My Inverter May Have Failed

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   Here is the sequence of events:

1.Plugged into line power at a known good outlet.
2.All is well until lights flicker and go dim but do come back for ~ 5 min. All LED lights in the Rpod.
3. Lights go dim and stay that way.
4. Move to another site and plug in.
5. Lights are bright for about 5 minutes and than go dim.

An interesting fact is that I can run my tow vehicle and charge the battery. An earlier time we were unsuccessful with this approach.

My "nickel's worth of guess":  In the inverter there is a relay that passes through 110 volts to the inverter which the inverter turns into 12 volts DC to power the interior lights. 

Exceptions are the electric hot water heater, the microwave and the refrigerator.

Help Please

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rawellman Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 19 Jun 2015 Location: Midland, MI Online Status: Offline Posts: 26	Topic: My Inverter May Have Failed Posted: 12 Oct 2020 at 4:30pm
	Here is the sequence of events: 1.Plugged into line power at a known good outlet. 2.All is well until lights flicker and go dim but do come back for ~ 5 min. All LED lights in the Rpod. 3. Lights go dim and stay that way. 4. Move to another site and plug in. 5. Lights are bright for about 5 minutes and than go dim. An interesting fact is that I can run my tow vehicle and charge the battery. An earlier time we were unsuccessful with this approach. My "nickel's worth of guess": In the inverter there is a relay that passes through 110 volts to the inverter which the inverter turns into 12 volts DC to power the interior lights. Exceptions are the electric hot water heater, the microwave and the refrigerator. Help Please

offgrid Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: 23 Jul 2018 Online Status: Offline Posts: 5290	Posted: 12 Oct 2020 at 5:04pm
	I think you are confusing "inverter" with "converter". An inverter converts dc power to ac to run ac loads. A converter, which is what your rpod comes with, converts 120Vac to 12Vdc to charge the battery, which in turn directly runs your lights and other dc loads like your water pump, slide motor if you have one, furnace controls and fan, water heater propane controls, refrigerator controls, etc. When you are connected to ac power your electric water heater element, microwave, refrigerator, and air conditioner can run directly from that, but the fridge and furnace controls still need to be provided with 12Vdc. From your description its hard to tell if your converter is the problem (it certainly could be) or if the battery has failed. How old is the battery? Does your fridge work? Water pump? Furnace?
	1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold

rawellman Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 19 Jun 2015 Location: Midland, MI Online Status: Offline Posts: 26	Posted: 12 Oct 2020 at 8:39pm
	You are correct my error it is my converter I am concerned with, not my "inverter". I appreciate the correction. The mode of failure I described in my original request for help still stands. Is there anyway to fix the converter and if not where can I buy a more reliable converter ?

StephenH Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List podders Helping podders - pHp Joined: 29 Nov 2015 Location: Wake Forest, NC Online Status: Offline Posts: 6288	Posted: 12 Oct 2020 at 8:56pm
	First off, is your battery in good shape? Make sure that is okay first. Second, check the reverse polarity protection fuses in the middle between the AC breakers and the fuse stack. If there was a chance that even for a second, the battery was connected in reverse, the RP fuses will blow to protect the converter. Third, you can download a troubleshooting chart from WFCO that will help you diagnose whether it is your converter that has failed or if it is some other problem. Just choose the appropriate one for your power center/converter. https://wfcoelectronics.com/trouble-shooting-charts/ Fourth, if the converter is bad, and if your RPod is less than 2 years old, the converter will be under warranty. Contact WFCO for an RMA. If it is over 2 years old, see Amazon.com, Walmart.com, or other sites for a replacement converter. If you have the WFCO 8955 power center, it takes the WFCO-8955MBA converter. It is not that hard to replace the converter. It is only a few wires. Last, be safe. If you don't feel comfortable doing this, find a good shop that will replace it for you. Expect to pay much more if you do so.
	StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS

rawellman Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 19 Jun 2015 Location: Midland, MI Online Status: Offline Posts: 26	Posted: 13 Oct 2020 at 7:42am
	Thank you Stephen for your great advice including the link to trouble shoot the converter. Will post a reply with how my problem resolves. Ron