I recently replaced the 8-12v house batteries on our 2016 Newmar Mountain Aire, not because of any issues, just because we plan to use the MH quite a bit this year and they were close to 7 years old. These are designed to plug into the RV park’s electrical pedestal and detect any electrical issues before you plug in. If you don’t know how to use a voltmeter, learn or get an electrical management device. Don’t plug into an RV park electrical pedestal without checking the power source.That may be okay to just run the converter to keep batteries charged, but that’s about it! You will ruin the AC and burn up your wiring. Don’t plug your RV into a 15 amp outlet using an adapter, and then try and run your Air conditioner unit.Turn them back on when you need them, and not all at once, especially on a 30 amp RV! Be sure to turn off your major amp drawing items, and you will avoid tripping breakers when you get to your next destination. The lesson from the example above is don’t unplug your RV without allowing your appliances to cycle off before shutting off the main power.They only had 3,600 watts available to use, at most! And when an air condition first kicks on, it requires approximately another 500 watts. Perhaps it was the main breaker in the RV, or perhaps the breaker at the electrical pedestal. Dometic Fridge at 120 volts x 4 amps = 480 wattsĪll those appliances were still switched on and were calling for power because the RV was hot inside, the hot water had cooled off, the fridge needed to keep cooling and was switching from propane, and the batteries needed charging.Īfter a few minutes of being plugged in, the Smiths were sitting without AC, hot water, and ice-cold beer because the breaker tripped.Converter at 7 amps x 120 volts = 840 watts. ![]() Electric Water Heater at 12 amps x 120 volts = 1,440 watts.Air Conditioner at 20 amps x 120 volts = 2,400 watts.Smith got to their destination and plugged in their RV? Remember, everything was left on! Let’s examine the load on the system: Oh, and this is a 120 volt / 30 amp electrical system. The electric water heater was on, the air conditioner unit was running, the converter was charging the batteries, and the fridge was set to be on electric when plugged in. They had it plugged in at home and had all the electrical items running before they left. Smith, and the kids, hook up their travel trailer and head out for the weekend. Do you know what these are and how to figure out what your maximum usage is in your RV? If you don’t, the big purple monkey may visit you! So, let me get the monkey off your back! Most electrical products have labels to tell you what kind of electrical requirements they need and use: volts, amps, and watts. House 120 Volt System: Just like in a “sticks and bricks” home, 120-volt alternating current is needed to power the air conditioner units, the microwave, the electric heating element in the water heater and refrigerator, the wall receptacles, the converter, and any other 120 volt accessories the RV may have. In order to keep the batteries charged, just like the alternator does in a car, the RV has a converter that takes 120 volts and converts that to 12 volts to charge the deep cycle batteries. ![]() RV 12 Volt System: These are the deep cycle batteries that power all the 12-volt lights, the circuit boards of the RV appliances, the fresh water pump, the propane detector, the slide outs, and the leveling jacks. On a motorized RV, this power comes from the batteries attached to the alternator, just like in a car. On a trailer or 5th wheel, this power comes through the 7-way pin connector that attaches to the tow vehicle. By learning how they work together, you can remain comfortable in your home on wheels.Ĭhassis 12 Volt System: This is the power from the chassis batteries that run the exterior running lights, the stop lights, and the turn signals of the RV. Once you understand how they work together, you will be able to diagnose problems that arise. The best way to avoid RV electrical problems is to understand the three electrical systems that you have in your RV. And it climbs on your back and laughs at you while you panic! If you don’t have at least a basic understanding of how RV electrical problems can arise, then the purple monkey may visit you quite often! How to Avoid RV Electrical Problems! ![]() What is a purple monkey? It’s a big hairy problem that does not seem to have an immediate answer due to a distortion of the facts.
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