Fan Noise 21'

[m&k]

Under the U shaped bench in back of 21' is a fan (I think) that is on ALL the time.
Thought it was Simplex inverter, as it has green light on, but it is not even warm.
Husband thinks it is the box behind where the fuses are, as it IS warm.
Is all that OK or do we need to do something. Got trailer used, thank goodness for
the help we have gotten from the forum!! Marilyn

[thoer]

Marilyn, if it is where the fuses are, that is the converter/battery charger and its fan will indeed run quite often when you are plugged in to shore power.

[rubicon327]

Originally Posted by m&k

Under the U shaped bench in back of 21' is a fan (I think) that is on ALL the time.

It sounds like the cooling fan on the converter. I assume that ETI still uses the WFCO 8955. If it is running all the time something doesn't sound right. Ours rarely runs. If the trailer is very warm inside maybe that increases run time but it should still turn off.

From the WFCO website:
"The 8900 Series also maintains peace and quiet, as the cooling fan runs only when needed."

[cpaharley2008]

Perhaps if the inverter is on then the converter is also on and needs cooling??

[m&k]

Sorry for the delaying answering, have been running around looking for things to put back up camera together. No manual, so flying by the seat of our pants on this. He is having a wonderful time trying to figure it all out - me not so much.

Read your replies to Kip as he was passing through. We have not been on shore power, the inverter is on - we have solar on the roof. Again, we do not know much at all about inverters, they don't have those on Casitas.

Thank you for sharing what you could, will go out and check to see if it is still going.
Evidently it has to turn itself off (correct). But I could turn off the inverter, right?
I read all the posts on inverters that I could find (and understand). From that info., have decided we probably do not need one.

Trying hard not to damage anything before we figure out how it all works together.
Thank goodness we found out yesterday the batteries were not sealed, so put distilled water in them. One thing a day, should get it all taken care of before spring!
When Casita offered an upgraded battery, it was a sealed one, jumped to conclusions that weren't correct.
Thank you so much, Marilyn

[rbryan4]

Marilyn, since you're not connected to shore power, unless you're using something plugged in to an AC outlet, turn your inverter off. You don't need it, and it's a drain on the batteries. When you are connected to shore power, the inverter isn't used.

To overly simplify: inverters are used to provide AC power when you're not connected to AC power. Converters are used to provide the trailer with DC power. That comes usually from shore power, an AC power source.

[Rossue]

This was my thought when I first saw this. If the green light is on the inverter is on and doesn't need to be unless you want to run a coffee maker or something while not plugged into shore power.

As it is a used trailer over a year old you should go down the maintenance checklist before spring and first thing that comes to mind is wheel bearing maintenance, which while they are being repacked they will check the brakes too.

[m&k]

The inverter is bolted to the floor and the only button to switch seems to be the red one at the end where the green light is on. Says I on one end of red switch and O on the other end. That did nothing.

It has an Inverter remote on side panel of dinette, that possibly has instructions. The refrigerator has stayed quite cool for two days after my husband thought he had turned it off. However, the inverter reads nothing going out. So sorry, this is complicated and taking way more of your time on a Sunday than we should.

[Mike Lewis]

I don't recall the fan on the WFCO converter/charger running while I was on battery power. What would make it run is if I had depleted the batteries then plugged the trailer in to shore power. Then the fan would run as the batteries were charging.

If I have the inverter on, its fan will run constantly, even when I have no load on the 120V circuit.

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by m&k

The inverter is bolted to the floor and the only button to switch seems to be the red one at the end where the green light is on. Says I on one end of red switch and O on the other end. That did nothing.

It has an Inverter remote on side panel of dinette, that possibly has instructions. The refrigerator has stayed quite cool for two days after my husband thought he had turned it off. However, the inverter reads nothing going out. So sorry, this is complicated and taking way more of your time on a Sunday than we should.

Ok, let's simplify again. If your inverter has the remote panel, you don't need to switch anything on the inverter itself. You simply push the button on the remote panel to turn the inverter on or off. But, as I mentioned before, unless you're NOT on shore power and ARE using something plugged into an AC outlet, leave the inverter turned off.

