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Old 06-11-2021, 02:53 PM   #1
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Inverter fan???

Hi: In the last week my inverter fan has come on for a long time following plugging into my house power. This is follow driving for a while. Last night it was on so turned off house battery switch. This morning turned it back on and fan stayed off. Any ideas? Batteries have proper level of water.Thanks: 2021 Aria.

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Old 06-11-2021, 04:05 PM   #2
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Your Inverter is wired directly to the battery so putting the Use / Store switch into Store will not power off the Inverter. The Inverter fan is temperature controled usually so that means the Inverter is getting hot.... either from use, not enough air for cooling where it is installed and / or very warm air temperatures.

You need to turn your Inverter off at the control panel for it to truly be off. Now if your inverter has a built-in ATS, it can still be powered on when plugged into shore power even if the control panel for the Inverter is in the off position.
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Old 06-11-2021, 04:56 PM   #3
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Originally Posted by Judge View Post
Your Inverter is wired directly to the battery so putting the Use / Store switch into Store will not power off the Inverter. The Inverter fan is temperature controled usually so that means the Inverter is getting hot.... either from use, not enough air for cooling where it is installed and / or very warm air temperatures.

You need to turn your Inverter off at the control panel for it to truly be off. Now if your inverter has a built-in ATS, it can still be powered on when plugged into shore power even if the control panel for the Inverter is in the off position.
So, when I am plugged into shore power and house battery switch is on, should I turn inverter off? Will my 120 then be running off shore and not inverter? Frig, microwave and such?
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Old 06-11-2021, 05:27 PM   #4
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So, when I am plugged into shore power and house battery switch is on, should I turn inverter off? Will my 120 then be running off shore and not inverter? Frig, microwave and such?
What's your Inverter Make and Model?

Here is how it works with most coach Inverters.....


1. Certain outlets are wired to the Inverter circuit to power a critical item like a residential fridge and entertainment items like the TV.

2). The Inverter has a built-in Automatic Transfer Switch. When you are on shore or genny power, the AC voltage passes through the Inverter to provide power to the redsidential fridge, etc.

3) If the Inverter is powered on and you lose shore power, the Inverter's ATS will switch over to use battery power to provide AC to the fridge, etc.

4) If the Inverter is power off and there is shore power, the Inverter can still be on (and the cooling fan running) because AC still has to pass through the Inverter via the ATS to provide power to the fridge and other outlets on the Inverter circuit. When shore power is removed and the Inverter is in the off mode, it will shut down completely.

So the bottom line is.... the Inverter will always appear be on when there is shore power (even when the Inverter control panel is switched to off). But it is not the Inverter supplying power. It is the ATS allowing your shore power to pass throught he Inverter to power those outlets in the circuit.

Now your Inverter should have a 15A or 20A breaker in the Power Distirbution Panel that controls the AC input to the Inverter and the built-in ATS. That breaker could be labeled "Inverter" but I have also seen it labeled as "TV or Fridge Receptacles." If you switch that breaker off and you turn the Inverter control panel off, you will shut down the Inverter entirely. But be advised that means a fridge and anything else on the Inverter circuit will have no power if you switch off the breaker and switch the Inverter control panel to off.
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Old 06-11-2021, 06:01 PM   #5
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Thanks. I guess we will live with it as is: we bought the coach in March and have been on the road 30% of the time and never heard it on until last week. I will look up the info went I get home:
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Old 06-11-2021, 06:10 PM   #6
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If your inverter stays on while on shore power all you need to do is go to your panel, go into the AC display, tap on the inverter button until it says "Pass-Through". Be aware that if you go through the 3 different settings, one of them says "Off". That will reset your Microwave time and turn of your refrigerator.


While on shore power, your inverter should switch to pass-through automatically a few seconds after shore power is applied.
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Old 06-11-2021, 06:52 PM   #7
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Just to be clear which you're referring to?
An inverter uses the 12 volt coach batteries the power 120 volt items connected to it, residential fridge & possibly a couple plugs, typically not the microwave or the entire 120 volt system in the coach.
A converter uses the 120 volt incoming voltage, be it shore power or generator, to power all the 12 volt items onboard & charge the batteries. If running lots of lights, the furnace or the batteries are getting weak not holding their charge the cooling fan will run constantly due to the converter running constantly trying to maintain the batteries.
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Old 06-11-2021, 06:58 PM   #8
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Originally Posted by Travelin' Texans View Post
Just to be clear which you're referring to?
An inverter uses the 12 volt coach batteries the power 120 volt items connected to it, residential fridge & possibly a couple plugs, typically not the microwave or the entire 120 volt system in the coach.
A converter uses the 120 volt incoming voltage, be it shore power or generator, to power all the 12 volt items onboard & charge the batteries. If running lots of lights, the furnace or the batteries are getting weak not holding their charge the cooling fan will run constantly due to the converter running constantly trying to maintain the batteries.

