No AC Power

[Jim Shaw]

Just went out to the coach to check a few things and found I had no power to the TV so tried A/C lights and outlets and have nothing. I have checked all the GFI's and they are OK. I checked and have 120volts coming in to the transfer switch and 120volts coming out the outer side.
The inverter is not working. I started the generator and still nothing. It's crazy but both my roof airs are working and also my washing machine is working. I am at a lost so any help will be appreciated.
Thanks Jim
2003 Beaver Monterey

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Jim,
I think the inverter has to be "on" even when running on shore power or genset. If you haven't already, try resetting the inverter by turning it off using the on'off switch on the inverter itself, wait about 30 seconds and then turn back on.
Steve

[Jim Shaw]

Thanks Steve I just tried that, but still the inverter does not come. I am guessing that my problem may be the inverter, but would think it would not need to work if I have shore power or gen power. Just not sure if the A/C has to go through the inverter.
Jim

[Paul Schwalen]

I recently had the same issue and found a loose connection inside the breaker box that is fed from the inverter.  On my coach that box is located at the ceiling in the curbside bay just forward of the wet bay.  The loose wire was feeding the main 30 Amp breaker so nothing else on those 3 circuits was getting power.

Paul

[Gerald Farris]

Jim,
It sounds like the pass-through relay in the inverter has failed. Check the voltage going into the inverter on the 120V line and the voltage coming out of the inverter with it turned off. If you have 120V going in and 0V coming out, the pass-through relay has failed.

Gerald  

[Dennis Crawford]

Jim,

Gerald is correct.  While you are there WITH NO AC POWER AND THE INVERTER OFF check the connections.  Getting to these things is not the easiest thing in the world.  You just have to crawl in the appropriate storage bay.  I also assumed you checked the breakers in the panel.  If you have pass thru power leaving the inverter, check the input breaker for those circuits that are inverter controlled.

If your inverter is bad and it is a Xantrex, just replace it with a Magnum.  Let me know if you have to do that and I will give some advice.

Dennis

[Joel Ashley]

If it turns out that you have no voltage going into the inverter, then it has to be between the 50 amp (240v) Main panel's inverter breaker and there, since your air conditioners and washing machine, among others, are okay and are breakered out of that box - they don't go through the inverter.

On ours at least, the Transfer Switch feeds the 240v Main.  That has breakers that feed the air conditioners, block heater, hydronic heater, fridge (which is why the inverter won't run the fridge dry camping), vacuum, and washer.  The last breaker there feeds the inverter, which then feeds the 30 amp (120v) breaker panel that's mounted alongside our 240v Main panel.  The things that aren't working on your rig are all fed by that that panel, so you are correct that the problem is inverter related.  First easy thing to check is that inverter breaker on the Main panel;  if it's good then follow prior posters' leads.

Joel

[Jim Shaw]

Thanks, I will check the pass through relay tomorrow. If it is bad will I need to replace the inverter?
Jim

[Jim Shaw]

Would the pass through relay also keep the charger from working? sorry for all the questions.
Jim

[Dennis Crawford]

Jim,

Probably not. It sounds like you might have a problem with the inverter breaker if the charger is not working.  If you have power from the inverter breaker, it is beginning to sound more like a defective inverter.

Dennis

[Jim Shaw]

I have checked power to the inverter and have power going in on input hot #1 but nothing on input hot #2 and have no power going out. I did find a fuse in the inverter but it was OK. I am not sure what input hot #2 feeds or where it comes from. Do you think I could wire 120 to the main breaker bypassing the inverter without doing any damage until I can get a new inverter if it turns out that is what I need? I can keep the batteries charged with another charger that I have and can get by temporary with out the inverter. I am taking a four day trip and can get a new inverter when I get back. Thanks for all the help.
Jim Shaw

[Roy C Tyler]

Are you using your 50 amp plug without an adapter?  I bought one of those adapters that have a 30 amp plug on one side and a 20 amp plug on the other side.  Unless you plug both plugs in, the inverter will not work and you will not have AC.  I found that if I put a 20 amp adapter on the 30 amp side and plugged both into 20 amp outlets, the inverter worked.  We were at a relative's house and were plugged into their garage outlets.

[Edward Buker]

Jim,

The charger inverter is usually fed with a number 10 wire that contains a ground, a neutral, and a hot wire. It is fed by a 30 amp breaker on the main AC panel. Reset that just to be sure. Between the hot and the ground as well as between the hot and the neutral you should read 120V.  If so, the transfer switch and all that comes before it are working fine. The correct 120V feed to make the charger/inverter operational is working.

Some systems can have a second AC input 2 that comes from the main panel and is fed by a breaker on the opposite buss on the main AC panel. That would require a bridged breaker (two connected toggle switches) or two separate "inverter" labeled breakers. If you do not have that situation then you should have just one AC feed to the inverter/charger.  If not I would assume that it was wired but not fed. The fact that both ACs work would mean both buss sides of the main AC panel are powered up.

If no AC is coming out of the inverter/charger it is likely that the transfer relay is shot as others have pointed out. Even if the second AC input was fed it still gets coupled to the AC1 output from what I read for one charger system. Although I am not sure that may be a common technique for yours.

 Temporarily if the feed 120V wire is number 10 and the output side of the inverter is number 10 (or at least the same size) you can wire nut those together, ground to ground, hot to hot, etc and get things going for your trip.

Later Ed

[Joel Ashley]

Great analysis, as usual, Ed.  Yes, the in and out wires should both be 10-2 from the inverter - 30 amp from the 240v Main breaker going to 30 amp breaker in the 110 Main.

I'm curious, though, about why Roy thinks his inverter wouldn't work off the 30 amp half of his adapter.

Joel

[Edward Buker]

Joel,

The 30/20 amp adapter must be wired so that one of the AC panel busses is on the 30 amp plug and the other is on the 20 amp plug so they are isolated circuits. When we buy a single 30 amp adapter they parallel the inputs to the two busses from the single 30 amp plug in. The inverter must have been on the unplugged side when he used the "dual adapter". By code they probably have to assume that each leg may be out of phase so they must be kept isolated.

Later Ed