110v Outlet Issue
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Forum Name: I need HELP!!!
Forum Discription: Perplexed/need help with a problem - ask here
URL: http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=16104
Printed Date: 10 Jun 2025 at 10:44pm
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Topic: 110v Outlet Issue
Posted By: jdel3266
Subject: 110v Outlet Issue
Date Posted: 11 Dec 2024 at 12:30pm
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Hello World, I have a 2016 Rpod 179 and am having issues with some of the 110v outlets not working. I've read through every forum I can find and not been able to replicate this exact issue. The outlet to the left upon entrance to the camper, the kitchen outlet (GFCI), outlet under the bed, and outside outlet are not working. The GFCI will not reset/test as if it's not getting power. However, I used a circuit tester to confirm power is coming to the bottom feed wires on the GFCI. No power to the entrance outlet, bed or outside outlet either, obviously. I replaced the GFCI (twice just in case) but still the same issue. Breaker has not been tripped but have cycled all visible breakers anyway. The outlets for the fridge, microwave and TV are all working so I assume they are on a separate circuit. If I have read right, those are fed by the 12v system? Which makes me assume my inverter is working in converting the shore power to 12v. And yes, I am connected to shore power. The only breaker I haven't been able to find is the one for the inverter itself but, again, I believe the inverter is working. I included a picture of the breaker panel with cover off if someone could point me to the reset for the inverter if we think that may be the cause. I've used a plug-in GFCI tester but without power it won't give a cause and doesn't show any issues on the other working outlets.   Thanks all, - Justin ------------- Justin |
Replies:
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 11 Dec 2024 at 2:48pm
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All the GFCI is telling you is that you have a ground fault. It is detecting current on the ground wire (and there needs to be none). You need to determine the source of the current by eliminating the other outlets and things that are connected to power from the GFCI. So if you open up the outlet, you will find a hot wire coming in, and a "downstream" hot wire going to the outlets that are slaved to the GFCI. If you disconnect the downstream hot wire at the GFCI, it should eliminate all the downstream outlets from the equation, and the GFCI should stay untripped. At that point, you need to move downstream one outlet at a time until you find the culprit. ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 11 Dec 2024 at 3:09pm
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Hello Justin, Let me correct one thing. What is pictured is the Converter. The 2016 models did not come with an inverter. Unless you or a prior owner installed an inverter, it does not have one and so depends on having shore power to have 110V in the R-Pod. If you do not have the trailer plugged in, you won't have power. ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: JR
Date Posted: 11 Dec 2024 at 3:51pm
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In your power distribution box, as per the photo, you have 7
breakers for the 110 volt side and you have 9 fused 12 volt circuits. I believe the 2 / 40 amp fuses that are separated
are for the reverse polarity protection on the trailer. Your trailer is a 2016. I have a 2019 179, therefore the wiring schematic has
changed over the years. My trailer is
currently in storage, so I can’t go to the trailer for the ready reference, which
is needed. At this point all I can do is go from memory (which isn’t great for
me at this point in time). On my trailer
I have only 3 – 15 amp breakers labeled; first fuse, Interior lights, A/C (for controlling
purposes only), second fuse, LP, WH, MP, Pump (powers LP-LP/Carbon Monoxide
Tester, WH powers water heater controller, MP powers tank level indicators and
monitor panel, Pump powers water pump), third fuse, Bath lights and fan, stereo
radio. There is a 1 – 7.5 amp fuse for the furnace fan. Also there are 2 -30 map
fuses the first one is labeled for the 2 slide out motors and the second fuse
is labeled for the battery and the Refrigerator heating element. As you can see
our trailers are wired differently on the 12 volt side of things. On the 110 volt side my trailer has only 4 / 15 amp
breakers, 1 / 20 amp breaker, and 1 / 30 amp breaker. The 15 amp breakers are labeled for; the
first is, converter, the second is for the GFI outlets & Refrigerator
(heating element), the third is for the Microwave, the forth is for the
electric heating element in the water heater. The 20 amp breaker is for the Air
Conditioner. The 30 amp breaker is for the incoming shore power to the
distribution box. With all this being said and going from my memory the wiring
in my trailer for the GFI outlet which is located between the bed and the dinette
low on the bed support and then feeds the other in house 110 outlets which are
2 more by the kitchen counter (one on either side of the trailer) a third one
by the television and the last one is mounted on the outside of the trailer.
