Inverter and shore power connection questions

caupwhiting · February 24, 2022

When we are connected to shore power, can we run appliances 110, or do we need to turn on the inverter to run on the 110 outlets in the coach? I am currently hooked up to the house and have been running a small air purifier/ionizer to rid the motorhome of cat smell. I ran it all day yesterday and when I went out about 9:00 last night the unit was not running. The 110 outlets in the motorhome were not working even though the motorhome was connected to the house. I'm confused. It appears the coach batteries have lost power.

Edited February 24, 2022 by caupwhiting

Lou Schneider · February 25, 2022

When you're connected to shore power, it should flow directly to the 110 outlets in the RV. The inverter creates 110 volts from the 12 volt batteries, so it only needs to be on if you want to use 110 volt appliances while you are NOT connected to shore power. If the inverter was on it may have drained the batteries instead of drawing power directly from the shore power cord.

TXiceman · February 25, 2022

The best thing to do is read the manual on the inverter and make sure it is set properly for your RV and also check the status of the batteries.

We leave our inveter/converter set so that we still maintain power on any power interruption.

Ken

Edited February 25, 2022 by TXiceman

Kirk W · February 25, 2022

Welcome to the Escapees Forums! We are here to help and will do our best.

It would help if we knew a little more about your RV and your situation. Is your RV one that has a 30A (3 pin) power cord or does it have a 50A(4 pin) cord? Are you using an adapter to connect the RV cord to an ordinary house outlet or do you have one made for the RV cord? Your 120V outlets should all work from the shore power supply and if you have an inverter it may supply them all or it may only go to select outlets, depending on how it is wired.

The batteries can supply power to the inverter but they have nothing to do with you outlets getting power when connected to outside 120v power.

sandsys · February 25, 2022

How were you connected to the house? Some house outlets look similar to 50 amp ones but are not which causes problems. Or, if you had what we call a doggone connector to change power from what your rig requires to what the house provides you might have been asking for more than you were getting. When we used an extension cord to connect to my Dad's house we only got 20 amps not the 30 our rig wanted so we had to be very careful about what was drawing on that power. Most rigs have what is known as phantom loads which means they draw power when you think they are off--like clocks on microwaves, instant on TVs, alarms, etc.

Linda

lenp · February 25, 2022

What exactly are you connected to at your house?

One of these: When To Replace An Electrical Outlet | Nelson Comfort

Or one of these: 10 Professional How To Install An Electrical Outlet, A Dryer Galleries - Tone Tastic

If the second then you are probably connected to 240 volts. If your coach is a 50 amp coach you are probably ok IF plugged into the left portion of the second photo. I your coach is a 30 amp (or 50 amp) coach and you plugged into the right photo you may have applied 240 volts to the 120 volt circuits and may well have caused some damage.

Lenp

caupwhiting · February 25, 2022

16 hours ago, Lou Schneider said:

When you're connected to shore power, it should flow directly to the 110 outlets in the RV. The inverter creates 110 volts from the 12 volt batteries, so it only needs to be on if you want to use 110 volt appliances while you are NOT connected to shore power. If the inverter was on it may have drained the batteries instead of drawing power directly from the shore power cord.

Thank you. That is my understanding as well. We bought this motorhome last year from a guy who had added the inverter and solar panels. Not sure why 110 only works if the inverter is turned on. Will need to have it looked at.

Thanks again.

caupwhiting · February 25, 2022

13 hours ago, lenp said:

What exactly are you connected to at your house?

One of these:

Or one of these:

If the second then you are probably connected to 240 volts. If your coach is a 50 amp coach you are probably ok IF plugged into the left portion of the second photo. I your coach is a 30 amp (or 50 amp) coach and you plugged into the right photo you may have applied 240 volts to the 120 volt circuits and may well have caused some damage.

Lenp

Like the top photo then into the coach with an adaptor into the 30 amp like the bottom. The 110 only works if the inverter is turned on.

caupwhiting · February 25, 2022

15 hours ago, Kirk W said:

Welcome to the Escapees Forums! We are here to help and will do our best.

