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Old 08-17-2019, 09:16 PM   #21
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Check your emergency breakaways cable disconnect switch at the hitch to make sure it didn't get inadvertently pulled out - if that happens it will turn your brakes on and that can deplete the battery. Are your 12 volt interior items like lights range hood fan etc. working OK?
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Old 08-17-2019, 10:56 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dee View Post
1. We are having trouble locating the 40 amp fuse you are all referring to. The amazon link shows an orange fuse There is nothing like that. There is a little metal box with 2 posts a “circuit breaker” as in the photo thatDavid posted. Robin checked the voltage across those posts and it was zero.
IF you look back to the pic I posted earlier, the 40 map Maxi fuse is inside the fuse holder that is underneath the tag that says "Battery #1 positive". The rectangular cover snaps off and the maxi fuse is inside.
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Fuse holder.jpg  
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Old 08-17-2019, 11:36 PM   #23
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Lots of good advice so far.

I'm a little confused how you're actually using the multimeter.

Here's what I do when trouble shooting for a suspected blown fuse or broken connection.

After checking the obvious, the battery voltage and the connections to the battery terminals I attach the negative lead of the multimeter to a major ground, either the battery negative or the negative buss terminal by the panel. It basically stays there for the whole trouble shooting. Sometimes I even use something like a long piece of wire to extend the negative lead if I'm working far from the panel.

Then I take the positive lead and start touching everything in sight. Touch a fuse terminal, voltage, yes, check the other terminal, no voltage, bingo. Touch one side of a light switch, voltage, yes, check other side, no voltage; turn on switch, no voltage, bingo, defective switch. You get the idea.

Once you get used to trouble shooting that way you can check a lot of stuff in a very short time.

You can also substitute a plain old 12 volt light bulb with wire leads on it.

Good luck

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Old 08-18-2019, 08:09 AM   #24
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It appears that the batteries are receiving some charge. It could be that the solar charger is functioning but the battery charger in the converter is not, or at least the output from the charger isn't reaching your batteries.

The solar probably can not keep up with your needs.

According to Escape the solar charger is connected direct to your batteries. I assume it goes through the main battery fuse. That would tell us that fuse is ok. Plus if the main battery fuse is gone you wouldn't have any 12V available without being on shore power. Do the lights work with the shore power off ?

One easy test you can do is to measure the battery voltage at night (so no solar power). That should tell you if the battery charger in the converter is functioning. Measure the battery voltage without any shore power, then turn it on and see what the battery voltage is after the surge protector connects up. You should have about 12.5 V with no shore power, it should jump up over 13V when the shore power is turned on.

Obviously if your having battery issues the inverter should be kept off until this is resolved.

I'm sure you have done this but be sure the battery terminal are tight and clean.

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Old 08-18-2019, 08:18 AM   #25
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Another thought, if you are using the Escape supplied solar controller to indicate the % charge in your batteries it not meaningful. It is using the voltage to indicate % battery charge.
I noticed it will instantly drop several % if I turn on some lights, or go up if the sun comes out from behind a cloud.

Bob
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Old 08-18-2019, 05:55 PM   #26
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dee View Post
Thank you for all your advice but we are not managing to sort it out because we are so unfamiliar with the electrical equipment. Here’s a summary of where we are at. We will try to get on the phone with ETI next time we are within cell range and it is a weekday.

Something I forgot about to mention that may be helpful- the day before we noticed that the battry charge was low we had an odd event withe ceiling fan. It started beeping and turning on and off. Then it stopped and worked properly so we thought no more about it. Is that a clue maybe?


1. We are having trouble locating the 40 amp fuse you are all referring to. The amazon link shows an orange fuse There is nothing like that. There is a little metal box with 2 posts a “circuit breaker” as in the photo thatDavid posted. Robin checked the voltage across those posts and it was zero.
2. We have checked all the connections and the fluid
The EMI is cycling through its messages:
124
3A
60H
E0

3.The power is coming into the trailer (the AC works)
4. The solar panel seems to be working as the sun is out and we are now up to 60% battery.
5. The 200 amp fuse seems fine (it looks like a large bead of solder- is that what it’s supposed to look like?)

