Hello... AND Please help!

[Living2RV]

Hi, I'm Kelly, sorry to make this my first post but it is time sensitive.

2016 Thor 27.1 22k miles

Short - Bought to sell our house and live in / early retirement. We have not really used it yet. It's in very nice overall shape. We used it once, seemed fine.

My daughter is here from college and we are taking her to camp for her birthday. BUT...

ISSUE:

Noticed while parked here nothing seems to run off the house batteries. Bought a new fancy $900 Lithium battery. Same issue. Now it also looks like the auto levelers dont work either. Assuming the same issue?

Everything works when on power

Everything works when on generator

Generator starts fine.

Battery compartment switch seems to work

Battery connect is on USE

Why would the house battery now be switching in.

We leave tomorrow morning on our what is not a glamorous tent ha ha ha

HELP please

THANKS!!!

[Lt Keefer]

Without an inverter, your house battery only powers the lights and fans.

[Living2RV]

Originally Posted by Lt Keefer

Without an inverter, your house battery only powers the lights and fans.

Built in inverter. Lights dont work. Pretty sure the house battery is not switching in.

Thank you.

[Living2RV]

Pretty sure the lights and everything worked before when the generator is not on and the auto levelers worked for sure. I checked all the fuses in the various fuse panels and also the switched fuses in the inverter unit.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by Living2RV

Built in inverter. Lights dont work. Pretty sure the house battery is not switching in.

Thank you.

You don't have a "built-in inverter". You have a built-in converter which converts 120 VAC from Shore Power (SP) or the generator to 12+ VDC for the DC buss and loads (like the lights) and to charge the house batteries if the USE/STORE switch is in USE.

Originally Posted by Living2RV

Pretty sure the lights and everything worked before when the generator is not on and the auto levelers worked for sure. I checked all the fuses in the various fuse panels and also the switched fuses in the inverter unit.

I'm assuming that was before the battery switch out? How do you know all the battery cables are reconnected and in the right place?

If you replaced the two Lead Acid batteries with a single Lithium battery you had to get creative in connecting the three positive cables to the battery. There should only be a single ground cable on the negative side.

The 3 positive cables go to:
A 100 Amp DC breaker for starting the generator and levelers main power. This must be connected if your generator starts and runs.
A 50 Amp DC breaker to connect the house batteries to the DC buss through the USE/STORE latching relay (controlled by the USE/STORE switch). This breaker may be tripped since there seems to be no connection between the house batteries and the DC buss. This breaker is in the inside, upper, forward corner of the battery compartment and is mounted on a metal tab facing inwards which makes it hard to find. If the flag is out, push it back in to reset it.

It may not have a TEST push button on it.
The Trombetta relay in the battery compartment which separates the house and chassis battery banks when not charging and connects them when charging.

There may also be a small diameter wire which connects to the positive side of the battery for the BIRD and levelers voltage sensing.


BGTW, your standard converter will not keep your Lithium battery fully charged - it only "floats" it at 60% to 80% of full capacity.

[Living2RV]

THANK YOU. Much appreciated.

Converter, got it.

Yes, removed 2 lead acid 6v battery wired in series and connected one Li battery. Was easy, just the two leads.

I do have the 50amp DC breaker exactly as you show. it goes the the three way splitter so no three wires to the battery.

I have flipped it and a few things turn on when flipped on. The generator does start.

my lights do not work without shore power or the generator. Have not tested the heater.

So to be clear... The generator will not start without the house battery showing connection right? So that's eliminated. If so what would keep the lights from working?

I REALLY apricate the responses. Thank you.

[Living2RV]

New battery to 50A breaker, to 3 way splitter (which I did not touch). Ground to frame (also did not change or touch.

[Bob Nodine]

Lithium batteries requires a different charge profile so you may need to check your converter and see if it supports Lithium batteries.

As for the lights only working when plugged into shore power or running the generator points direct to the battery not suppling power to the coach. I would take a very close look at the circuit breaker 16ACE27 posted about. This problem should be easy to find using a multimeter set on the 20 volt DC range. Connect the black common to frame ground and use the positive (RED) lead to test for 12 volts DC. Start at the battery post. Test the actual post and then move to the clamp or terminal and then down the line until you find where 12 volts DC is no longer present. There was a guy who put in a new battery and did not remove the protective plastic caps over the battery post and just placed the battery cable clamp over the plastic cover. I am not saying you did the same but telling you that so you understand how important it is to test both the post and the clamp/terminal. I once purchased a new device that would not work. It turned out that the individual who put the terminal on the end of the wire did not strip the insulation off the wire and just crimped the terminal over the insulation. When you are troubleshooting you must not make any assumptions.

[taylorbob1]

Have you checked the use/store solenoid (latching relay)?
Do you hear a “clunk” when you go from store to use?

That is…by now a 2016 model year has been switched many times.
The connection point does corrode over time, thus does not connect to provide battery power to the DC panel, even though generator will start normally.

Mine failed, I had same results as you.

The fix, once I found it’s location, was to over-ride the solenoid. And once I did, everything worked normally again.