As for the fridge, it doesn't use the inverter at all. It runs on either propane, AC power when connected to shore power, or DC power from the batteries. I usually leave it on propane. Better cooling. It will use a small amount of DC power however, even when propane is selected, in order to run the control panel and board.

It's easy to tell if the fridge is on. If there is a light on the control panel, it's on. If not, it's off. The symbols on the panel tell you which power source you're using.

But back to the fan noise. You said you are not plugged in to shore power. That means the fan noise is likely the inverter. Just turn it off.

[m&k]

Goodness, the fridge was turned off. The Inverter manual we found on the internet, and it said to put it on "O" and the remote said you could turn it on remote there once you had the inverter on "O". Did all that and the inverter green button is still on, which I guess (hope) means nothing about inverter actually being ON or OFF. You have hung in there with me a long time, thank you so much. Tomorrow is another day. Bless you, Marilyn

[KirkB]

Originally Posted by m&k

. Did all that and the inverter green button is still on, which I guess (hope) means nothing about inverter actually being ON or OFF.

If the inverter remote panel is lit up green, then the inverter is on, even if the output reads zero bars. Push the remote button, to turn it off, and the screen will darken. That should stop the inverter fan, and eliminate any draw on the battery.

Try plugging something into an outlet, to verify whether the inverter is on or working. You will definitely hear the inverter fan if anything is plugged in that is drawing very much power.

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by KirkB

If the inverter remote panel is lit up green, then the inverter is on, even if the output reads zero bars. Push the remote button, to turn it off, and the screen will darken.

That's right, but the situation isn't clear because the OP mentioned that they used the switch on the inverter itself. Even that is unclear based on her description. If the inverter switch is off, the remote won't turn it on. If the inverter switch is on, the remote will work for on and off. At least that's how most of them work, and I'm assuming theirs is a Samlex 1500W like mine.

[KirkB]

Originally Posted by m&k

Goodness, the fridge was turned off. The Inverter manual we found on the internet, and it said to put it on "O" and the remote said you could turn it on remote there once you had the inverter on "O".

Originally Posted by rbryan4

That's right, but the situation isn't clear because the OP mentioned that they used the switch on the inverter itself. Even that is unclear based on her description. If the inverter switch is off, the remote won't turn it on. If the inverter switch is on, the remote will work for on and off. At least that's how most of them work, and I'm assuming theirs is a Samlex 1500W like mine.

Robert, I assumed Marilyn got the inverter switched off, but the remote left on. I get this one backwards too, I have to check the manual to be sure. It does seem backwards, but the inverter switch should be off (or "O") to use the remote.

From the inverter manual -
"When using the remote Control SSW-r1-12b, ensure that the oN / off switch on the inverter is in off position"

[escape artist]

Hi: rbryan4... I'm sure there will be a lot of "Fan" noise this weekend... but it will surely be coming from the TV or the 1/4 back arm chairs!!! Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie

[rbryan4]

Originally Posted by KirkB

Robert, I assumed Marilyn got the inverter switched off, but the remote left on. I get this one backwards too, I have to check the manual to be sure. It does seem backwards, but the inverter switch should be off (or "O") to use the remote.

From the inverter manual -
"When using the remote Control SSW-r1-12b, ensure that the oN / off switch on the inverter is in off position"

Thanks for the clarification Kirk.

[m&k]

Thank everyone. We did turn the inverter back on and tried the remote - nothing. Kip called Samlex this morning and a nice fellow named Ken said to unplug the remote and then turn the inverter off. Worked like a charm. He also said the fan was supposed to be on all the time - goodness, the noise would get tiresome pretty quick. So appreciate the help, everyone gave the right advice, the remote must be fried. Kip and Marilyn

[KirkB]

I can't remember the exact symptoms, but I couldn't get my inverter to work once on a pre-trip check. I had to unplug everything, and that resolved the problem, and it has worked fine ever since. Hopefully your remote starts working normally again after the reset.