All of these house use 110 outlets are “protected” by the GFI outlet by the
bed/dinette. Using a multi meter verify that you have 110 volts to the
GFI outlet. If you don’t have power to that outlet, find the problem between
that outlet and the distribution box. As a side light none of the house outlets
are feed by the 12 volt system in a standard wired trailer. You are correct in thinking that the refrigerator,
microwave, and TV are on different 110 breakers. It also may be helpful to find the labeling electrical
schematic. Mine is mounted to the inside front cover (door) of the distribution
box. Another side light to my understanding is that there is a converter in the
distribution box converting 110 volts to 12 volts (battery) going to the
battery. The R-Pods made in 2016 did not have as standard equipment an on board
inverter to convert 12 volts (battery) to 110 volts. Hope
this helps. ------------- Jay 179/2019 |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 15 Dec 2024 at 11:48am
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Hey All, Thank you all for the suggestions and information. I disconnected all of the other outlets that I believe are on this circuit and saw no change. I also disconnected the fridge and microwave, no change. I finally got a multimeter and tested the voltage into the GFCI outlet. Interestingly enough, there was only 7 volts coming to the outlet with the breaker on and 35 volts with the breaker off. Clearly, there must be a faulty ground as Glueguy suggested but now I'm faced with trying to figure out how to find it. I'm thinking I may just need to rewire all the outlets on this circuit but I'm not sure if that's the extreme? Let me know what you guys think. ------------- Justin |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 15 Dec 2024 at 3:12pm
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I don't know about re-wiring all the outlets. Can you do some testing on various parts of the circuit? With the power off and with everything unplugged, use a multimeter to check for continuity between hot and ground, neutral and ground, and hot and neutral on each outlet. Any indication of current between hot and neutral or hot and ground could help you narrow down where to search. I suspect that a couple of wires may have gotten pinched and enough of the insulation has worn off to allow just enough current leakage to cause the GFI to trip. If that is inconclusive, then try this: With power to the trailer disconnected and the breakers off, Leave the supply wires to the GFI connected, but disconnect the downstream outlets. Then turn on the power and breaker and try to reset the GFI. If the GFI resets, then the problem is downstream. Turn the power off and connect the next outlet inline, again disconnecting the outlets downstream of that outlet. Do the test again. If the GFI does not trip or if tripped, you can't reset it, then you have found the wiring segment at fault. Keep doing this until you find which downstream outlet is causing the GFI to trip and not reset. I hope you can find the cause of the problem. Keep us posted as to what you find. ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 17 Dec 2024 at 11:08am
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This can't be all that complicated. The GFCI outlet has essentially two connections: 1. The line coming in 2. The line going out You should be able to test the line coming in to see if the hot wire (the black one) has 110 VAC on it. If it doesn't, then the next check is the circuit breaker in the main panel. You should be able to test that to verify that the circuit breaker out is live or not. If it's not, then the circuit breaker in the main panel is at fault. If it is live, then the wire between the circuit breaker an the GFCI is broken somehow. The wire is almost assuredly a Romex wire, and it can't just "break". If that's the problem, it somehow got severed. I'm betting the breaker in the main panel may be your issue. ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 17 Dec 2024 at 11:43am
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Breakers can go bad, but the hot wire may not have been tightened adequately and may have slipped out. If so, then with the power off, reinsert the black wire into the breaker and tighten it. It is conceivable that the wire may have gotten cut or that a staple may have been driven through a wire downstream of the GCFI breaker that is not quite enough to cause a short, but will allow leakage of enough current to keep the GCFI from resetting. If it was working and you mounted something with a nail or screw, and then it started malfunctioning, that might be the place to look. ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 17 Dec 2024 at 4:49pm
