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Isolated electrical failure.


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#1 steve33

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Posted 30 August 2019 - 03:39 AM

Without apparent warning, the celing lights, furnace, and fridge in my 2014 Hawk have all stopped working, as has the fridge fan and floor lights. The water pump and ceiling fan still work, and starting the truck makes no difference, so obviously the battery is still charged. All fuses are intact. 

 

Ideas?


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#2 Wandering Sagebrush

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Posted 30 August 2019 - 03:01 PM

Open circuit is my guess. I’d look for a loose wire at the bus that’s the DC source for those devices.
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#3 pvstoy

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Posted 30 August 2019 - 03:05 PM

Also check the return grounding buss for a pull outs.

All that being off is on different fuses at the panel?
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#4 Wandering Sagebrush

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Posted 30 August 2019 - 04:05 PM

Also check the return grounding buss for a pull outs.
All that being off is on different fuses at the panel?


Yup, I forgot about the ground.
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#5 pvstoy

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Posted 30 August 2019 - 09:11 PM

Some times they piggyback more than one circuit wire into one hole on the ground buss. If the screw came loose and wires under tension can break the circuit.
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#6 ClimberRob

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Posted 01 September 2019 - 04:19 PM

Likely a negative/ground issue. I had an issue with a negative/common run in my Grandby. There were multiple wires poorly tied in to a single run. I ended up pulling a lot of it out and re-wiring all of the individual negatives back to a common bus bar behind the fuse panel.


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#7 Wandering Sagebrush

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Posted 01 September 2019 - 06:24 PM

Steve, please do let us know what you find. It might help the next member with a similar problem.
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#8 steve33

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Posted 03 September 2019 - 01:46 PM

Thanks everyone. I just got back from a long weekend trip with the camper. I didn't have a chance to look into anything before I left so just had to live with it as is. Meaning no fridge! Anyway, while away, the other electrical devices that HAD been working failed. So it at least seems like, at this point, the battery was slowly dying. Is it possible that devices died off depending on how much power they draw? I don't know. Anyway, now the fan doesn't work, the water pump doesn't work, and even the battery charge meter which had been reading at 1/3 charge, is now not coming on. So, again, guessing, but I am wondering if either my gel battery has died, or the charging system has failed. Obviously entirely different solutions to those two problems and I am not sure how I would know one vs the other. I do think, in the meantime, that if I plug in to shore power and things work that would confirm my suspicions about what is wrong. Now I just have to find that plug in for shore power which I never use because I never camp with hook ups. 


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#9 ClimberRob

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Posted 04 September 2019 - 02:03 AM

Different devices definitely have their own specific threshold of "minimum" voltage. I don't know what type of AC charger you have. If your battery is completely dead, you might need a different charger to try to bring it back to life. Sounds like you need an inline shunt-based monitor in your rig, as well.


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#10 pvstoy

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Posted 05 September 2019 - 03:11 AM

A minimum you need is a volt meter,  heck even the free ones at Harbor Freight would work to just tell you what the voltage at the battery is.  This is basic but at least you could have know if your battery even had voltage and at what level it was before you plugged into shore power.  Quite a bit could be known from a volt meter!


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