no lights with battery only

rodsun · 07-23-2013, 06:36 PM

Maybe this was covered before. I have searched these forums to no avail. I just bought a t1950 and it has the centurion cs3500 converter. Battery is wired in to the camper. Should not the 12v system work on battery only. Battery meter shows full charge. I tried the lights and the light over the tongue and none work. I have the pamphlet on the converter but it does not address this situation. I have plugged in the tow vehicle and still no lights. Yes i have the aux power pin functional in the plug. It would be nice to have the tongue and outside lights working while setting up in the dark. Am I missing something or is this normal

jim44646 · 07-23-2013, 07:14 PM

Fuse. Follow positive wire. You should find a fuse. Another option ,would be a bad battery to frame ground. inside a camper there should be a small wooden box containing battery fuse

rodsun · 07-24-2013, 04:26 PM

Thank you. The fuse was it. I did not test battery with the trailer unplugged. guess it was reading the converter output. It was a 30 amp blade fuse. I Have the tow vehicle aux wire to the receptacle to a 40 amp auto reset breaker. Should I change that to a 30 amp instead?

**JohnB** · 08-01-2013, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rodsun

It was a 30 amp blade fuse. I Have the tow vehicle aux wire to the receptacle to a 40 amp auto reset breaker. Should I change that to a 30 amp instead?

Yes, it should be reduced to the 30 amp. 30 amp takes # 10 awg wire and many of the setups I have seen use no 10 awg. Don’t know for sure yours has it, best to check in case it is a no 12 awg which is 20 amp. You may be able to see small numbers on the side of the wire. If not an actual wire diameter, (of the copper wire, not over the insulation) can confirm.

If the day ever comes that you have a large load on that wire or high resistance from corroded connectors etc, then the wire becomes the fuse or the next weakest rated component. The fuse size should protect the wire and all connections in the load path. While it is not an immediate death, be good to change it out in the near future before that bad day comes along. A melted wire harness is painful to replace some times verses the small cost of the new breaker. It is amazing what 12 volts wiring can turn into a melted mess.

Good luck and have fun in the new Sunline

John