No 110AC power.

Estancio

Yesterday when I returned to my camper from work, all the 110AC power was out. No Air Conditioner and no 110AC outlets. Since I am living full time in my T@B, this is an urgent situation. The campground checked their power supply and reported all good. I tested the power cable to the camper and all is good. All circuit breakers and fuses are good. No obvious issues are visible with the inverter. PLEASE advise what to check next. 

elbolillo

Year and model of your Tab?

Estancio

2011 T@B....built from Dutchman parts at Pleasant Valley.

ScottG

There's not too much that can go wrong with a basic 120V AC distribution system. If you are certain you have power at the end of your power cord, check the cable that connects the power cord socket to to the power center. A loose connection on either end could be the culprit.

Estancio

ScottG, thanks. I'll run a check on the power socket and the wiring to the internal circuit breakers.

Grumpy_G

Define "All circuit breakers and fuses are good". Did you turn the breakers off and on ? Some breakers barely move when they trip. I'm not familiar with how the older T@bs are wired but check for any GFCI. 

You also mention an inverter. That would not have been a factory option back in the day. Do you have an inverter with automatic transfer switch installed ? 

Estancio

Yes, I turned off all breakers, and then switched them back on. I also pulled the breakers out and had no voltage at the buss bar. All fuses were pulled out and tested for continuity. Campground power supply was tested with a meter with 110VAC coming out. My power cable tested good as well with 110VAC coming out on the camper end. I'm totally stumped!!!

Yoshi_TAB

Hi, 

You mentioned inverter in your orignal post (inverters convert 12V to 110V).  If you meant converter , here is a video that goes through a complete teardown and testing.  If you have power on the camper end of your power cord , but none at the busbar, it seems like it has to be in the converter/power center or the wire between the camper plug and the power center.  What model power center do you have?   The video may provide some insight how to test your converter/power center (if its a WFCO)  to confirm it's working ok.   WFCO Power Source Training - Bing video      RVTI WFCO Training - Bing video  Good luck.

Estancio

You're correct, I meant to say "converter." I'll check out the link you sent and read through the installation instructions from the last time I had to replace mine - about 7 years ago. 

Estancio

SOLVED. Inside the converter, there was corrosion between the incoming Hotwire lug and the busbar for the circuit breakers. Was totally invisible until I dis-assembled the converter! I could see signs of arcing and over-heating, and feel lucky there was no fire.

BrianZ

Wow, great work, @Estancio and thanks for letting us know!  Glad you found the problem, and wondering if there is any lesson to be learned about how to install the cable to avoid this issue.

Estancio

BrianZ, the lesson was not about installation. The converter came directly from the factory and those parts were untouched in the installation process. From my perspective, it makes no sense to have those as 2 separate parts, but the electrical engineer who designed it should have made them as a single part! It would have been ideal to use a non-corrosive metal and NOT aluminum for those parts.

In terms of future prevention, I will definitely add dielectric grease between the parts, and will see if I can find someone who will weld those aluminum parts together for me. 

ScottG

Thanks for the update, @Estancio. Yours is the first report I'm aware of this particular problem in a T@B, but I had a very similar experience with a motorcycle battery connection. It's amazing how just a little surface corrosion can render an entire circuit inoperable.

BrianZ

Thanks for clarifying that, @Estancio.  I read "incoming hotwire" & misread, but understand now.  I see your point, and totally agree.  Good solutions for the followup!  Amazing how something like this "small" design failure caused such a big problem, and one that I bet the vast majority of owners or service shops would not have been able to find & fix.
Thanks for sharing.