(Meanwhile we are Waiting in Dawson city for the snow to clear on the Dempster highway so that we can carry on to Inuvik and Tuk. )
Silly question but did not see it in your comments but is the main battery disconnect switch tripped or in the off position. If it is your converter powers everything but will not charge the battery. Solar will still charge it but not the converter
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Old 08-18-2019, 06:12 PM   #27
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Greg and Kathy View Post
Silly question but did not see it in your comments but is the main battery disconnect switch tripped or in the off position. If it is your converter powers everything but will not charge the battery. Solar will still charge it but not the converter
I second checking the disconnect switch. The only things between the batteries and the converter are the disconnect switch & the 40 amp fuse inside the battery box. As others have mentioned, the solar controller output goes directly to the battery (through a 30 amp thermal breaker) so it sounds like either the switch is off, has failed, or has loose connections, or the 40 amp fuse is open.
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Old 08-18-2019, 08:05 PM   #28
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I second checking the disconnect switch. ...
Yes, using that trusty multimeter - that you are now becoming best friends with - measure the voltage directly at the two switch terminals with the converter running. Switch ON is when the voltage is totally zero, switch OFF is when the voltage is not zero. Then flip the switch - does the voltage stay the same as before? Or did the voltage change between zero and not zero. Note that it is not important to observe the polarity + or -. Only the change of voltage is important. Nor is the actual voltage important, meaning that "not zero" could be as little as a half a volt. (All of the above only applies to this particular switch.)

If the voltage stays exactly the same in both switch positions then the switch is defective. Do report what you find.
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Old 08-18-2019, 09:19 PM   #29
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Yes, using that trusty multimeter - that you are now becoming best friends with - measure the voltage directly at the two switch terminals with the converter running. Switch ON is when the voltage is totally zero, switch OFF is when the voltage is not zero. Then flip the switch - does the voltage stay the same as before? Or did the voltage change between zero and not zero. Note that it is not important to observe the polarity + or -. Only the change of voltage is important. Nor is the actual voltage important, meaning that "not zero" could be as little as a half a volt. (All of the above only applies to this particular switch.)

If the voltage stays exactly the same in both switch positions then the switch is defective. Do report what you find.
--
Alan
As a technician I always use the meter with black lead on a good ground point and then chase the voltage. The problem with going across the switch is you will get 0 volts if battery fuse is blown and think ithe switch is on and then still get 0 when Off. I am not even sure the converter will output anything if it senses no battery hooked up.

Hook up your black meter lead to a good ground or the Negative of the battery. Measure both sides of the batter switch with switch off. You should get 12.6 on battery side. Maybe a bit more if solar is charging but should be close to what solar controller says. The other side of battery switch should read the converter output. If you get 0 suspect converter not working. If you get 13.4 volts on converter side and 12.6 on battery side then turn switch on and repeat. You should get 13.4 an both sides. Then measure at battery. If battery is measurement is 12.6 then there is an open between switch and battery.
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Old 08-18-2019, 10:34 PM   #30
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As a technician I always use the meter with black lead on a good ground point and then chase the voltage.
My post #23.

Of course it's not entirely impossible that a circuit problem lies in a faulty ground. Using a known good ground lets the positive voltages be checked without the possibility that their ground is faulty.

If all positive voltages check out then it's time to start checking their grounds for continuity.

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Old 08-18-2019, 11:00 PM   #31
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My post #23.

Of course it's not entirely impossible that a circuit problem lies in a faulty ground. Using a known good ground lets the positive voltages be checked without the possibility that their ground is faulty.

If all positive voltages check out then it's time to start checking their grounds for continuity.

Ron
Well said Ron
Learning proper use of a meter is essential for electrical repairs.
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Old 08-28-2019, 06:39 PM   #32
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Perhaps similar to a recent problem I recently encountered w my 3 yr old 17B w about 20,000 miles w solar and 2 6V batteries. Solar would sometimes flash w overcharge..... batteries wouldn’t charge by any manner other than directly from trickle charger. Best of all, it was intermittent problem. After lots of troubleshooting found problem to be loose connection under seat in nest of wiring. There was a short wire only a few inches long against the rear wall of trailer hidden by other wires and structures. I found it after running my fingers along all the wires. Could not see this wire without mirror. Nut had come off allowing ring connector to bounce around on post. I think it might be part of wiring that keeps solar always connected (like a bypass wire).. Examine wires and connections under seat very carefully. This was a tough one to find. Good Luck and Happy Travels.
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Old 08-28-2019, 08:37 PM   #33
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We had the same problem this Spring in our 5.0TA........it was a defective surge protector made by Progressive Industries.........contact Escape they will tell you to contact them for warranty
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Old 09-21-2019, 12:34 AM   #34
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Check the converter