Sure - Clarification follows:


The originator of the post owns an Aria 3401. This model of coach uses an inverter and has a firefly panel where the controls for the inverter exist.


With that in mind, I made the suggestion of setting the inverter into pass-through mode.
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Old 06-11-2021, 09:22 PM   #9
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Thor generally provides not only a vent within the INVERTER compartment, which is generally in one of your rear compartments, but many times also a 'secondary' FAN, temperature controlled, ADDED by the factory. It's not necessarily the INVERTER that is getting hot, but the Fan SENSOR is getting hot, meaning the fan will STAY ON, sometimes hours and hours, even when you are NOT using the inverter.
Touch the 'button' sensor with a piece of ice for a moment, and it will turn the fan off.
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Old 06-11-2021, 10:12 PM   #10
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Originally Posted by TurnerFam View Post
Thor generally provides not only a vent within the INVERTER compartment, which is generally in one of your rear compartments, but many times also a 'secondary' FAN, temperature controlled, ADDED by the factory. It's not necessarily the INVERTER that is getting hot, but the Fan SENSOR is getting hot, meaning the fan will STAY ON, sometimes hours and hours, even when you are NOT using the inverter.
Touch the 'button' sensor with a piece of ice for a moment, and it will turn the fan off.
Never had a vent or supplemental fan in any compartment which housed the inverter in any motorhome.
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Old 06-11-2021, 11:06 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by HMCSW View Post
Hi: In the last week my inverter fan has come on for a long time following plugging into my house power. This is follow driving for a while. Last night it was on so turned off house battery switch. This morning turned it back on and fan stayed off. Any ideas? Batteries have proper level of water.Thanks: 2021 Aria.
Do you have an inverter/charger? Or a converter/charger. From your description it sounds like a charging circuit is loaded to charge the house batteries when you stopped and plugged in, hence the cooling fan running.
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Old 06-12-2021, 03:22 PM   #12
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Palazzos and many diesel 'whole house' Inverter installs are supplemented with an additional FAN in the bay that houses the Inverter - it gets hot in there, there's little air movement.
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Old 06-12-2021, 03:44 PM   #13
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Right- it is just something that has not come on since we have owned it and 3,000 miles and: 30 nights at RV parks. But it has been a little warmer so maybe that is it?
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Old 06-20-2021, 02:19 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by TurnerFam View Post
Thor generally provides not only a vent within the INVERTER compartment, which is generally in one of your rear compartments, but many times also a 'secondary' FAN, temperature controlled, ADDED by the factory. It's not necessarily the INVERTER that is getting hot, but the Fan SENSOR is getting hot, meaning the fan will STAY ON, sometimes hours and hours, even when you are NOT using the inverter.
Touch the 'button' sensor with a piece of ice for a moment, and it will turn the fan off.
I have the ADDED fan…. Operation is a problem in warm/hot weather. Fan always on, unless you use the ice cube approach or just disconnect the temperature switch.

Have tried to find a temperature switch with slightly higher set points, but no luck. Have you investigated that alternative? Any success?
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Old 06-21-2021, 03:37 AM   #15
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I have the ADDED fan…. Operation is a problem in warm/hot weather. Fan always on, unless you use the ice cube approach or just disconnect the temperature switch.

Have tried to find a temperature switch with slightly higher set points, but no luck. Have you investigated that alternative? Any success?
This is the one I installed. Works great.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Mike
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Old 06-21-2021, 10:52 AM   #16
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Originally Posted by TurnerFam View Post
Thor generally provides not only a vent within the INVERTER compartment, which is generally in one of your rear compartments, but many times also a 'secondary' FAN, temperature controlled, ADDED by the factory. It's not necessarily the INVERTER that is getting hot, but the Fan SENSOR is getting hot, meaning the fan will STAY ON, sometimes hours and hours, even when you are NOT using the inverter.
Touch the 'button' sensor with a piece of ice for a moment, and it will turn the fan off.
Exactly
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Old 06-21-2021, 12:14 PM   #17
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This is the one I installed. Works great.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Mike
Thanks for the reply…. Ordered one. Will see how it works

BTW…. What sittings did you use. Thinking on around 115. Off would then be 20 less or 95
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Old 06-21-2021, 01:24 PM   #18
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Just a added note. The ats relay isn’t a latching relay. It is held operated when on shore power. Even if the inverter is off heat is still created by this relay and the fan will cycle to keep the equipment cool.
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Old 06-22-2021, 03:49 AM   #19
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Thanks for the reply…. Ordered one. Will see how it works

BTW…. What sittings did you use. Thinking on around 115. Off would then be 20 less or 95
Richard,
I will look in the morning and see what it is set at.
Mike
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Old 06-22-2021, 01:03 PM   #20
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Thanks for the reply…. Ordered one. Will see how it works

BTW…. What sittings did you use. Thinking on around 115. Off would then be 20 less or 95
Richard, I have ours set to come on at 120. There is a 20 degree differential, so off at 100. It will still run awhile on really hot days, but I think it is needed.
Mike
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