Under warranty and will probably have to go back to dealer (again !!!)

but busy week before leaving on a 9 day rv trip Saturday...
only 4 hours away so will probably be ok for the drive, but would like to get it fixed...

works fine if plugged in and stays cold for hours,
but doesn't seem to work on batteries...

anything I can do to save the days at the dealer before our trip ?

 

so it won't go onto the battery power but does have shore power?

Sounds like something in the control panel for the refer to me. Where it won't light the pilot light.

 

Yeppers, the fridge does fine as long as plugged in...

unplug and the fridge goes off, no matter what the setting on the 5er's disconnect switch (shown below)...

first res fridge but 5th rv so newbie at res pkg

Shouldn't the fridge be off if the master disconnect is off ?
Shouldn't the fridge be on if the master disconnect is on ?

 

Residential Fridge so no gas I guess. The circuit would have to run off of the inverter, most likely not wired for that out of the factory.

 

Are you turning on the inverter? On most of the units with the inverters, the inverter does not turn on automatically. They have a switch and have to be turned on. On others I have worked on all it was was a blown fuse in the hot lead to the inverters. Unless you have a very large inverter like a Xantrax or Magnum (1,000 to 2,000 watts), the inverter does not have a built in transfer switch.

The disconnect switch you pictured normally has nothing to do with switching on the inverter. That is just for storing the rig.

May want to check first and save yourself a trip to the dealer's.

Steve

 

Thanks - the disconnect is all I've seen before...
obviously not covered in the PDI or the 3 times I've brought it back to them about the battery issues

Will have to look for the inverter switch when I run by the storage area later tonight
***ume it's in the breaker panel inside the cabinet ?
or is it outside in the battery compartment like the disconnect??

heck I don't even know what the inverter looks like --- when are you moving closer to us ?!?!

 

I have seen them a couple of different places and your problem is not an uncommon one, lots of folks don't know this. Of course, there is the possibility the manufacturer installed a transfer switch, but I would have to see your rig to tell you that and so far I have not seen one in a fiver.

The switch is normally in the bay on the divider wall that seals off the bay from the rest of whatever is underneath or near the batteries. If you have a blown fuse it will not be in the distribution panel in the coach. It will be one of the small square breaker style (at least that is all I have seen). There often several of these together, but if you can find your inverter and trace the hot lead back you will be able to locate it. Often I just start checking breakers with my meter.

Since the tech normally doesn't check the inverter circuit during the PDI or else simply forgets about the inverter because most fivers don't have them, it is easy to overlook.

Good luck,

Steve

 

Someone Rep Steve for me - site won't let me give him any more reps !!!

thanks !

 

That inverter switch as Steve mentioned can be most anywhere - for instance, the one for mine is in the cabinet above the entertainment system - HUH! That's near the other end of the trailer from the batteries and inverter. On some of those gadgets there is also a small rocker switch to complicate matters. For that household reefer, even three batteries may not keep it going for too long a period at 3-400 watts along with any other 120V items you are trying to operate.

 

Dave,

What fiver do you have? Sooner or later I will run into having to find that switch for someone and have not seen one in that position.

I just got done installing a small inverter in my well used fiver yesterday so I can run off my two batteries when I choose.

Steve

 

Steve - we have an orphan and also well used, Canadian built, Glendale Titanium - the one with the aero nose cap. To complicate the inverter wiring, it also has 2 x 80 watt solar panels.

 

I like the Titaniums and have worked on several, but none I recall with an inverter. I was sorry to see Glendale fold.

Steve

 

I too was sorry as we would have liked a bit larger and newer unit but they also went to Lippert frames in 2009 with all of their weld cracking problems - one of the reasons(poor financial management is primary) they folded - so we keep this one going as many others in our price range just don't have the same quality.

 

Lippert, every time I hear their name I am not sure if I should laugh or cry they are so bad. Basically just go around buying up companies and then making quality control go away.

Really a tech's dream as you can put your kids through college from the earning from working on their stuff.

Steve

 

Like you said, Lippert provides a good income to folks like you. They provided the 2 big slides for our Titanium though those have been trouble free - so far. BAL/Accu Slide made the 3rd, a BR slide with cable failures past or coming soon.