Blown Circuit Breaker - know before you need to

[csseeker]

On our first trip 2 months ago we lost power while connected to shore power. We were running the microwave and ac at the same time. The circuit breaker on the power pole tripped. It was an easy reset.

Forward to today. Same thing happens for a second time. I casually walk outside and find the power pole circuit breaker is not tripped. Panic sets in. I have no idea where circuit breakers are. I'm looking at the Thor manual and find an inverter picture. No idea what it is and what it does. I'm on the phone with Thor when I look down and see the inverter name on a panel in the hallway. I figure what the heck and open it up. Low and behold there's the circuit breakers. The 30 amp is tripped, I reset it and all is good again.

I'm sure the walk through covered that panel but it was over 3 months ago. So now I know. I'd suggest as a new owner that you take 5 minutes and locate your breaker panel. Eventually you will need it.

I was about ready to pull the Axis PDF Manual up on my cell phone when I saw the panel in the hallway.

[JamieGeek]

Not an inverter, a converter. Axis units don't have an inverter--unless you installed one.
Inverter converts 12V DC to 120V AC.
Converter does the opposite: 120V AC to 12V DC.

Always good to know where the breakers are.

Another option is to install a meter (Amazon). Then you know how much current you're drawing.

[csseeker]

Lol. Told you I had no idea what it did! I do now, thanks.

[TurnerFam]

you must have a 30amp coach, so the air conditioner, and then the microwave, as well as the other items you had running on 120v at the same time, took the outside power's breaker over the limit. Pretty standard, and that's what it's there for... but,

there's another side to that story, possibly...

some older campgrounds or rv parks have power pedestals with breakers that have been used over and over and over again, with shore cord plugs pushed in and pulled out over and over again, and folks flipping the breaker over and over and over again. When it's all said and done, over time, the breaker actually becomes 'tired' and can actually start TRIPPING well before it actually meets it's 30amp limit, which has happened to us many times.
The solution? Have the park change out the breaker, even if they think it is not the problem...it usually is.
You may find that then using those same appliances and devices can run just fine.... finally!

So, sometimes it may not be US using too much, but the park's own power pole is not allowing us enough : )

[csseeker]

Good points

[Peterrrr]

Another circuit breaker a lot of people are not aware of is on the generator. My wife found out, that you can not make toast, run a heater, dry your hair, and make a pot of coffee all at the same time while running the generator.

[TurnerFam]

yes, and I've advocated for the manufacturers or Onan to provide some type of notification if the generator breaker trips, either a light, and audible alert, or something.
You can be having just a fine time with the generator running and everything working, when suddenly the air conditioner or other things stop working, but the generator continues running. Exasperating, to say the least...and while some of us have had experience with this, and 'know' the deal, if it hasn't happened in a long while, it can still be an aggravating time trying to run down the problem.

Add to the problem that any generator is going to accessed from the outside, and while some of us with front mounted generators have an easier access to the breakers than others, it's a little annoying to have to find your barrel key, go outside in the rain, hope you can see/find the two barrel key locks, remember which 'way' to turn the key(!), and find the cargo light switch(if you even remember where the light is actually mounted(!)), just to be able to see the breaker and flip it back on.
Of course, all this is also predicated on remembering to FIRST switch OFF the thing(s) in the coach that caused the breaker to trip in the first place(!), otherwise, you could be out doing this again in a matter of minutes. : /

I'd like to see also a manufacturer design a way to access/flip the generator breaker back on from WITHIN the coach...
...Send me the royalties when you patent that, too. : )