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Topic Closed.. electrical problem in our pod 179 - Event Date: 19 Jun 2016 - 30 Jun 2016
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CharlieM View Drop Down
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Joined: 23 Nov 2012
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Posts: 1797 		Direct Link To This Post Calendar Event: .. electrical problem in our pod 179
    Posted: 18 Jun 2016 at 9:03pm
Originally posted by crystabals

May have been told bad info on battery   an HD24 Dp is supposed to be 12 v.. "expert" told my husband it was 6v. Nothing is written on battery delineating voltage.. grr... ..

That's your first lesson about "experts", including most dealers. For anything to work the battery must be 12V. Count the number of fill caps on the battery. If 6 it's a 12V battery. Six volt batteries have only three fill caps. If the lights, fan, pump, furnace work at all you have a 12V  battery. If they work for a while after turning off the car, the car is charging the battery OK. If AC and microwave work on shore power your house socket is probably OK, but should be checked with an inexpensive tester. If the AC and micro work, but the battery apparently isn't charging you may have a blown 40A fuse in the power panel. There are two 40A fuses to protect the converter against miswiring including reversal of the battery.  If the battery was ever connected backwards, even for an instant, the fuses will be blown. Check them. If you disconnect the battery and plug into shore power the lights/fan/pump/furnace should work. If not it's probably the 40A fuses or a faulty converter.
Charlie
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OLD: 2013 RP-172, 2010 Honda Pilot 3.5L 4WD
PRESENT: 2014 Camplite 21RBS, 2013 Supercharged Tacoma 4L V6 4WD
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techntrek View Drop Down
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Posts: 9059 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 18 Jun 2016 at 9:09pm
Ok, so you plug the pod into your house, and your car, and then everything will run - like the A/C.  You unplug from the car and everything continues to run - including the A/C.  5 hours later everything dies.

Is that correct?
Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Posts: 5 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 15 Jul 2016 at 1:34pm
I had my new 2017 179 for a week, and the "plugged in" power went dead.  I could run for a bit off the battery, but not off the pole.  My friend checked it out where it sat, and it appeared to be somewhere in the connection receptical from the cord to the camper.  I took it to a nearby dealer, and they fixed it quickly.  Not sure what it was, but sounds similar.  Didn't try it on the car, but everything else had checked out.
2017 rpod 179
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crystabals View Drop Down
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Posts: 12 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 01 Aug 2016 at 8:52am
Hello All.. Update...We took our rpod to dealer. Forest River replaced converter. All isgood now.
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Posts: 9059 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 01 Aug 2016 at 10:49am
thanks for the update
Doug ~ '10 171 (2009-2015) ~ 2008 Salem ~ Pod instruction manual
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Bill-J View Drop Down
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Posts: 36 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 Feb 2017 at 11:50am
Well for one thing there is a CONSTANT battery drain on the system due to things connected to the battery directly that the ONLY way you can stop it is to disconnect the battery.  None of these loads are fed from the distribution panel.  Very poor design.  Welcome to FR.
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furpod View Drop Down
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Posts: 6128 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 Feb 2017 at 12:48pm
Originally posted by Bill-J

Well for one thing there is a CONSTANT battery drain on the system due to things connected to the battery directly that the ONLY way you can stop it is to disconnect the battery.  None of these loads are fed from the distribution panel.  Very poor design.  Welcome to FR.




Actually. NO.

Having disassembled reassembled various parts of several R-Pods and several other trailers. ALL the phantom loads come from the distribution box. There is nothing tapped into the wires between the batteries and the distro box. The general phantom loads people have are the propane detector, the entertainment center and television if 12v, and often they leave the antenna booster on. ALL of those are fused, as is every other 12v circuit in every pod I have worked on.. and it's honestly probably more than anyone not at the factory. On OUR pod we had a couple other constant loads, due to mods we added. A battery disconnect takes care of the issue.
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Bill-J View Drop Down
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Posts: 36 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 Feb 2017 at 1:43pm
You know I think you are correct. Except one question then.  