You can replace the part, and/or take apart and use a Dremel brush to clean connection points then re-assemble.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by Living2RV

THANK YOU. Much appreciated.

Converter, got it.

Yes, removed 2 lead acid 6v battery wired in series and connected one Li battery. Was easy, just the two leads.

I do have the 50amp DC breaker exactly as you show. it goes the the three way splitter so no three wires to the battery.

I have flipped it and a few things turn on when flipped on. The generator does start.

my lights do not work without shore power or the generator. Have not tested the heater.

So to be clear... The generator will not start without the house battery showing connection right? So that's eliminated. If so what would keep the lights from working?

I REALLY apricate the responses. Thank you.

Originally Posted by Living2RV

New battery to 50A breaker, to 3 way splitter (which I did not touch). Ground to frame (also did not change or touch.

There should be two DC breakers as I mentioned above, a 100 amp and a 50 amp. The 50 amp goes to the house DC buss and is completely independent of the 100 amp generator start/levelers breaker.

If you have a cable that goes only to the 50 amp breaker, and then have a 3 way splitter on the other side of that that goes to the 100 amp breaker and the Trombetta then you are wired completely wrong (maybe by a previous owner?). The positive post of the battery should be wired directly to the splitter; then from the splitter it should go to the two DC breakers and the Trombetta.

[Living2RV]

Originally Posted by taylorbob1

Have you checked the use/store solenoid (latching relay)?
Do you hear a “clunk” when you go from store to use?

That is…by now a 2016 model year has been switched many times.
The connection point does corrode over time, thus does not connect to provide battery power to the DC panel, even though generator will start normally.

Mine failed, I had same results as you.

The fix, once I found it’s location, was to over-ride the solenoid. And once I did, everything worked normally again.

You can replace the part, and/or take apart and use a Dremel brush to clean connection points then re-assemble.

This is what I am thinking is the issue. I do hear it clunk when activated.

BUT, the generator starts. so power right?

[Living2RV]

Originally Posted by 16ACE27

There should be two DC breakers as I mentioned above, a 100 amp and a 50 amp. The 50 amp goes to the house DC buss and is completely independent of the 100 amp generator start/levelers breaker.

If you have a cable that goes only to the 50 amp breaker, and then have a 3 way splitter on the other side of that that goes to the 100 amp breaker and the Trombetta then you are wired completely wrong (maybe by a previous owner?). The positive post of the battery should be wired directly to the splitter; then from the splitter it should go to the two DC breakers and the Trombetta.

Hum. I did not change the wiring at all. Looks factory with red anti corrosive paint on the terminals etc. Only thing changed was the removal of the neg-positive jumper for the 2 6 volt batteries to make them 12v.

Generator starts.

[Living2RV]

Originally Posted by 16ACE27

There should be two DC breakers as I mentioned above, a 100 amp and a 50 amp. The 50 amp goes to the house DC buss and is completely independent of the 100 amp generator start/levelers breaker.

If you have a cable that goes only to the 50 amp breaker, and then have a 3 way splitter on the other side of that that goes to the 100 amp breaker and the Trombetta then you are wired completely wrong (maybe by a previous owner?). The positive post of the battery should be wired directly to the splitter; then from the splitter it should go to the two DC breakers and the Trombetta.

So I just looked at you schematic and my rig. The positive on mine goes directly to a 100A breaker (I miss spoke as a 50A earlier) and then to a common splitter / terminal where there are 4 big feed wires coming off it.

I dont see a 50a breaker. Might be the issue if I can find it.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by Living2RV

So I just looked at you schematic and my rig. The positive on mine goes directly to a 100A breaker (I miss spoke as a 50A earlier) and then to a common splitter / terminal where there are 4 big feed wires coming off it.

I dont see a 50a breaker. Might be the issue if I can find it.

Get a flashlight out and follow the positive cables. I told you it is hard to see. One of the first things I did with mine was relocate that breaker closer to the outside of the compartment.

[taylorbob1]

Here’s a good thread with photos of the solenoid

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f8...ues-26728.html

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by taylorbob1

Here’s a good thread with photos of the solenoid

https://www.thorforums.com/forums/f8...ues-26728.html

Pictures in that thread are of the wrong latching relay. The OP's relay looks like:



which is under the L-shaped couch behind the Power center.

[16ACE27]

This is what my OEM 50 amp DC breaker looked like. Note it does NOT have a test button.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by Living2RV

So I just looked at you schematic and my rig. The positive on mine goes directly to a 100A breaker (I miss spoke as a 50A earlier) and then to a common splitter / terminal where there are 4 big feed wires coming off it.

I dont see a 50a breaker. Might be the issue if I can find it.

I just reread this. Seems you have the 100 amp leg connected to the battery that SPLITS to the levelers pump and the generator starting circuit.

On mine there are two more leads that go directly to the battery positive:
The 50 amp lead as discussed above, and
The Trombetta solenoid lead, also discussed above.

Maybe those leads fell down during the battery swap and are not connected to anything?

[16ACE27]

Well, OP went silent. I wonder if they're "tent camping" in the MH

[16ACE27]

Did you resolve your issues? Did you make the camping trip?