No 12v

jkjenn

Night one of trip....no 12v. It worked when I tested it 2 days ago.


- Trailer running lights, brakes, and turn signals all work OK.

- Battery is reading fully charged with the multimeter and the Victron.

- 12v fuse looks good

- Nothing has power inside.

I am going to start by moving the house negative from the bus bar, tomorrow. Tge tray cable from the shunt load side to the bus bar has a fair amount of corrosion. If that solves it, it's easy enough to buy a new tray cable, especially since I am overnighting at Walmart.

I can try shore power, tomorrow, by plugging the 30 amp into the GZ Yeti 1000.

Open to other suggestions. It would be a bad time for the converter to go bad. Ut has been bad luck for this summer with power related things!

dhauf

jkjenn said:

Night one of trip....no 12v. It worked when I tested it 2 days ago.


- Trailer running lights, brakes, and turn signals all work OK.

- Battery is reading fully charged with the multimeter and the Victron.

- 12v fuse looks good

- Nothing has power inside.

I am going to start by moving the house negative from the bus bar, tomorrow. Tge tray cable from the shunt load side to the bus bar has a fair amount of corrosion. If that solves it, it's easy enough to buy a new tray cable, especially since I am overnighting at Walmart.

I can try shore power, tomorrow, by plugging the 30 amp into the GZ Yeti 1000.

Open to other suggestions. It would be a bad time for the converter to go bad. Ut has been bad luck for this summer with power related things!

Oh man that’s a bummer sorry to hear this.  One possibility I thought of is checking the fuse block at the WFCO panel for the presence of 12v.  If you pull one of the fuses does the LED next to it light up?  If so this would indicate that the panel is getting voltage, you can also verify this by pulling one fuse and using a voltmeter set to DC and check one leg of the fuse terminal to ground.  If your not getting 12v, do you have any inline fuses going directly to the battery?  As you mentioned also if all else fails by process of elimination start taking one item at a time out of the mix until you can track it down.  Hopefully it’s not the converter. 

Sharon_is_SAM

Hope it is that easy Jenn.  Can you spray some moisture displacing spray on that area, too?

jkjenn

Good news, easy fix. Ring term OK nal disconnected from wire. Purchasing new terminal, now. Sleeping in it was a good idea.

Sharon_is_SAM

😜

ScottG

If you are at Wal-Mart I assume you are running on battery. In which case the converter itself really shouldn't be a factor--the WFCO (or whatever you have) is just a distribution box for 12V juice from the battery.

Which 12V fuse did you check? In addition to the one at the battery, there is one at the other end in the 12V fuse panel. In the same location, there is also a "reverse polarity" fuse which would be worth checking.

(Forgive me if I'm stating the obvious--I'm just responding to your specific statements.)

Barring that, I would start looking for a loose or corroded connection. It sounds like you are already on that trail. Good luck and let us know what you find!

jkjenn

So, I replaced the ring terminal...still no power. I then began to follow the path from the battery with the multimeter and realized I was getting crazy voltage at the shunt for my battery monitor. I removed the shunt from the path and that fixed it. 

This seals my decision to move this stuff inside over the winter.

dhauf

Glad you got it sorted out. That’s too bad about the shunt.  I believe you can get a replacement without having to change out the whole unit.  You should be able to get just the shunt I would imagine.

Ratkity

Happy you got it fixed!! I knew you had the power (pun) to get 'er done, but venting here about it always helps jog the memory about the little things.

jkjenn

Thanks! I have learned that it is easy to miss things when you are a little tired...maybe the sign of old age. I am relieved it was that easy to fix. 

ericnliz

@jkjenn, Had to chuckle at that one...I just call it "old heimers"!

Sharon_is_SAM

Jenn, see who is the closest Victron supplier abd have them send you a new shunt on the road!

BrianZ

Is it possible to put the shunt inside a waterproof box?  Where is it - inside the tub?

jkjenn

BrianZ said:

Is it possible to put the shunt inside a waterproof box?  Where is it - inside the tub?

Though not 100% waterproof, I had it in a Rubbermaid type of box in the tub. It was subject to humidity and unusually high dew points this year., but not direct water.

jkjenn

Sharon_is_SAM said:

Jenn, see who is the closest Victron supplier abd have them send you a new shunt on the road!

Normally, I would do that but I am finding the shippers are all using Florence as an easy excuse for poor service right now.

DurangoTaB

Any chance you’re driving by the T@B dealer in Poncha Springs?  Too far down the road? Perhaps they can help...

rfuss928

I was suspect the shunt was the problem from your earliest posts about trouble shooting your solar system problems.  Control systems cannot respond properly when the inputs from sensors are erroneous - GIGO.   I think you have found the root cause of your solar charging problems and hopefully once corrected everything will function properly on your upcoming trip.

Have fun!

hymie

@jkjenn We mounted our Victron shunt in the exact same box that nüCamp uses for the junction of the 7 pin wire to trailer. There are grommets for the wires and it fits perfectly. I suspect that it would be easily acquired from Elsie...

The box comes with a buss bar in it but can be unscrewed and thrown away. We got ours at a Canadian retailer (Princess Auto for you Canucks out there)

Sharon_is_SAM

@hymie, where did you put the wiring/bus that was in that junction box?

hymie

@Sharon_is_SAM It is a second box of the same type. No junction boxes were harmed in the making of this mod...😀

 

Sharon_is_SAM

Oh, now I see, it is directly under the tub, in front of the original junction box.  Nice mod!

BrianZ

@hymie, is this the same box?..

ABN Electrical Wire Connector Junction Box 1-Pack Trailer, Camper, RV Light 7 Gang/Pole Automotive Wiring Rewiring https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01EO17JBS

dhauf

I wonder if something like this would be good.  https://www.amazon.com/BLACK-285-DRI-BOX-WEATHERPROOF-CONNECTION/dp/B009RX5GI2/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1537905985&sr=8-4&keywords=weatherproof+box&dpID=51cjAgZiATL&preST=_SX300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch&th=1

BrianZ

@jkjenn, I just got a Victron 712 battery monitor, and based on your experience, I'm thinking about maybe covering the sensitive electronic components on the shunt's little circuit board with big globs of hot melt glue to give them a waterproof coating & reduce exposure to the air.  I used the box I listed above to protect the shunt & mounted it vertically on the wall of the tub next to the battery box.  I ran the data cable through the same conduit as trailer wiring into the space above the black water tank & plan to go from there to the wall next to the sink for mounting the display above the SeeLevel display.

dhauf

One thing I used when building my own RC planes and quadcopters that may get wet is a a protective spray coating.  It may be worth it to spray your shunt with this prior to install instead as it will protect against moisture and even salt water.  I used to spray the motor controller ESC's with this stuff and could fly it in the rain and everything and it never shorted out.  It's very popular amongst RC enthusiasts.  The stuff is a bit pricey but a little goes a long way.  Another bonus is it does not leave a huge mess on your board that your spraying, intact you really can't even tell anything is on it.  I found it on amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/NANOPROTECH-Garden-Electric-Liquid-Insulator/dp/B00RZSI1YM/ref=asc_df_B00RZSI1YM/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=179324813409&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=3238640627241184450&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9003361&hvtargid=pla-373111687837&psc=1

Also here is a video showing its use and effectiveness: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzEreJfRp8Y

BrianZ

Thanks, @dhauf, that looks like a great suggestion for this situation.  Maybe good on the battery terminals too.

dhauf

BrianZ said:

Thanks, @dhauf, that looks like a great suggestion for this situation.  Maybe good on the battery terminals too.

Sure, If you put it on the battery terminals first make sure everything is connected before spraying it as it acts as kind of an insulator as well.

BrianZ

Thanks, @dhauf. 
Was wondering if you've used this product, which is cheaper, but very highly rated for similar projects by many more reviewers..

MG Chemicals Silicone Modified Conformal Coating, 55 ml Bottle with Brush Cap https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008O9YIV6

dhauf

@BrianZ I haven’t tried that one before.  It probably will work good as well, it might lay on a bit thicker than the spray stuff. Seems to have good reviews also.  I would probably try it.

hymie

@BrianZ Sorry for late response - I've been heavily involved with disaster response this week. We had 6 tornados touch down nearby (one of them was f3).

Yes, that appears to be the same enclosure that we used. 2 seasons in use and working great.

BrianZ

Thanks, @hymie, and good luck with the relief effort.  That sounds pretty bad.  We had some spin off of the hurricane here in Chesterfield County, VA, that made the national news.  One killed, unfortunately.