blowing fuses

[robby56]

i have a 2008 cougar 5th wheel that has been stored for the winter and we are trying to get it ready to use for the 1st time this year and found out that the tv and radio will not come on. i looked in the fuse panel and found a blown 40 amp fuse and when i tried to replace it,it started sparking and blew the new fuse. all the other fuses in the panel are labeled except for this fuse, any idea if it really is for the tv/radio or do i have more problems. i cant find a electrical schematic online anywhere!!! has anyone seen this before?

[poochy]

shot in the dark ? If you have a battery disconnect try shutting off before putting fuse back in and shut everything down like frig , antenna booster, a/c, lites and wouldnt hurt to shut all breakers down if it works start 1by 1 turning them on and c what happens good luck @ let me knoe how it go'S BUTCH:banghead:"bouncey:

[Englishman]

If you can tell the group which fuse in the pannel has blown I'm sure that one of the other cougar owners will tell you what that fuse feeds. I would have thought that a 40amp is two large for the tv and radio.

Sent from my SPH-P100 using Tapatalk 2

[SteveC7010]

Unless you have a very unusual rig, your television is 110vac and your AM/FM/CD radio is 12vdc. For the most part, they are two separate systems in the trailer.

Television first... Being 110vac, it should have a circuit breaker and not a fuse. The breaker may not be specifically labeled for the tv as it could be just one of several breakers for 110vac outlets in the trailer. The breaker must be on AND you must be hooked up to shore power of some kind for the tv to work. For all practical purposes, this is pretty much identical to the wiring in our homes.

Radio next... Was the 40 amp fuse in the row of fuses that are all or mostly all 15 amp fuses? Or was it one that is behind the main fuse panel? Either way, there is probably a dead short somewhere. If you are not comfortable troubleshooting 12vdc RV circuits, you may want to have an RV tech look at it.

[JRTJH]

The only 40 Amp fuses I'm aware of in the power converter are the "reverse polarity protection fuses" If you blow a 40 amp fuse with nothing in the 12 VDC circuits turned on, I'd check to be sure the battery/batteries are connected properly. You may very well have hooked up your battery backwards. Remember, on RV 12 volt systems, white is NEG and black is POS.

As for the TV, like Steve said, it's 110VAC, and should work regardless of the 12 VDC system status as long as you're plugged into shore power or a generator. You may, however, have a GFI protecting that plug. If it is tripped, then there would be no power to the TV plug. Take a known good lamp, plug it into the TV outlet, if it lights, then the TV should work.

[chuck&gail]

Did you remove battery? If so, be REAL SURE you put it back right. Very common when folks put battery in backwards, which is why manufacturer added a fuse just for only that.

[SteveC7010]

Did you remove battery? If so, be REAL SURE you put it back right. Very common when folks put battery in backwards, which is why manufacturer added a fuse just for only that.

Good point, Chuck!

For everyone, 12vdc RV wiring is a bit different from other 12vdc systems. In RV's, white is usually ground and black is usually hot. In the front battery compartment of my Cougar, there is even a sticker that gives that specific information. In other 12vdc systems, black is usually ground while hot is usually red or another color.

How to verify this in your rig? Locate your battery. There should be a very heavy white wire going from the negative (-) terminal direct to the frame or other chassis component. This wire is usually short, only a foot or two, and is the GROUND side of the system.

An equally heavy black wire should go from the positive (+) terminal to one or more heavy duty fuses and then on to the power panel, etc. There are likely to be other heavy wires direct from those fuses to the landing gear controls or nose jack. There should also be a lighter gauge wire direct from the battery to the breakaway switch. This is the HOT side of the system.

Terms:

Hot equals Positive equals + (plus.)

Ground equals Negative equals - (minus.)

NOTE WELL: This is sort of the opposite of the 110vac wiring in our homes, businesses, and even RV's. (Those that understand 110vac wiring well know that black is hot, white is common, and bare or green is ground, but let's not nit pick, it's mostly the opposite of RV 12vc wiring, OK?)

If there is not a sticker near your battery with this info, consider making up a small sign for your self or label the wires with indelible ink or something that will clearly remind you how to correctly hook up the battery after removing it.

Also, if you remove your battery make sure the hot lead is taped off to insure that it does not touch ground. If you plug into shore power without the battery and the hot lead grounds out, you may just loose the 40 amp protector fuses. Or you may loose your entire converter. It is a gamble that I do not recommend to anyone.

It's my opinion that this is basic knowledge that every RV owner needs to have and thoroughly understand.

[robby56]

yes it was next to the row of 15 amp fuses. the top one is the one that keeps blowing

[Rik]

Not a reply so much as a related question.

We have a Hideout 176LHS and whenever we plug into shore power, one of the 15 amp fuses blows. It's the bottom one in the stack, right above the 40amp dead short fuse. (I don't know what circuit it is - other than the lights are included. Keystone thoughtfully didn't label any of them or include a schematic in the owner papers) It blows consistently whenever we plug into shore power. No other time and only that fuse.

I tried substituting a 20amp but that blows as well. Lastly, this is a new problem. It didn't happen for the first three years we owned it but just started the end of last season. Kind of worrisome because it makes me think something drastic is brewing.
Any thoughts?
Oh and I'm new here so if this has been covered already, I apologize for the repeat.
Thanks

Rik

[flybouy]

Not a reply so much as a related question.

We have a Hideout 176LHS and whenever we plug into shore power, one of the 15 amp fuses blows. It's the bottom one in the stack, right above the 40amp dead short fuse. (I don't know what circuit it is - other than the lights are included. Keystone thoughtfully didn't label any of them or include a schematic in the owner papers) It blows consistently whenever we plug into shore power. No other time and only that fuse.

I tried substituting a 20amp but that blows as well. Lastly, this is a new problem. It didn't happen for the first three years we owned it but just started the end of last season. Kind of worrisome because it makes me think something drastic is brewing.
Any thoughts?
Oh and I'm new here so if this has been covered already, I apologize for the repeat.
Thanks

Rik

It's a good idea to start a new thread with a question not directly related to the original post. That said, have you checked to see what's not working? If the fuse burns out then there is a load on that circuit that's exceeding the fuse rating. If it burns out immediately would lead me to believe it could be a dead to ground short.

I'm not clear on what you mean in " (I don't know what circuit it is - other than the lights are included". Are you saying the interior lights don't work?

[Rik]

Thanks Marshall,
What I mean is that everything works fine when shore power or on battery but whenever we switch or plug into shore power or start the generator to recharge the battery, that fuse plows immediately. The circuit works fine consistently and for long periods of time. The only time the problem occurs is when we introduce the 110v source. Replace the fuse and everything is fine again. Just being on shore power will not blow the fuse. Just when we plug in.

[JRTJH]

It sounds like your converter has a short in the primary winding. Unplug (or disconnect) your converter by turning the REC/CON circuit breaker and see if it still blows the fuse... If it does, more troubleshooting, if it doesn't blow that fuse, you'll probably need a new converter.