C/B's pop when plugging shore power
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Topic: C/B's pop when plugging shore power
Posted By: tony rpod 180
Subject: C/B's pop when plugging shore power
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2019 at 4:28pm
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Hi all! Here lately when I plug my 2018 R Pod 180 into shore power at home or at camp sites I find a few or almost all c/b's popped. I reset them, and all is good till we break camp and plug in again somewhere else. Was wondering if this is an early sign of power supply failure, c/b's weak, or something else. FYI- When plugging in at campsites I always open pedestal c/b before plugging in to camper, at home I just plug into house and then to camper. Either way I do it c/b's are popping. Any suggestions? ------------- GMC Canyon/RPoder |
Replies:
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2019 at 4:42pm
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Interesting. If just one branch cb was tripping I'd suggest that there was either a fault or a bad cb on that particular circuit. But if multiple branch cbs are tripping that's a different story. Is the trailer main 30A cb tripping? is it always the same branch circuits that have their cb's tripping? Maybe try turning off the main 30A cb in the trailer, then plug in to your house circuit, then turn on the main in the trailer and watch what happens. ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: tony rpod 180
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2019 at 5:08pm
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Some times the 30amp main pops, other times it doesn’t. It’s usually at least a few if not almost all that pop. And everything is always turned off. ------------- GMC Canyon/RPoder |
Posted By: podwerkz
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2019 at 5:29pm
Ah, 180 you say. They all do that. Better trade it in for a 171. ------------- r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten! |
Posted By: tony rpod 180
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2019 at 6:40pm
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Ha Ha! We traded a 171 for our 180, only took 171 out 3 times and no issues other than being a tad too small and the wet bath.
Do all 180’s really trip breakers? ------------- GMC Canyon/RPoder |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 17 Sep 2019 at 8:24pm
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He's pulling your leg. Circuit breakers don't just pop for no reason. Especially several of them. Now we have some old-original GFCI breakers in the north annex of our house, which was built around 1994. All kinds of things made those suckers pop. The worst offenders were the old fluorescent lights they originally installed. Our solution was to replace the GFCI breakers, and install GFCI outlets wherever they were needed. ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 18 Sep 2019 at 3:58am
Yah, and the first gen arc fault breakers in the early '00's were even worse. Just turning on my ceiling fans would trip those, they were totally useless. But the breakers tripping in the trailer panel are just plain old breakers, at least they are in mine. I think it's going to take some methodical troubleshooting in order to try to zero in on where the problem is. I'd start with my suggestion above, connect with the trailer main breaker off, then turn that on and see what happens. Record which breakers trip. Then turn the main off again, turn off all the branch breakers, turn the main on and start turning on each breaker one at a time, noting what's happening.
------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: tony rpod 180
Date Posted: 18 Sep 2019 at 7:52am
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Thanks! I will do that. Appreciate everybody’s input humorous and otherwise. ------------- GMC Canyon/RPoder |
Posted By: tony rpod 180
Date Posted: 18 Sep 2019 at 4:51pm
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I think I may have figured it out,
We got to camp today and I plugged in and nothing happened this time. Also before we left the house I tried un plugging and plugging it back in and nothing happened again. Could it be my imagination or could towing trailer over rough highways cause them to spring open? When I started noticing it was on a long trip to New York and the roads were terrible there and back, also we stopped several times in between and that’s when I started seeing breakers popped, I was assuming they popped when I plugged in. ------------- GMC Canyon/RPoder |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 18 Sep 2019 at 4:54pm
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It's plausible. They are spring loaded. ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: tony rpod 180
Date Posted: 18 Sep 2019 at 5:07pm
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Thanks everybody, sorry to make ya’ll scratch ur heads, but I’m pretty sure that’s the reason. I am watching it very closely now and checking for popped breakers after towing BEFORE I plug in now. ------------- GMC Canyon/RPoder |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 18 Sep 2019 at 6:16pm
Seems unlikely that road vibration would trip your breakers, I've never seen anything like that. But maybe you're running down some really bad roads. If so then I suggest slowing down, you could wind up with worse problems than tripped cb's.  Keep us posted on what you find...------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |
Posted By: podwerkz
Date Posted: 19 Sep 2019 at 1:17pm
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If normal road vibration is causing the breakers to trip, they are DEFECTIVE. They would have to be so loose that they are broken or worn out...its just not possible to be that loose and still operate correctly. ------------- r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten! |
Posted By: tony rpod 180
Date Posted: 20 Sep 2019 at 3:58pm
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Just got back from a quick camp trip. Checked breakers before and after arriving camp, and all good. On day of departure I unhooked from pedestal and all were good. After a 60 minute drive home and about 4 miles of kinda rough road I checked and only ONE 15 amp breaker was tripped this time. This pretty much solidifies for me it is the rough roads, and I don't drive fast either. The roads on the way to New York were much much worse, I believe the worst part was in Indiana.
I may at some point replace all breakers. Also I might add the breakers are located slightly aft of the right wheel, it seems to me they are getting a straight jolt from bumps in road.
------------- GMC Canyon/RPoder |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 20 Sep 2019 at 10:10pm
 ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: podwerkz
Date Posted: 20 Sep 2019 at 11:05pm
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It seems to me that if the jolts are violent enough to 'trip' the breakers, there must be something like defective breakers or a loose converter panel....or it could be something like an unbalanced wheel causing a bad vibration or...your suspension is passing along violent road shocks and will end up tearing something up in the trailer. This is weird. ------------- r･pod 171 gone but not forgotten! |
Posted By: offgrid
Date Posted: 21 Sep 2019 at 5:55am
+1. My panel is right behind the right wheel also and I've never had a breaker trip like that, in this or any other RV I've owned. Check to see that the panel cover plate surrounding the breakers isn't misaligned and pressing on them incorrectly. Ditto for the access door. Make sure the breakers are seated in the panel properly. Also, take a look at your axle on the right side and be sure you aren't bottoming out the torsion arm travel. There have been quite a few axle failures in the heavier rPods. ------------- 1994 Chinook Concourse 1995 RV6A Experimental Aircraft 2015 Rpod 179 - sold |