It would help if we knew a little more about your RV and your situation. Is your RV one that has a 30A (3 pin) power cord or does it have a 50A(4 pin) cord? Are you using an adapter to connect the RV cord to an ordinary house outlet or do you have one made for the RV cord? Your 120V outlets should all work from the shore power supply and if you have an inverter it may supply them all or it may only go to select outlets, depending on how it is wired.

The batteries can supply power to the inverter but they have nothing to do with you outlets getting power when connected to outside 120v power.

3 pin 30 amp. Using an adaptor at the coach to connect to an outlet in the garage with an extension cord. My understanding is that when we are on shore power, the 110 outlets in the coach should be running on shore power. Ours only work when we turn on the inverter. Strange. Something funky in the wiring I suppose.

Edited February 25, 2022 by caupwhiting

Kirk W · February 25, 2022

In most inverter installations, the outlets that it is to supply power to are connected to the inverter by way of a subpanel where the circuit breakers to protect the outlets are located. That subpanel then is fed by the inverter and inside of the inverter is a transfer device that will select the inverter output if it is supplying power and will select the supply from the main power distribution panel if there is outside power available. It could be that the inverter that you have is a less expensive model that doesn't have the transfer device and that would cause what you have.

There are a couple of ways to determine if 120V power is getting to your RV. If you have a microwave, with your cord connected, look to see if there is any display on it. With you using and extension cord you may not be able to operate the microwave but I'd do a quick test of it anyway as a few seconds should not harm anything but may trip the circuit breaker that supplies your outlet in the house.

I just realized that you said you were running an ionizer to eliminate odors, so isn't it connected to one of the outlets in the RV? Did you try plugging something into the outlet where your RV plug is connected to be sure that you have not tripped the circuit breaker that supplies it? In houses nearly all outlets are on a circuit with other outlets and/or other things like lights and such. It could be that your problem is the circuit breaker in your house.

caupwhiting · February 25, 2022

Discovered that the GFCI in the bathroom has tripped and won't reset. I changed this same GFCI last year. I'm not sure how to troubleshoot the issue except to replace it again, which won't fix the real problem. Any and all tips are appreciated.

Thanks

caupwhiting · February 25, 2022

3 minutes ago, Kirk W said:

In most inverter installations, the outlets that it is to supply power to are connected to the inverter by way of a subpanel where the circuit breakers to protect the outlets are located. That subpanel then is fed by the inverter and inside of the inverter is a transfer device that will select the inverter output if it is supplying power and will select the supply from the main power distribution panel if there is outside power available. It could be that the inverter that you have is a less expensive model that doesn't have the transfer device and that would cause what you have.

There are a couple of ways to determine if 120V power is I tot didn't t your RV. If you have a microwave, with your cord connected, look to see if there is any display on it. With you using and extension cord you may not be able to operate the microwave but I'd do a quick test of it anyway as a few seconds should not harm anything but may trip the circuit breaker that supplies your outlet in the house.

I just realized that you said you were running an ionizer to eliminate odors, so isn't it connected to one of the outlets in the RV? Did you try plugging something into the outlet where your RV plug is connected to be sure that you have not tripped the circuit breaker that supplies it? In houses nearly all outlets are on a circuit with other outlets and/or other things like lights and such. It could be that your problem is the circuit breaker in your house.

Appreciate the response.

The previous owner is a high voltage electrical engineer and he installed a RENOGY Model No. RN1000-12V-C inverter and solar panels.

The ionizer was plugged into an outlet in the motorhome. It didn't trip a breaker, or blow a fuse. All fuses are good, and I have reset the breakers. Now the GFCI plug in the bathroom is tripped and won't reset. I replaced this same outlet just last year.

kb0zke · October 14, 2022

You might have to replace it again. I'd go to an electrical store (not the electrical aisle in Wal-Mart) and bet a GOOD outlet. Check the breaker and wiring to determine if you need a 15A or a 20A one. Make sure that you have good, tight connections and put electrical tape around the screw terminals on the sides.

Before you spend any money, though, unplug everything that is on that circuit. Then turn the breaker off and check all connections on the outlet. If everything is good, reinstall the outlet and turn on the breaker but don't plug anything in. Does the outlet reset? If so, problem is partially solved. Now you just have to figure out what/why the outlet tripped.

If the outlet doesn't reset you will have to replace it.