should never have the neutral and ground jumped like is done in a home wiring setup as you also have DC in the coach and the rubber tires isolate the coach.

If you have neutral and ground jumped and the RV park has their wiring backwards (positive and neutral reversed) you will pass 110 to the coach body via the jump and to you could recived 110v when you touch the body of the truck.

A good thing to travel with is a outlet checker. This will tell you if the RV park has their wiring correct before you plug in.

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores...uctId=100062242

[jayemright]

UPDATE:

Thanks for all of the input-It is much appreciated. The converter I added was an "ugrade" that went inside the existing box. It came with it's own 12Volt fuse panel. I basically just swapped the wires over as per the mfg.'s instructions. I wasn't at a campground, but rather a friend's cottage. It did trip the GFI once, but I think that was due to the torrential rain that fell the first night, as it was OK after that. There is a grounding lug on the outside of the new converter that I didn't use as there had not been on on the old converter.

I may have some copper ground wires mixed with the white wires. I will check it out and move those.

Here's how I got home:

There are two AC circuit breakers on the Camper. One powers the roof AC, the other the fridge and some outlets and the converter. I had had problems with the fridge (or something on that circuit) tripping the circuit breaker before; but I went through that circuit, checked everything and it started working. Once I had the problem with the electrified taillights, I shut that circuit breaker off, and moved the converter over to the other circuit breaker, and the voltage was gone.

The bulbs were blown on both tail lights, except for the left turn signal. By replacing the bulbs in the parking lot of the local Canadian Tire, I got my brake lights back. The right turn signal blinks very quickly and faintly. It doesn's seem to have good ground. I ran an extra ground wire from the grounding strip on the taiilght assembly to ground on the converter box. Also, the green arrow light on the dash for that turn signal does not work. I am thinking that bulb also got fried, and that is why it is blinking quickly??

My other puzzle is that this also seems to have taken out the dash light/tailight and clearance light circuit, but I have checked the fuses and they seem fine. Is there a fusable link somewhere in that circuit that could have fried? Or could the ground have fried and that's why I have power but no lights? I'm puzzled.

Thank you again for all your suggestions. I have a basic knowledge of electricity and as the saying goes "I know enough to be dangerous". I truly appreciate all your advice, and hope to get more as I work my way through this puzzle. Again, thanks for your help

All the Best,

James