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This RPod is new to me and these outlets haven't worked since buying so not sure about any installations or mounting. In my previous response, I had my meter set to DC  when testing the GFCI but now have verified that there is no power coming to either breaker on the bottom 2-pole circuit. One being the W/H breaker (I assume this means water heater which I haven't got to test yet) nor the 110v breaker. There is 120v coming to all of the other breakers on the main panel. I also tested the back of the breaker in question to rule out that the wires had not come loose.I previously assumed there was power from the breaker because I was using a cheap tester that showed there was power to the GFCI. I tested with my multimeter, and it shows .005v or 5millivolts. Not sure where that trickle is coming from. From the videos I've watched, forgive my ignorance, it appears that at least one of the two circuits should be live on the 2-pole breaker? I just want to verify that the issue isn't deeper before I replace the circuit breaker. ------------- Justin |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 17 Dec 2024 at 8:06pm
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I looked at the picture again. I'm wondering if that bottom breaker is original as it looks like it is a different size than the others. How are your providing 110V power to your R-Pod? Do you have a dedicated RV outlet? Are you plugging into a 15A or 20A outlet with an adapter? Is that outlet that is supplying the power to your RPod wired correctly? Do you have a circuit analyzer to verify that? Is the cord you are using to plug the R-Pod into shore power good? Is there evidence that the RPod is actually getting power? Is the clock on the convection/microwave showing time or blinking at least? ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: JR
Date Posted: 18 Dec 2024 at 9:00am
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Do you have a labeling sheet for different 110v circuits in the distribution box? That would help you determine which breaker to test to find out if there is power being supplied to the 110v in house outlets. It sounds like you have power to the other 110v circuits. Keep in mind that on your GFCI outlet (which should be wired directly to the distribution box) will have 2 sets (+ & -) of wires connected to the outlet. One will be the "feed" wired directly to the distribution box. The other set of wires (+ & -) will to feed the other in house outlets. Keep in mind that you need both the negative and positive wires "feeding" the GFCI outlet to have direct connection to the distribution box. If all that checks out then you can start verifying the wiring down stream of the GFCI outlet. ------------- Jay 179/2019 |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 18 Dec 2024 at 10:33am
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IIRC, GCFI outlets need to be wired specifically so that the power supply goes to one set of terminals and downstream outlets go to the other set. These are specifically labeled as Line (to the breaker panel) and Load (downstream outlets). Check the outlet to make sure it is wired correctly. https://www.homedepot.com/c/ah/how-to-install-a-gfci-outlet/9ba683603be9fa5395fab9027be8d3c - https://www.homedepot.com/c/ah/how-to-install-a-gfci-outlet/9ba683603be9fa5395fab9027be8d3c ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 18 Dec 2024 at 12:39pm
If you go down the load side of the breaker panel, if a breaker is ON, then you should see 120VAC on the screws between the screw and neutral (any of the white wires). ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 19 Dec 2024 at 8:56am
Per the labeling on the door of the access port, the 2 I circled are for W/H and 15amp GFCI. This is a 2-pole breaker that neither are getting 120VAC to. The rest of the ones that GlueGuy circled are getting 120VAC. I have not tried rewiring the GFCI because I would assume that there would need to be 120VAC passing through the breaker before it would get to the GFCI, correct?
------------- Justin |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 19 Dec 2024 at 9:27am
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What happens if you turn them off an don again? Some breakers don't flip all the way when tripped. It is beginning to sound like you have a bad pair of breakers, especially if you can see voltage between the screws and neutral on the other breakers. Can you (with power off for safety) remove and re-seat that pair of breakers? Does it make any difference when you test again? ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 19 Dec 2024 at 3:57pm
Okay, so I swapped the breaker with the one above it and now all 4 circuits are getting 120v. Must've been a loose connection as Stephen suggested earlier. Now the feed wires to the bottom of the GFCI are getting a full 120VAC but still not able to reset/test the GFCI. I checked the voltage at each of the various outlets, they all ranged from .36 to 1.2VAC. I grabbed a picture of the voltage on one of the outlets below. The picture doesn't show my leads touching the copper on the live wires (tough to do with one hand) but it didn't make a difference when I did touch the copper. 
