Battery compartment????

[mainah]

It really is hard to tell but it does look to have a ground from the Romex cable on the buss with the green wires you are going to have strange voltage with no neutral wire. The box you have open has two different color wires I'm thinking the black goes back to the converter and the gray to the rest of the outlets. So it seems to me this can be fixed by connecting the white wire in the converter box to the rest of the whites then connect the outlet wires in their proper place black on the copper terminals and the white on the other side. What you were getting with your meter was the return voltage with no place to go so any thing plugged in was trying to return voltage through the white wire with no place to return to.

[TheHunter]

I put in new outlets and wire and wired all whites together and plugged in camper. Everything came on as normal but didn't have time to put a multimeter in outlets to test volts. So unplugged and check it out later or tomorrow

[mainah]

I think one of those $5 plug in testers was suggested I have one in my camper it stays plugged in I have been to camp grounds that had reversed wiring one look at the light tells me all I need to know. If everything came on your smiling the white wire has a new home and the outlets has a place to return too.

[TheHunter]

Originally Posted by mainah

I think one of those $5 plug in testers was suggested I have one in my camper it stays plugged in I have been to camp grounds that had reversed wiring one look at the light tells me all I need to know. If everything came on your smiling the white wire has a new home and the outlets has a place to return too.

I have a plug in tester on order, thanks!

[JohnB]

Originally Posted by TheHunter

I have a plug in tester on order, thanks!

Good choice. I also bought a 30 amp to 15 amp adapter to use the tester on the power post before I plug in. I check every time, even if the same campsite, just a different day/trip.



It is amazing what stuff can happen to a campground power post.

As time went on, I have one of these plugged in, inside the camper all the time. https://rvpower.southwire.com/produc...gital-monitor/

They are more pricey, but does different things. It has an alarm in it to sound that open ground, low voltage and other things as they happen. When I bought my surge suppressor back when, I think 12 years ago now, they did not have all the features that digital monitor had, so I bought it separate. Now a days, the newer surge suppressor have those features built in if you buy the high end ones. With microwaves, roof AC units, TV sets and high end power converters, a lightening surge can do a job on your camper.

Open ground seems to be a big issue we find. That and a loose fitting outlet which makes for a hot (heat) connection and loose ground pin. State parks most times. Talking with the camp maintenance guys, it seems way too many people leave the campsite still plugged in. That creates a mess on the receptacle being yanked. He said he replaces many monthly during the peak camping season.

[TheHunter]

Originally Posted by JohnB

Good choice. I also bought a 30 amp to 15 amp adapter to use the tester on the power post before I plug in. I check every time, even if the same campsite, just a different day/trip.



It is amazing what stuff can happen to a campground power post.

As time went on, I have one of these plugged in, inside the camper all the time. https://rvpower.southwire.com/produc...gital-monitor/

They are more pricey, but does different things. It has an alarm in it to sound that open ground, low voltage and other things as they happen. When I bought my surge suppressor back when, I think 12 years ago now, they did not have all the features that digital monitor had, so I bought it separate. Now a days, the newer surge suppressor have those features built in if you buy the high end ones. With microwaves, roof AC units, TV sets and high end power converters, a lightening surge can do a job on your camper.

Open ground seems to be a big issue we find. That and a loose fitting outlet which makes for a hot (heat) connection and loose ground pin. State parks most times. Talking with the camp maintenance guys, it seems way too many people leave the campsite still plugged in. That creates a mess on the receptacle being yanked. He said he replaces many monthly during the peak camping season.

Having not done much camping on electric power, what happens when you run into these wiring problems? Do they repair or you move spots?

I imagine that probably does happen on occasion, people driving away hooked up that is, seen similar a few times at gas pumps and that pump handle comes whipping back at a high rate of speed if the link don't break first lol

[mainah]

If you have one in the camper you don't need to check the post they are all 120 volt wired the same. The 4 pin is a pair of 120 volt circuits (read really big stuff). If it shows a fault it can be dangerous ask to move or have them fix it. I plugged into a commercial school building once and it had an outside outlet with reversed wiring that's why my tester stays stuck in the camper outlet.

[JohnB]

Originally Posted by TheHunter

Having not done much camping on electric power, what happens when you run into these wiring problems? Do they repair or you move spots?

The biggest issues I have run into while camping is,

Low Voltage mid summer when everyone in camp has the AC running. When I see this on the voltage monitor and mine beeps when low, I first limit the AC draw in the camper other then the AC unit. The fridge goes on LP gas and we need hot water, that too goes on gas. The only AC power left is the roof AC unit and the battery is most always at 100% state of charge from being on a battery minder when the camper is stored. This lowers the load and sometimes helps.