Under the seat behind the AC & DC panels where the + battery lead exits the floor there is  one of the 15 amp(?) series mounted breakers screwed to the floor behind the panel.  This breaker is in the battery cable before the panel.  There are two wires connected on the panel side.  One goes on to the panel and goes to the +12VDC input terminal on the distribution panel. (This inline breaker functions as the main breaker for the distribution panel although you cannot turn it off.  It would just operate on a overload or short circuit BUT will automatically reset.)  The second wire goes back under the floor to somewhere.  I disconnected the wire and it has about 10ma constant load.  This wire does not go through the panel as it is, in practice, connected to the 12VDC battery.

I would sure like to know what that wire is.  I have asked the techs at PoulsboRV and they do not know and just blew me off.  

I have ask both Forest River and PaulsboRV for a wiring diagram and/or a schematic of the trailer and get absolutely no response.

One other point.  I am mounting a disconnect switch (marine grade with positions: Batt 1, Batt 2, Both, Off) and adding a second battery.  

I mounted the switch, right where you come in the door so it is easy to get to.  Anyway I mounted the switch and wired it in the 12V battery lead (before the panel).  All well and good, and except for the unknown red wire, becomes the battery disconnect switch. 

When the PaulsboRV service rep saw the switch and the one wire that I had connected he just looked at me and said, "This totally voids the warranty for the electrical system."

Now that is real service.  Fixing the FR problem will void the warranty on the elect system.
When in doubt, don't.
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furpod View Drop Down
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Posts: 6128 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 Feb 2017 at 2:49pm
Originally posted by Bill-J

You know I think you are correct. Except one question then.  

Under the seat behind the AC & DC panels where the + battery lead exits the floor there is  one of the 15 amp(?) series mounted breakers screwed to the floor behind the panel.  This breaker is in the battery cable before the panel.  There are two wires connected on the panel side.  One goes on to the panel and goes to the +12VDC input terminal on the distribution panel. (This inline breaker functions as the main breaker for the distribution panel although you cannot turn it off.  It would just operate on a overload or short circuit BUT will automatically reset.)  The second wire goes back under the floor to somewhere.  I disconnected the wire and it has about 10ma constant load.  This wire does not go through the panel as it is, in practice, connected to the 12VDC battery.

I would sure like to know what that wire is.  I have asked the techs at PoulsboRV and they do not know and just blew me off.  

I have ask both Forest River and PaulsboRV for a wiring diagram and/or a schematic of the trailer and get absolutely no response.

One other point.  I am mounting a disconnect switch (marine grade with positions: Batt 1, Batt 2, Both, Off) and adding a second battery.  

I mounted the switch, right where you come in the door so it is easy to get to.  Anyway I mounted the switch and wired it in the 12V battery lead (before the panel).  All well and good, and except for the unknown red wire, becomes the battery disconnect switch. 

When the PaulsboRV service rep saw the switch and the one wire that I had connected he just looked at me and said, "This totally voids the warranty for the electrical system."

Now that is real service.  Fixing the FR problem will void the warranty on the elect system.


A) what year and floor plan?

B) the only way FR will void the warranty is if they (FR) believes or proves a electrical issue is caused by your modification. You have a dealer issue, not an FR issue. LOTS of podders have installed cutoff switches. None that I am aware of has had any issues with warranty work if needed.

C) FR won't give up any wiring schematics to ANYONE. Don't take it personal. If you are good with a multimeter.. heck, even if all you know to do is trace a circuit with one, all you need to know is right there in the pod. It isn't like a house or car with hundreds of circuits and miles of wire.
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Bill-J View Drop Down
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Posts: 36 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 09 Feb 2017 at 3:36pm
It is a brand new 2017 RB180 purchased on Oct 22, 2017 .  

The service rep told me that Forest River WILL void the warranty.  After really getting hot (about the whole mess not just this)  I was passed on to the person who is the Service Manager for all 5 PoulsboRV service facilities.  I ask him about this, among other things, and he said that what I had been told was correct.  So if I have a warranty problem FR could, not would, void the electrical part of the warranty.

I am finding that Forest River has refused pretty much all of the things that have gone wrong with this unit.  I think my unit must have been built on a Thursday afternoon at 3pm before a 4 day holiday and my 180 had to get finished before they could go home.  

The manager is taking my complains to FR personally to see what "he can do for me."

Granted there is nothing on the list that I cannot fix myself but I am really p...ed that ANY company would sell a unit like the one we got....  The problems I am having are pure FR crap construction and junk material and parts.

After the manger gets his answer and see what he does I will make a post of all the problems and what was and was not fixed.
When in doubt, don't.
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