Electrical system screw up.

[Michael Hannan]

Well I really screwed up this time.  I was replacing the last of my house batteries and not paying enough attention.  I put one of the batteries in the rack backwards and when I tried to hook up the wiring the battery next to the backward one caught fire and then exploded. So I got the battery turned around and put the best of the old ones back in and got it all hooked up. I turned the house battery switch & the inverter back on and everything was running and the panel showed that the batteries were charging.  I waited for the charging light to turn green before using anything.  I switched on the furnace heat and used the microwave and it was lights out including the inverter panel  No power any wear in the house system.  Shore power was fine and I ran the generator but the panel was still out and no power anywhere.  Then for some reason I decided to start the coach and about 5 seconds after that the inverter panel came on and I was able to switch it to on.  Again the yellow charge light came on.  It turned green after awhile and it was fine for the rest of the night with only the load of my computer & wifi components as well as my CPAP running.  When I tried to run the furnace it worked for about 15 minutes then I could hear the kitchen Fantastic fan slowing and the power went out again.  Restarted the coach and back on it came on.  I am able to watch TV without causing it to crash.  I'm guessing that I caused damage somewhere when the battery blew.  Any ideas of where to start looking? I can get a tech from the one & only RV service place to come over on the ferry tomorrow but they are notoriously very expensive just taking your unit into them.

Hope this all made sense.

Thanks for any help

MJ

[Steven Hoffman]

Check the batteries individually.  You may have damaged one of the remaining new batteries and it isn't holding a charge. 

[Edward Buker]

Michael,

I had the same thoughts as Steve, sounds like the house bank cannot supply enough power to run the coach. Have each battery in the house bank tested and replace any that are bad. You have to start with a good house bank before you move on to any other issues you might have. While the batteries are out, wash the battery holder metal areas with baking soda and water if acid leakage was involved. Check the cables that were between the shorted batteries to be sure they are OK.

Later Ed

[Michael Hannan]

Thanks guys.  I'll check the batteries now.


MJ

[Michael Hannan]

Batteries all checked out at around 6.5 volts each.  Cables all checked out.  No opens. And when I turned the inverter back on it shows it's charging. Made sure that all the cells had the correct water level.

MJ

[Michael Hannan]

I have an extended warranty with Global Warranty.  From what I can read my problem should be covered by it.  I hope.  I'll call the local service centre tomorrow and see if they've dealt with Global's warranties and get the ball rolling with them.

MJ

[Fred Brooks]

             Hi Mike,
  There should be a 200 amp fuse between the batteries and the inverter/charger. If you connected the batteries incorrectly that fuse is there to protect the system from mistakes. Trace the positive cable that goes eventually to the charger and you will find it. That fuse will not be covered by extended warranty but should be available at a local RV facility.
      Regards, Fred

[Michael Hannan]

Thanks Fred.  I'll see if I can find it.


MJ

[Michael Hannan]

I think this is what you are talking about Fred.  This is in the compartment with the Big Boy above the house batteries.  I see the 2 top fuses are marked 200 but the wire (jumper or whatever it's called)  appears to be intact in both.

MJ

[Edward Buker]

Those look like them, measure for 12V on both sides to ground. The picture looks like they are good.

Later Ed

[Michael Hannan]

Ok I have 12V on both sides of both 200 amp fuses.  Prior to me blowing the battery, the Big Bird had a habit of making a thumping sound at various times of the day.  Most noticeably around midnight.  Is there a chance that the Big Boy is shot and is causing my power trouble?  The microwave or things that draw larger amount of amps like the toaster, coffee maker & induction cook top will shut all power down and shut the inverter off.  I can run everything else 12V and 110V like TV surround system and my computer & wifi without any trouble.  I haven't tried the heat pump.  If I understand correctly the heat pump feeds directly off shore power or generator but I don't want to run it and have a shut down again.  Any ideas will be appreciated.

Thanks
MJ

[Edward Buker]

Michael,

It would seem that when you pull current you get a shutdown which is likely due to low voltage from the battery bank. It is really hard to know what is going on and exactly why. We do not know if your battery bank is charged enough or has enough capacity capability to handle a load given you went back to older batteries.

As far as the big boy system, if it use to provide some tell tale sounds of functioning and it no longer does, then it could be bad or it could be that the electrical system that does the charging is not reaching the voltage levels that satisfies the requirements to switch it on or off.

My suggestion would be to unplug the AC cord at the power source, then throw all your AC breakers on and back off again including the one at the power post, ones in the bay if you have a box there, and the main panel in case your charger pulled a large surge when you shorted the batteries that partially tripped a breaker. I would see if the charger has a push button breaker on it and reset that also. This has a really remote possibility of fixing anything but it will not hurt.

After the breakers are all reset you should have enough AC amps/volts from your power source to run those items individually with the inverter off. Check that after the AC breakers are reset, if these items in the coach will work properly. If not then it could be that the transfer switch has been damaged. That uses 12V for a circuit board that switches the AC relays that select generator or shore power. This is just a possibility and not something that is diagnosed.

I think it is time to call in a good tech and have him or her check your batteries, charger/inverter, big boy system, and transfer switch for proper operation. Those systems all need to be in good order to live in the coach without problems.

Later Ed

[Michael Hannan]

Okay.  Thanks Ed.  A technician will be here on Wednesday.

MJ

[Michael Hannan]

UPDATE:

Well my system has gone back to functioning as it should including the thumping the Big Boy was doing is now gone.  Not sure why but I won't complain.  If the symptoms come back I'll call a tech straight away.

Thanks to all for the advice.

MJ