If the the lower load does not correct it enough, I carry a 50 amp to 30 amp adapter and switch from the 30 amp outlet to the 50. Most times, this helps as it may pull 120 VAC power from the other leg feeding the power post. The 50 amp 4 blade outlet is 120 volt from hot to neutral and 240 VAC hot to hot. Many times the other leg has a slightly higher 120 voltage on it. So far, the outlet switch and the lowering the camper power draw, has raised the voltage in the camper enough to be out of the bad zone.

The other issue, is a loosing the ground pin. This is from a loose outlet. It does some times happen on the hot pin too. I can tell from the black pitting on the plug blade. You can try unplugging and re-plugging but when the outlet is worn, that often does not help. I then switch again the the 50 amp outlet and the use the 50 to 30 adapter. I write a note to give to the park check in person about the issue and have them pass it along to the maintenance group. On a busy weekend, odds are they do not have time to change out the outlet, but we did luck out once and the maintenance guy did come.

We are also setup for off grid camping. We can go without shore power as long as we do not need the roof AC. We boondock often and are used to it. That said, on those really super hot days in a full sun site, having no AC is not comfortable. So far we have not run into having to move a site or that the 50 amp to 30 amp adapter switch did not solve the issue.

On using the tester on the power post before plugging in, I do this to test first, then plug in. If the ground is missing or the neutral switched, I can find that before plugging in. It's sort of the fallout of my industrial background in theses cases of knowing things can happen, and have had them happen, to test first.

[mainah]

The question there is what side of the 50 amp is feeding the 30? How good a job did they do on load sharing? Who is shucking up the juce on what leg up stream? If you had the ability to switch legs on a 50 that would be good.

[JohnB]

Originally Posted by mainah

The question there is what side of the 50 amp is feeding the 30? How good a job did they do on load sharing? Who is shucking up the juce on what leg up stream? If you had the ability to switch legs on a 50 that would be good.

Very true, us camper folks have zero control of how they balanced out any of the loading or who is drawing what, when.

We camp mostly in state parks here in Ohio. About 5 -6 years ago the parks all got some money for improvements. Electrical upgrades were on most all the parks lists of needs. Some parks still only had a single 20 amp receptacle. The new upgrades helped a lot. With 50, 30 and a 20 amp at each post, they up'ed the supply, and that helped.

But, worn outlets on the 30's are common. They just get used more and then the drive offs with the plug in, make it all that much worse. So far, using the 50 amp has got me buy the loose pins on the 30 amp and the few times we had low voltage. It was for sure luck on the low voltage as it could of easily been worse.

BUT, your reply made me think more on this. The dog bone 50 to 30 adapter I have, I'm sure everyone of that brand taps the exact same L1 etc to create the 120 volt 30 amp. This is the one I have, just older, they molded the plug different now. https://www.amazon.com/Camco-Dogbone...02225813&psc=1

But, I could buy another dog bond adapter, cut the plug off and add a new plug wired to the opposite L2. Then If one did not fix the issue, I could try the other one which would switch to the other incoming leg. That helps have some control over the issue, just at long as there is enough power all together.

Autotransformers (buck/boost setup, but I think only boost in these) are an option. For sure more expensive, but they solve the low voltage issues and provide surge protection. https://hughesautoformers.com/

There has been some talk, these are not allowed in some camps. Don't know, never had one to know for sure. I do have a friend who has one and he uses his.

[mainah]

Utility box male 50 with a whip, 30 amp female A B switch with a nice mounted voltmeter. Me I don't care I have a very low demand camper, in the colder months I have run my 1,100 watt custom made permanent electric heater with line voltage thermostat (old bathroom heater with fan) can't sleep through the propane one but mostly I'm DC with twin batteries.

[JohnB]

Originally Posted by mainah

Utility box male 50 with a whip, 30 amp female A B switch with a nice mounted voltmeter.

That is for sure the deluxe version...

[Sunline Fan]

Originally Posted by TheHunter

Recently bought and refurbished a 8.5 ssrb truck camper, I believe it's early 80's. I'm down to making appliances work and started with replacing all lights with leds and thought let me throw in a battery and test them, well I can't find any location for that.

Welcome and congrats! It looks like a 1980 to me.

[TheHunter]

Originally Posted by Sunline Fan

Welcome and congrats! It looks like a 1980 to me.

For sure atleast close to it, I pulled down a panel and it had 1979 stamped on it