------------- Justin |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 19 Dec 2024 at 4:36pm
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What wire are you testing there? If you disconnect the LOAD wires from the GCFI outlet so that it is only connected on the LINE side is connected, does it then allow the GCFI outlet to reset? ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 19 Dec 2024 at 6:05pm
Sorry for the sporadic image sizing, trying to get this figured out. In the previous post, I was showing the small bit of voltage between the common ground and live wire, not sure if it meant anything. In the photo on this post, I have removed the down-stream outlets from the GFCI and am showing that 120v are coming from the breaker panel into the GFCI but it still will not allow me to reset/test it. When inspecting the outlet for the outside of the camper, I noticed 2 sets of wires. One that appears to be going to the breaker panel and the other to the outlet under the bed. I disconnected the outlets from both and saw no change, but am wondering if that somehow has something to do with it? I verified the outside outlet is not a GFCI. ------------- Justin |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 19 Dec 2024 at 8:05pm
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It is looking like you have a bad GCFI outlet. They have been known to go bad. ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 20 Dec 2024 at 11:11am
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The outside outlet on our RP179 is slaved to the GFCI. If the GFCI is tripped, it will be de-energized. ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 20 Dec 2024 at 11:17am
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Yeah, I'm an idiot. Obviously, the wires coming in would be feeding the power from the GFCI to the outside outlet and the other set of wires is feeding the bed outlet. Dur. I changed the GFCI, no luck. So, would there be a ground fault between the breaker box and GFCI? ------------- Justin |
Posted By: Tars Tarkas
Date Posted: 20 Dec 2024 at 2:17pm
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I never saw you answer Stephen's question about whether you have 120v power coming into your Pod. None of the outlets will work if there's not 120v electricity hooked up from outside somewhere. (The battery's 12 volts don't get inverted to 120v and distributed to the 120v outlets.) You have a 12v DC system and a 120v AC system and they are completely independent of each other. I haven't read the whole thread very carefully, so I could have missed this. And this is very basic information, but not everyone understands it, so sorry if I'm being too rudimentary. TT ------------- 2010 176 FJ Cruiser |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 20 Dec 2024 at 3:49pm
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Hi Tars, I appreciate the thought; yes I've tried a few different outlets and extension cords for 120v source but none have changed anything. ------------- Justin |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 21 Dec 2024 at 11:17am
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So now that you have 120VAC going to the LINE connector on the GFCI, is there 120VAC going to the LOAD connector (with the wire disconnected)? ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 23 Dec 2024 at 11:28am
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No sir, no power to the Load/top side of the outlet. ------------- Justin |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 23 Dec 2024 at 12:07pm
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Does the LOAD connector have power when the black wire is disconnected? ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 25 Dec 2024 at 3:48pm
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Merry Christmas all. No, the load connector does not have power with the white wire connected and black disconnected; nor when I have no wires connected to the load side and am just testing the terminals on the GFCI. I have 2 GFCI outlets and have swapped both in to test, neither get power. ------------- Justin |
Posted By: StephenH
Date Posted: 26 Dec 2024 at 12:41am
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Do the two wires on the supply (LINE) side have a voltage reading? If so, what is it? ------------- StephenH Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,... http://www.rpod-owners.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=7712 - ouR escaPOD mods Former RPod 179 Current Cherokee Grey Wolf 24 JS |
Posted By: jdel3266
Date Posted: 26 Dec 2024 at 8:39am
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Yes, the two wires coming into the line side read 120v. ------------- Justin |
Posted By: GlueGuy
Date Posted: 26 Dec 2024 at 11:20am
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Well, if you have just the three in wires connected (line in, neutral in, and ground), and there is power active, and the GFCI will not reset, then the GFCI is bad. You can test this on the bench with an extension cord lest there be any doubt.  ------------- bp 2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River 2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost |