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Old 07-16-2012, 06:51 PM   #1
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No 12 V power.

Our little 96 popup has been sitting for 3 yrs, and finally getting a chance to go camping. Charged up the battery, and checked the lights,...... nothing. It only has an interior dome light and an outside patio light. (also has 3 way fridge and heater). Checked voltage at batt (12.8v), traced to DC/AC switch, and thru the fuses, and still had voltage. So I'm thinking maybe bad ground. In the meantime, I hook up the 120v and both lights work! So the bulbs work. Wiring is presumably good. But when I switch back to 12v, nothing. Any ideas ? If I don't find anything by this weekend, I'll use an inverter hooked to the battery, and then plug the 120 into that. Doesn't make sense, but........ Anyone? Bueller?
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Old 07-16-2012, 06:54 PM   #2
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Did you check the fuses? Do you have a 12 volt shut off switch? It may have gone bad. The converter works since you have 12 volt power when plugged into AC power. Are the battery wires hooked up correctly? Some where to start. Good luck.
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Old 07-16-2012, 09:32 PM   #3
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Remember, the lights run on DC power even when plugged in. And on the same DC circuit either way. While I don't know what is going on - that is pretty universal....

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Old 07-16-2012, 09:54 PM   #4
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LOL...similar issue last trip out. Made sure the battery was charged, got to the campground & disconnected...no power! Fuses "looked" okay, but discovered the problem. The fuses had corroded and the connection was too poor to get power to the unit. Poor planning=no spare fuses...I took a knife and scraped the corrosion off the fuses, worked it around a bit inside the case, and voila, power! I now have spare fuses...have sprayed the heck out of the in-line fuses with WD-40 and am hoping for the best!
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Old 07-17-2012, 12:23 AM   #5
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Yes, the fuses are OK. Have power in the wires coming out. That's what is so confusing. Same bulb, Same wire. I, too, thought the switch might be the culprit; but with the switch in 12V position, I still have power in the wires coming out of the fuse block and going to the light fixtures. I've questioned the grounding also, but again, they work in 120 volt mode. Battery wires are still hooked up the same as when it was working last time out. I even cleaned the terminals to be sure there was no corrosion. Again, voltage meter shows electricity is getting thru the fuse block.
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Old 07-17-2012, 06:50 AM   #6
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The best way to determine if the battery terminal are correct is to find the stamped "NEG" or "-" symbol on the battery case. Then hand trace this connection which should go directly to a frame ground connection real close to the battery. It is very easy to get these reversed since the same size connection is used on both terminals unlike a car setup.

If the battery connections have been reversed then it will blow a REV POLARITY fuse on your simple converter/charger unit.

My POPUP also has a push button switch that gets pushed "ON" when my fold-over sink/stove unit is setup. This switch kills all the power to the ceiling lights. This happens however in both Shore Power and Battery connections and I think you have said it works when running shore power so probably not your problem.

My connections to the converter/charger unit was those large twist-on connectors which are known to make bad connections. You might locate that in the back of your converter box and check the large wire DC connections...
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Old 07-18-2012, 07:09 AM   #7
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fyi Dielectric grease should be used on all outdoor electrical connections fuses etc. Larry
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Old 07-24-2012, 10:18 PM   #8
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Well, we spent the weekend without power. The 12V>120v>12V transition did not work. I was getting an intermittant noise from somewhere around the converter, whether the switch was in 12V or 120V mode. Back to the drawing board. The next planned trip is a couple weeks away, and I hear those sites have power, so I've still got a little time.
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