House DC Power Issues

[StevoDevo]

Hi Guys,

I've got a Four Winds Chateau Citation 23A that is having issues with the DC power and I need some help troubleshooting it!!

Here's the problem - when I'm on Shore Power, or Generator everything internally runs great (lights, water pump, etc) but as soon as I disconnect Shore Power, or turn off the Generator then there is no power inside the RV.

The House Battery is fully charged and I've tested it and made sure it's working great (it's only 3 months old). The House Battery seems to come into RV via the Red Cable (from the floor) in the picture below:



It connects up to the switch that I marked with an arrow and when I check there is 12.6 v on both sides of that switch. I'm using the copper ground cable pictured as my ground for testing.

The red cable goes from the switch into the breaker box pictured below:



I get the same voltage when testing at the right and white cables. I also tested by grounding the tester on the big white cable and then testing on the silver screw heads next to each fuse and got 12.6v there too.

So I'm not sure why there is no power inside the RV.

Does anyone have any ideas? I'm not good with electrical, so if my testing is on the wrong cables, please let me know what I should be testing!!

Thanks so much!
Steve

[16ACE27]

Put your USE/STORE switch in USE.

Are your voltage measurements made with or without the RV connected to Shore Power?

[StevoDevo]

Originally Posted by Tfryman

Put your USE/STORE switch in USE.

Where would I find that switch???

[Peterrrr]

Originally Posted by StevoDevo

Where would I find that switch???

They are normally right beside the door when you come into the RV.

[StevoDevo]

Originally Posted by Peterrrr

They are normally right beside the door when you come into the RV.

I don't think my MH has one of those! I can't find any switch like that anyway. I do have a control panel as I enter the RV but that just has switches for the water pump, generator etc.

[sluiceman2]

I kind of have the same problem?? My inverter doesn't put out enought valtage to kep the batteries up.

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by StevoDevo

I don't think my MH has one of those! I can't find any switch like that anyway. I do have a control panel as I enter the RV but that just has switches for the water pump, generator etc.

What year is your coach?

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by sluiceman2

I kind of have the same problem?? My inverter doesn't put out enought valtage to kep the batteries up.

Inverters don't "put out" DV voltage or current, they use DC voltage and current to create 120 Volts AC.

Some larger inverters may have a built-in CONVERTER, whose job it is to take 120 VAC and CONVERT it to 12 VDC for DC loads and to charge the batteries.

[Peterrrr]

Originally Posted by StevoDevo

I don't think my MH has one of those! I can't find any switch like that anyway. I do have a control panel as I enter the RV but that just has switches for the water pump, generator etc.

So I think we are looking at an older Citation here, not a recent one on the sprinter chassis. The item you call a switch is the circuit breaker. The disconnect is usually connected between this breaker and the converter. Looks like in your picture you do not have one. On the side of the circuit breaker there is a little button. Have you pressed the button to reset the breaker?

Now when you say you measured voltage and you had voltage on both sides of the circuit breaker, is that with no shore power and no generator? Same question for the voltage measuring on the fuses?

[StevoDevo]

Originally Posted by Peterrrr

So I think we are looking at an older Citation here, not a recent one on the sprinter chassis. The item you call a switch is the circuit breaker. The disconnect is usually connected between this breaker and the converter. Looks like in your picture you do not have one. On the side of the circuit breaker there is a little button. Have you pressed the button to reset the breaker?

Now when you say you measured voltage and you had voltage on both sides of the circuit breaker, is that with no shore power and no generator? Same question for the voltage measuring on the fuses?

It's a 2009 and I'm definitely testing voltages with no shore power and no generator.

When I press the button on the side nothing happens. The button just feels floppy (for lack of a better word). Could that circuit breaker be bad?

[Peterrrr]

I just gave this some more thought. If the voltage you are measuring is 12.6 this is more than likely a battery voltage. The converter/charger voltage should be greater than 13, unless the converter/charger is no longer any good. So with no DC output voltage could be the reverse polarity fuses. Those are the two yellow 12 volt fuses to the left of all your fuses.

[Peterrrr]

Originally Posted by StevoDevo

It's a 2009 and I'm definitely testing voltages with no shore power and no generator.

When I press the button on the side nothing happens. The button just feels floppy (for lack of a better word). Could that circuit breaker be bad?

If your measuring the same voltages on both sides, then it should be good.

[StevoDevo]

Originally Posted by Peterrrr

If your measuring the same voltages on both sides, then it should be good.

Am I testing correctly with my voltmeter if I've got the red positive cable on the switch and the black negative on that copper ground?

[Peterrrr]

Originally Posted by StevoDevo

Am I testing correctly with my voltmeter if I've got the red positive cable on the switch and the black negative on that copper ground?

Yes. If you reversed them your meter should show a negative, but the same voltage. I looked that the 2009 Brochure, has nothing for Citation, but says both the battery disconnect switch and emergency start switch are standard equipment on the 2009 Four Winds Chateau. But if you are measuring voltage at the fuses then I can not see why you would not have voltage at any of the devices. Are the reverse polarity fuses ok?

[redshift]

Doesn't measuring dc volts on either side of a fuse indicate it's blown?

[16ACE27]

Originally Posted by redshift

Doesn't measuring dc volts on either side of a fuse indicate it's blown?

If you measure from one side to the other. A good fuse would show 0 VDC.

But if you measure both sides to ground and they both have the same voltage to ground then the fuse is good.

[carlgorski]

Use/store switch. Mine is by front door GR22

[javelin]

When you see 12 VDC on either side of that probably 50 amp cct breaker in your picture, do you have shore power connected or the generator running? If yes, then you are probably seeing the converter output 12 VDC and not the coach battery 12VDC. If that is true then my guess is you have a bad or just open latching relay between your 12V coach battery and the cct breaker shown in your pictures (red wire connected). Then you need to find where the latching relay is located......try following the red wire you say seems to come from the coach battery. Trace it out if you can or start at the battery end.



I am attaching a generic schematic which may help anyone visualize a generic coach (with hydraulic jacks; generator and on the right side of the diagram is the typical 50 amp cct breaker (shown in your picture) and a latching relay which is typically controlled by the door use/store switch or similar. This is a generic diagram only. Hope this helps.

[javelin]

I should point out that the generic diagram I posted above has the coach batteries wired in series (not parallel) which would make them each 6 volt batteries. You have to look closely for the +/- terminals. Also the diagram represents a generic 12vDC wiring diagram only....that is there is no 120VAC shown. So for example, the generator is showing its 12VDC connection for starting only......the AC output side is not shown.

[cmore]

On my 2007 Four Winds Chateau Citation Series M-23BA 6.0 Liter GMT600, the use store switch is on the right as u enter from outside the door.