2016 Seneca Inverter issue

[dnomyar]

Looking for some guidance on this one..

On our last trip we stopped at a rest stop and I needed to use the microwave. (engine off) With people sleeping I didn't want to turn the generator on, so I decided to use the invertor. I turned on the inverter the LCD screen illuminated and the microwave beeped.. After setting the microwave for 1 minute I hit start and the microwave started. But then after a little while turned off. The display was black on the microwave

Checking the inverter LCD display it was no longer illuminated. I turned it off and back on and nothing.. After the 3rd attempt it came back on and everything worked for a short while, then it stopped again.. I saw something on the inverter LCD that said something to the affect of "powering down".. I didn't catch the full message.

After that, no LCD display, no power to the microwave or tv. Checking the battery connections everything is good and tight. My batteries were showing fully charged. I checked fuses and everything and I can't seem to figure this one out.

Side note: After 3 days of not using the inverter I tried it again just for kicks and it came on, powered the microwave. However no volts, no amps, nothing was showing on the LCD screen. It just illuminated green. Thoughts??

[Mark S]

When I go to use the microwave on 2018 Seneca, it trips power off and I get an error message of "low voltage" on inverter screen even though panel read 13.2 volts or something. Only way I could turn it back on was to kill the main battery switch at the door and turn on again. Same thing with coffee maker plugged into microwave outlet. Turns off after a couple of seconds. TVs work fine.

I checked all connections which seem tight. I haven't pursued it any further since we are on the road. Please let me know what you find.

Only thing I learned was to kill the battery to restore.

[Mountain Cajun]

Originally Posted by Mark S

When I go to use the microwave on 2018 Seneca, it trips power off and I get an error message of "low voltage" on inverter screen even though panel read 13.2 volts or something. Only way I could turn it back on was to kill the main battery switch at the door and turn on again. Same thing with coffee maker plugged into microwave outlet. Turns off after a couple of seconds. TVs work fine.



I checked all connections which seem tight. I haven't pursued it any further since we are on the road. Please let me know what you find.



Only thing I learned was to kill the battery to restore.

Are you using the coffee pot and the microwave at the same time?


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[Mark S]

No, one at a time but neither works on inverter. I can run a fan, charge phones and watch TV. Just nothing with a sizable draw. I am assuming batteries are good since they are new and read 13+ volts but haven't checked yet.

[memphis02]

It might be worth your time to inspect your connections, especially the ground wires from batteries and the inverter.

[Mark S]

I finally got around to working on my inverter issue. I can watch multiple TVs and run a fan without issue. With nothing else on, if I run the microwave, it runs for about 2 seconds and then kicks off. The inverter panel reads an error code that indicates low voltage.

Today I took a hydrometer and tested all four batteries. All cells indicated they were good.When plugged in to AC power the panel reads somewhere in the 13-14 volt area and unplugged 12.6 volts. All connections are secure.

Any suggestions? Thanks

[Robbbyr]

Any chance you can put a voltmeter on the 12-volt connections right at the inverter, and then have someone turn on the microwave? Seeing what the voltage reads right at the inverter under load might be revealing. And compare that to the battery bank voltage also (when under the same load) to see if the voltage drop also exists at the batteries. Voltage too low just at the inverter end with the battery end holding steady might indicate excessive resistance due to undersized conductors, or a poor connection not readily evident on visual inspection.

That is where I would start, but if you feel your dealer is motivated and competent, it is still under warranty!

[Mark S]

Originally Posted by Robbbyr

Any chance you can put a voltmeter on the 12-volt connections right at the inverter, and then have someone turn on the microwave? Seeing what the voltage reads right at the inverter under load might be revealing. And compare that to the battery bank voltage also (when under the same load) to see if the voltage drop also exists at the batteries. Voltage too low just at the inverter end with the battery end holding steady might indicate excessive resistance due to undersized conductors, or a poor connection not readily evident on visual inspection.

That is where I would start, but if you feel your dealer is motivated and competent, it is still under warranty!