Dee,
I recently had the exact same problems you describe. The issue on my 21 was a failed shore-power-to-12 VDC converter. The converter failed to send a charging DC current to the batteries. The fuses were ok. The converter is located just below the fuse panel in the WFCO Distribution Center.
Page 5 of the Operator manual (provided with your trailer) has a troubleshooting guide that can be used. It is simple to follow.
It was deceiving to me because the DC circuits in the trailer generally worked ok, ...but they are fed by the batteries, not the converter, even when plugged into shore-power. Making matters worse was a defective solar panel. So my batteries were slowly being depleted, and then furnace and other issues started with batteries at or below 50%. After the converter and solar panel were replaced, everything now works great.
The replacement was easy, 2 screws and 4 or 5 wires. ETI shipped me one from stock.
So, as ‘Greg and Kathy’ posted, check out the converter DC output. Your converter may be failing.


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Old 09-21-2019, 11:34 AM   #35
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Problem Solved!!!

Quote:
Originally Posted by BilltheGil View Post
Dee,
I recently had the exact same problems you describe. The issue on my 21 was a failed shore-power-to-12 VDC converter. The converter failed to send a charging DC current to the batteries. The fuses were ok. The converter is located just below the fuse panel in the WFCO Distribution Center.
Page 5 of the Operator manual (provided with your trailer) has a troubleshooting guide that can be used. It is simple to follow.
It was deceiving to me because the DC circuits in the trailer generally worked ok, ...but they are fed by the batteries, not the converter, even when plugged into shore-power. Making matters worse was a defective solar panel. So my batteries were slowly being depleted, and then furnace and other issues started with batteries at or below 50%. After the converter and solar panel were replaced, everything now works great.
The replacement was easy, 2 screws and 4 or 5 wires. ETI shipped me one from stock.
So, as ‘Greg and Kathy’ posted, check out the converter DC output. Your converter may be failing.


Bill Gilchrist
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Hi Bill,
You are exactly correct! We were lucky that I noticed that our solar panel failed before our 8 week trip to the Arctic, so we were able to replace it before we left home. The converter failure happened on the road but we had the solar functioning fine by then, so we were fine.

The converter failure was difficult to diagnose. When we reached Whitehorse we were able to find an excellent mobile RV tech, who was also an electrician. He was able to track down where the failure was. Fortunately I was able to get Dustin from ETI service department on the phone at that time, and the RV tech and Dustin were able to speak directly about the problem.

We made a service appointment with ETI and dropped the trailer there on the way home. We had several small issues that needed repair, mostly due to the rough roads we were travelling. Happily we live close by in Nanaimo, so I can retrieve the trailer next week.

There was one other issue that I should mention because it was potentially very serious: Our propane stove was leaking propane while in use. Fortunately I have a sharp sense of smell, backed up by the propane alarm in the trailer. At this point we were in Dawson City. We had a plumber check it out. He confirmed that there was a leak but he did not have the correct parts. He did install a shut-off valve so that we could still use the propane for other appliances without endangering our lives. Again super lucky- we did not blow up the trailer or die in our sleep!!!

It has been a journey! We had the trip of a lifetime, despite some technical difficulties.
Anyone interested in our 8 week trip from Vancouver Island to Tuktoyatuk? You can find our trip blog at LoveNestTravels.tumblr.com

Many thanks!
Deirdre Love
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Old 09-22-2019, 04:03 PM   #36
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Dee,

I wonder if the converter failing caused the solar panel to fail, or vice-versus?
Doesn’t matter to me as long as it doesn’t happen again!


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Old 09-22-2019, 07:30 PM   #37
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I wonder...
I think our solar panel failed 2-3 weeks before the converter went. There was a strange incident with the ceiling fan that happened the day before I noticed that the battery was not charging from shore power. The fan started to turn on and off repeatedly, by itself, for about 1 minute. Then it went back to normal function. This little seizure may have been caused by the converter failing.
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