No electricity to Washer/Dryer outlet

[Don Voss]

Any clues why I have no electricity to my washer/dryer outlet.  All other systems on the Circuit Breaker panel operate normally with Gen or Shore power.  I have checked the circuit breaker panel (nothing tripped), the outlet wire, and looked for GFIs (none associated with it I am aware of).  I followed the wire from the outlet down to where it disappears under the bathroom sink.  I am not sure where it reappears in the basement.  I looked where I thought it might reemerge but didn't see it.  In the diagram it appears to come straight from the circuit breaker panel to the outlet.  Although in reality the wire comes from the basement somewhere forward and the circuit  breaker panel is in the rear.  Somehow the wire goes forward from the CB panel and makes a U turn to get back to the outlet.  Is there a junction box this wire passes through that I could check for loose wiring?  Next step I guess is to test/ replace the breaker for the W/D.

2004 Beaver Marquis

Don Voss
dwv321@aol.com

[LarryNCarolynShirk]

This may not apply to your year, but our Marquis has 2 circuit breakers on the ceiling of the bay near the inverter.

Larry

[Bill Sprague]

If your 2004 Marquis was built anytime near when my 2004 Monterey was built you should have plenty of loose wires attached to circuit breakers, loose wire nuts inside junction boxes and at the back of outlets.  

If I were to bet, I would say you have disconnected or loose wires behind the washer/dryer outlet.

But first, I would start with a volt meter and check the output at the circuit breaker.  If you are lucky, it will be a bad breaker and those are easy to replace.

It that is OK, then you will have to check for voltage coming into the back of the washer/dryer outlet.   That outlet probably is the quick insert type and not the more durable screw type.  Getting to the washer/dryer outlet may require removing the washer/dryer.  Save your back!  Get a couple of large young men to move it for you.

If there is voltage at the circuit breaker output and no voltage at the back of the outlet, you have a junction box with loose wire nuts on it somewhere.  Try looking in the sewer bay.  (Not everyone knows that there is a disguised door on the right side of many of our rigs.  It is the panel that looks like a door but has no latch.  There are two latches under the door.   Behind that door are a couple of tanks, lots of plumbing and lots of wire.

Good luck!

[Edward Buker]

I have the AC schematic to a 2000 Marquis. I would guess that your 2004 and the 2000 are wired in a similar fashion for the washer dryer given that it is a device with a significant electrical load. For the 2000 model year the schematic shows that the outlet box is direct fed from a breaker in the main rear bedroom breaker box with no additional outlets or J boxes involved. If that is the case, as discussed check the breaker output with a voltmeter, the output at the incoming wire to the outlet that feeds the washer dryer, and the plug terminals that of the outlet. When checking be sure that the ground and white neutral leads are tight in the breaker box as well as the outlet. I have also had the breaker contacts to the buss bar in the brealer box arc and erode the contacts. Be sure and pull the breaker and check that all is well there. Hope this helps.

Regards Ed

[Don Voss]

Thanks for your replies.  I have since discovered that there are two buses, an upper and lower ones, in the circuit breaker panel.   Both of them controlled by the main switch at the left side of the panel.  I am testing all of this with my generator operating.  The upper bus is powered and the lower bus has no power.  The washer/dryer circuit breaker is on the lower bus and it works when moved over to one of the slots for the upper bus.  I will have to check with the Bend service center if it might have something to do with the power transfer relay.  If not, it might be the main switch.  Does the Alladin system indicate both legs with power when on generator power?  Mine doesn't, which I suppose confirms my lower bus not being powered.  I bought the coach from the estate of the deceased original owner in April therefore I didn't get a check out on the coach's quirks.  There are a couple of other issues I need to check with the electrics.  I discovered that the front air conditioner is getting its power from the CB labeled "Inverter" and there is a loose wire inside the panel with a screw cap on it with a piece of bare aluminum wire sticking out from under the cap.  The wire is identical to the other wires coming from the other CBs...  Pretty strange.  The CB labeled "front air conditioner" has no wire in it and it is also on the lower ac bus.  This leads me to believe the original owner had an issue with power and just hooked up his front air conditioner somewhere on the inverter wire.  This is all pretty much above my pay grade and I am afraid it might also puzzle the local RV repair outfits here in SoCal.


Don Voss

2004 Marquis

[Edward Buker]

Don,

It could be the transfer switch or it could be the wiring between the switch and the panel. My transfer switch is a grey box approx 10 inch by 10 inch box on the ceiling of the storage bay near the inverter. (2002 Marquis) I would plug into shore power and remove the cover of the transfer switch. You will find two large relays. One is fed by the power cord and the other by the generator. The output of these relays is in parallel and feeds the main panel. Measure the relay input side (the one that is not in parallel)
and see if both the red to white and black to white measure 120V. You could check the same thing with the generator running on the other relay. If the 120V is there on both legs then measure the output side of the relays. If 120V is not present on each leg then you have a bad tranfer relay. If 120V is present on both legs, (black to white and red to white) then check the voltage at the main panel. If there is not 120V on each leg in the panel then the wire that feeds the panel has an open somewhere and will need to have an alternate wire run to the box unless a junction box and a loose connection is involved and repaired. I have enclosed a photo of the relays to identify what you are looking for. Hope this helps.
Later Ed