Thanks Rob. 12.6 volts to the inverter, same as on then panel. When I turn on microwave it shuts inverter down in 2-3 seconds, too short to get a reading.
Coffee maker is only 900 watts and same shut down.

I will call the inverter manufacturer on Monday. I guess a trip to my dealer is in the future. It's not a big deal but it would be nice to be able to make a pot of coffee without running the generator.

Thanks for the suggestion.

Mark

[memphis02]

This is a REALLY long shot, but your inverter might have a bad capacitor / capacitor bank which is not allowing it to sustain internal voltage/amperage during the heavy pull.

[Mark S]

So as I may have mentioned before, sometimes I don't sleep at night, especially when I have really important things on my mind. Like my inverter not working correctly.

So I read through the Magnun Dimensions Inverter PDF and right there on page 26 was the flow chart of the inverter operations. And right there was the choice of "SDL or SDH". Clear as mud, right?. "SDH" prevents the inverter from discharging the batteries too much and, yup, trips the inverter off when the voltage momentarily drops below 11.8 volts, which it does when the microwave or coffee maker turn on. "SDL" does not trip until the voltage reaches 10.5. And of course it came with the SDH setting.

I switched to SDL and I am now drinking coffee I reheated in the microwave on battery power.

I sure wish I knew this when we were on our 10 week trip. I also wish that the Magnum Designs tech support people knew this as well. Oh well, IT WORKS!!!!!!!!

[oldmanAZ]

Glad you resolved it.
It's likely your digging into the issue will help others in the forum, too.

[memphis02]

Great find! Thank you for posting your results. I don't know how many times my butt has been saved by finding a thread, such as this, where some obscure thing has gone sideways that the manufacturer failed to document or advertise and someone has sleuthed it out.

[javamon]

Something I frequently mumble to myself..."When all else fails, read the instructions." Thanks for the update Mark .... I think I will review my inverter manual as well.

[JOEA]

I am having a similar issue with my 2017 Seneca 37 TS. However, the circuit that supplies power to the 3 TV's and the Microwave is dead. This includes when I'm on house power, generator or battery. I can run an extension cord to each component and they work fine. Heading to dealer to trouble shoot

[Mark S]

Originally Posted by JOEA

I am having a similar issue with my 2017 Seneca 37 TS. However, the circuit that supplies power to the 3 TV's and the Microwave is dead. This includes when I'm on house power, generator or battery. I can run an extension cord to each component and they work fine. Heading to dealer to trouble shoot

Press the power button on the inverter to turn it on. If the power to TVs and microwave come on you will need to change the settings on the inverter. See the flow chart above or I can help walk you through the change. Let me know how it goes.

Mark

[memphis02]

Originally Posted by JOEA

I am having a similar issue with my 2017 Seneca 37 TS. However, the circuit that supplies power to the 3 TV's and the Microwave is dead. This includes when I'm on house power, generator or battery. I can run an extension cord to each component and they work fine. Heading to dealer to trouble shoot

On mine, there are two sets of breakers. Have you verified that either/or is not tripped?

[JOEA]

All breakers are set, also no change when powered up inverter. I've read through the manuals and have exhausted my troubleshooting. The primary 50 amp breaker is a double. I may pull and have it tested.
Joe
2017 Seneca 37TS
2007 Honda Element

[RVermont]

Just confirming that you reset the small push in circuit breaker on the inverter. Not sure if the units are the same but on the csw2012 120 v side there is a small 20 amp circuit breaker. It appears that the 120 power passes through the high voltage side of the inverter. When there is 120 power supplied to the unit is goes in and out of the unit to the microwave and tvs. When there is no 110 power supplied the circuit opens and the inverter then powers the 110 output circuit. Since you say you don't have power either way, this would appear to be the culprit. I will post a photo of this shortly.


your inverter might have an actual gfi outlet in which case you can simply reset that plug.


A quick test if you have a proximity voltage tester is to test the two power lines on the high voltage side of the inverter.

[RVermont]

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[JOEA]

Thanks for the info. I did inspect the inverter but may not have reset the the plug. I'll check it out this weekend.