wealthwise
Florida
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I apologize for starting a new thread, but it looks like the last one I started died, here is a link for convenience old thread I am still having problems getting shore power to work on 110. I checked the volts with a multi-meter set at 200 on AC and the reading shows the house current 117-118 volts, the same when plugged into the shore power and plug the meter into the outlet inside the coach. Is this too much or too little? How do I check the amperage? I'm at a loss here. I can't figure out why I can't get the power needed, I'm able to power a swamp cooler frig and Microwave inside the house, yet the only thing that seems to go on inside the R.V. is the Norcold. Someone suggested that I trip the breaker on the converter to take it offline, but I can't find anyway to do it. I have cleaned the prongs checked the connection on the wires in the plug, replaced the adapter and all I get is enough juice for the lights to go on and that's it.
I would appreciate any further thoughts or suggestions.
Thanks
* This post was
edited 05/27/08 12:35pm by wealthwise *
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2oldman
WA
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Doesn't look like your old thread died.
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agesilaus
North Florida
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117 Volts is common and not a problem. You need an ampmeter, usually a clamp on type You have to split the two wires in an ac circuit apart and clamp the meter over just one to use the meter. On a dc circuit I guess you'd clamp over the hot wire. Harbor Freight has one on sale for $10 right now.
Not being an electrician I don't know how much use that would be to have one.
BK
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wealthwise
Florida
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Thanks for the advice, I will have to see if I can find one, nearest Harbor Frieght I think is in Macon far from here. Any other ideas?
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vermilye
Oswego, NY, USA
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You may be expecting too much from the 15 amp household receptacle. Depending on the breaker feeding the receptacle, you have either 1800 watts available with a 15 amp breaker or 2400 watts available with a 20 amp breaker. Drawing more will trip the breaker. As others have stated in the previous thread, your converter can draw quite a bit of current if your batteries are low or your lighting & other 12 volt loads are high. Add that to the heater element in the refer, some 120V AC appliances, and it is likely there isn't enough available power to fire up the AC.
A long wiring run, either in the house or as an extension cord, or an undersized extension cord can lower the available voltage so even less power is available. When you measure the voltage to check it, it must be under load. If it is under 108 or so that would be a reason the AC does not start.
If you want to determine the amperage for different devices I suggest a Kill O Watt meter. Plug each device in your RV into the meter to determine its wattage or amperage. You could also check the draw of the entire RV when using an adapter by plugging the adapter into the Kill O Watt.
A last point - you can't use your generator to determine if the adapter is causing the problem because the generator produces 30 amps or 3600 watts, twice what you get from a 15 amp household receptacle.
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AlanB
Sierra Vista, AZ
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I wouldn't worry about the amps right now. What is it that does not work? The voltage is just right. This means you have power in the coach. The amps are dependent on the load, the available amps are determined by the circuit breaker rating. OK, so what happens if you turn on the microwave? Are you plugged into at the house, a 15 amp outlet?
AlanB
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RodT82721
Pine Haven, Wyoming
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If you have an electric heater, 1500 watts or something that does not have a motor but will produce a good load. While measuring the 120 VAC outlet for voltage, turn on the heater and watch the voltage. It the voltage stays up arouind 117 and the heater works, you have proved that the 120 VAC power source to your RV is working. Shore Power cable, adaapter, etc. If the voltage drops off and / or the heater does not work, then you have a problem with the Shore Powere connection. Start by using another source, then another adapter, etc. until you get the heater to work inside you RV. If you cant do that then call an electrician.
Hope this helps
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YC 1
Yuba City Calif.
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Reading your old thread suggest that your AC is humming ?
Do you have 1 or two AC's. If two there is slim chance there is enough supply to run them from an outlet from the house.
If you are careful you need to get into the MH breaker panel with a voltmeter. You need to see if the incoming voltage is holding at 110 volts. Then you need to see if the breaker is passing the full voltage. If this works you need to get to the AC and see if the full voltage is there. You could have a loose wire connection anywhere in the path. 110 volts is deadly so you need to be extremely careful. Just think of the electricity as water in a hose. If there is a kink/loose connections somewhere you will not get the full volume needed.
Is your microwave working now ?
If so there may another issue with the AC such as a starting capacitor or a sticky bearing. The hum might be the compressor but the fan may not be turning. With power off rotate the fan motor by hand to make sure it spins easily.
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agesilaus
North Florida
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wealthwise wrote:Thanks for the advice, I will have to see if I can find one, nearest Harbor Frieght I think is in Macon far from here. Any other ideas?
I don't know where Harbor Freight is physically, they are a common online seller of tools of mostly Chinese origin. So many people use them to buy tools that will not be frequently used:
Harbor Freight
A lot of TT users buy their $19 18v cordless drill to carry along on trips and use to drive the jacks up and down.
BK
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othertonka
Stockton, CA
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Wealthwise, to be blunt, you have been given a lot of good advice but you don't seem to take any of it. You continue to try and do something that you can not do on a 110 Volt connection to a 15 amp circuit from your housethrough a extension cord, and that is to run an Airconditioner in your RV from this underpowered source. You don't seem to have any knowledge of electricity. Sorry but it will never happen no matter if you buy an AMP meter or whatever. Go back and read all the posts again. Good luck
Othertonka
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