Electrical Issue

MIKE43 · 05-04-2021, 06:11 PM

I have no power to any of the outlets in my trailer. However, I do have electricity to run the air conditioner. At first I thought that the circuit breaker might be faulty so I replaced it. Have the same results, no power to any of the outlets but the air conditioner works fine. The circuit breaker I replaced is a siemens 15/20 amp combo breaker. I have one GFI outlet in the bathroom which seems to be okay. My question is, could that GFI outlet prevent electricity to flowing to all other outlets? All the internal lights work just fine so I know it has nothing to do with the power converter. I also checked the 3 20 AMP fuses and they are okay. Not sure what else to check.
Any suggestions would be most welcome. If all else fails, I will have to bring the trailer to an RV place for diagnosis.

**JohnB** · 05-04-2021, 09:18 PM

The lights are 12 volts DC, so if there is a battery in the camper, the battery will power the lights or the converter.

Not sure what vintage camper or power system you have, but the 120 VAC wall outlets are not special other then some of them had a speed outlet box. But lets do the simple things first.

Again not knowing what your AC breaker and wiring setup looks like, tell us the year and model helps as a start, and post some pics, the GFI in the bathroom "generally" powers up the bathroom due to the wet area and several other outlets down stream of it.

Yes, if the GFI is not functioning correctly or wired correctly, power will not pass downstream to power up the other outlets. They do go bad, and the really old ones work a little different then the new ones. But, both types will hold back power down stream if the GFI is not allowing it to pass.

The first this is to confirm the GFI outlet itself is hot, just plug something in or a simple circuit tester. If it works, then is it passing power down stream? and it may be passing but a hot wire loose in the next outlet may not allow it to power up the down stream outlets. Or the GFI is bad and not passing the power. With the power off, look at the down stream outlets and make sure all the connections are good.

Not sure if your camper has these speed box types or a shallow box with screw terminals.

The speed box

This one is on the end of the run, but they also use them for pass through to the next outlet

The GFI is a normal one, but it uses a shallow wall box and an extender plate for the extra needed depth.

If the circuit use to work, then it may be wired right and just the GFI does not work. If it never worked and you just bought it, the GFI may be wired wrong or the GFI is bad. If someone mixed up the AC neutrals from line in to load out, the GFI will not pass down stream voltage. Make sure you mark the wires line or load when you take them off the old GFI. And check that both the hot and neutral that went to line or the load end come from the same romex cable as least.

Worst case, you may have to unhook the down stream GFI wiring and use a continuity check to test the down stream wires actually feed the next down stream outlet. If there is no continuity on the wires, the GFI will not matter as no power can get to the next outlet due to a wiring issue. Then the hunt for what is broken or unhooked. Make sure nothing is plugged into a down stream outlet when testing so you do not get false readings across a load, like a light bulb etc.

Hope this helps and let us know how it goes.

John

**JohnB** · 05-04-2021, 09:21 PM

Note: The kitchen area also has a GFI due to the wet locations in most cases. However if yours has one, then it would be a separate circuit then the bathroom and that kitchen GFI also many times powers an outside outlet, again if your camper has an outside outlet.

mainah · 05-05-2021, 09:17 AM

Because there is one 15 amp breaker for the outlets it is very possible that all the outlets are down stream of the GFI. GFI's are more expensive than a normal outlet so they generally use one for all. All of mine are on the bath GFI so if its tripped they all are. Any outlet down stream can causes a reaction to a ground fault. Try the GFI reset first. They are not expensive if it doesn't reset just replace it. Because they are too big for the wall in most cases it's an easy replacement because they are not stab in connections.

MIKE43 · 05-05-2021, 09:21 AM

Hello John,
Thank you for your information. In response to your question, the trailer is a 24 foot 1985 Travel Trailer. I don't know if there is a model number. I could never find one. I plugged an appliance into the GFI outlet and got nothing, so based on what you have told me I am going to replace the GFI switch.
There are no other GFI switches in the trailer.
Here is a picture of the trailer.

mainah · 05-05-2021, 03:19 PM

Try pushing in the GFI reset with a rubber end of a pencell just for kicks the older GFI's were a good bit flackery than the newer ones. Avoid an AFCI type they are extremely sensitive. Hair driers electric drills etc. will trip them (any thing that makes sparks).

**JohnB** · 05-06-2021, 08:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MIKE43

the trailer is a 24 foot 1985 Travel Trailer. I don't know if there is a model number. I could never find one.

Hi Mike,

Yes, your GFI may just be bad. Make sure you mark which wires are line (incoming AC) and load (down stream AC) before unhooking from the old GFI. It is easy to forget which was which once everything it out of the box and wires are twisted all up.

And being an 85 camper, there may only be on GFI in the entire camper like mainah stated. The newer Sunlines have 2 of them as the power converters became larger and the number of AC circuits increased over the years. Not exactly sure what model year that came about. I think early 90's.

We can help you sort out the model number. That one is easy since you know the year.

If you know the year, you can look up the camper specs and floor plan from our Sunline brochures in the FILES section and back into a model number.

To get to the files section, you need to be logged into the forum.
At the top of the forum are tabs, look for the word "FILES" click it.

Once into the files section, scroll down to the "Sunline Brochures" section. Go in there and find a sale brochure for the camper year you are looking at and down load a copy. Then look at all the floor plans and specs and back into a model number. From your one pic, it might be a T-2460 or T2461 assuming the 24 ft length is from tow ball to rear bumper.

Good luck with the camper, and let us know how you make out. That looks like a nice place in the woods.

Hope this helps,

John

MIKE43 · 05-06-2021, 08:05 AM

Hello John,
I have replaced the GFI switch with a new one and am going to check to see if that was the problem. Will let you know.

MIKE43 · 05-06-2021, 08:22 PM

Hello John,
Yep, it was the GFI switch. As soon as I powered the RV, the clock and all other appliances worked. Thanks a million for your help.
All the best,
Mike

**JohnB** · 05-07-2021, 09:53 AM

Thanks for reporting back Mike. Glad it was that simple as the old GFi just gave up the ghost...

MIKE43 · 05-07-2021, 10:09 AM

That it did!

wapermenter · 05-13-2021, 10:38 AM

Indeed a bad GFI outlet can cause the problem. They do go bad over time. My camper has two GFI outlets

MIKE43 · 05-14-2021, 03:20 PM

Replaced it for $19 and all is well again. Had I brought it to an RV dealer, chances are it would have cost me a lot more than that.

sdeck3 · 07-11-2021, 07:44 AM

Have no electricity have flipped 2 breakers still nothing. 89 Saturn.?

MIKE43 · 07-11-2021, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sdeck3

Have no electricity have flipped 2 breakers still nothing. 89 Saturn.?

The first thing to check is your GFI switch. If it is popped, try resetting it. If that doesn’t work you should replace it. The GFI in my Trailer controlled all the electric outlets and when I replaced it everything worked. Should that not solve the problem, then you should replace the circuit breaker. If that doesn’t fix it bring it to a trailer repair shop. Good luck!

sdeck3 · 07-11-2021, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MIKE43

The first thing to check is your GFI switch. If it is popped, try resetting it. If that doesn’t work you should replace it. The GFI in my Trailer controlled all the electric outlets and when I replaced it everything worked. Should that not solve the problem, then you should replace the circuit breaker. If that doesn’t fix it bring it to a trailer repair shop. Good luck!

Found my forgotten gfi reset all is good! About 1 ft. Above breaker box, reset on short stub wall.