Propane Detector Issue

[Libtough]

Hi, my husband checked the propane detector on our Passport 175 BH which seemed to not be working. Turned on the bathroom light switch and it began to work. Apparently, the only time it works is if you're in the bathroom so it's not very safe. The power to the unit is hooked up wrong so check yours out, just to be safe.

[travelin texans]

Curious?
How are you testing it?
It should be wired directly to the batteries, no switch.
You didn't state what rv or the age, those detectors are dated on the back & are only good for 4-5 years before they require replacement.
They will also chirp if the batteries are low.

[Libtough]

Hi. Sorry about that. I realized I had not named my trailer etc after I posted. We own a Keystone Passport 175 BH purchased in 2019 and has been only used for one long trip and 2 small ones. My husband was just months away from being a journeyman electrician so he knows how to check. He used a volt meter but kept getting weird readings. He then noticed it worked when the Bathroom light switch got turned on and it wouldn't when the switch was turned off. We know it was not working for most of those trips because we always leave the lights off. We also never heard a chirp. My husband found that it was wired to the bathroom light first and then to the switch and then to the detector. Wrong in so many ways. He knows how to rewire it properly as you said, directly to the battery. I hope people will check to make sure all is right in their units.
Have a great day!!!

[wiredgeorge]

I don't think you will hear a chirp unless you have either a propane leak or the battery is going dead. This propane detector should be wired directly to the battery and will kill you battery if you don't have a battery charger on when the trailer is not in use or you are not plugged into shore power. It takes about a week or so for the battery to loose charge sufficiently for the annoying chirping to start. I can say this with a high degree of certainty (I learned the lesson).

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

I don't think you will hear a chirp unless you have either a propane leak or the battery is going dead. This propane detector should be wired directly to the battery and will kill you battery if you don't have a battery charger on when the trailer is not in use or you are not plugged into shore power. It takes about a week or so for the battery to loose charge sufficiently for the annoying chirping to start. I can say this with a high degree of certainty (I learned the lesson).

A little off point but speaking of a chirping propane detector;

Set up in Fredericksburg, TX got inside getting everything going. Just about done and that dang detector started howling (not the dead battery chirp) - enough to make your eyes bug out, pull your hair and neighbors to come to your door.

Now I had just had eye surgery on both eyes and couldn't see squat in front of me. Pulled it off the wall, looked to unplug it (hardwired), squeezed it blindly and whacked it....nothing but squalling. DW was getting a bit aggravated so I fished around in my pocket, pulled out my Squirt Leatherman and cut one of the leads....ahhh, blessed quiet. Went out to get my stuff to repair the wire, pulled out the drawers so I could get to it inside the cabinet, crawled down/in there and started putting it back together. During this I asked DW to hand me a set of reading glasses I had bought due to my newfound lack of sight. Made the last connection and the howling commenced; what the heck? (not exactly what I said). Crawled around to the front where the detector was, glasses now on my head, and what's right there on the front left side? A BUTTON that I can now see says "test/reset"! "Test/reset"? Right there? With crystal clear vision I depressed that button...VOILA! No more noise!! Just to say that they can go off "just because" apparently.

Sorry for the diversion OP but the detector, chirp etc. kind of brought up that recent memory. Hoping your husband finds it an easy task to rewire that detector...heck there might even be a wire inside there that the guys putting it together overlooked.

[wiredgeorge]

Hmmm. Good to know the detector is loud enough to get your attention. I had never heard one prior and thought perhaps the low battery chirp was it. That wouldn't wake me if I was sleeping soundly.

[chuckster57]

Some floor cleaning products have been known to set LP alarms off.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by chuckster57

Some floor cleaning products have been known to set LP alarms off.

As have dogs that eat beans and curl up under the detector for a nap.....

[German Shepherd Guy]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

As have dogs that eat beans and curl up under the detector for a nap.....

This sounds like the voice of experience.

[JRTJH]

Originally Posted by German Shepherd Guy

This sounds like the voice of experience.

Yep, GWP who loves "people food" but only gets it when we're pheasant hunting... His "preferred sleeping place is in front of the stove, directly under the power center and between two floor heat vents. He stays warm, and the "people food" gives him the ability to "offer free gas to his humans" (along with an occasional "chirping propane detector).....

The first few times it happened, I really thought we had either a leak or a malfunction. Then I moved his bed to another corner and it never happened again. Next hunting season, same chirping, moved his bed and it stopped... After a couple of "adult beverage analytical sessions" we jointly determined that when he sleeps in front of the detector it chirps and when he sleeps elsewhere it doesn't chirp... That's scientific enough for me LOL

[flybouy]

Also had this experience with one of our dogs years ago. Another "activating agent" are spray can propellants like (butane) hairspray.

[travelin texans]

Lysol air freshener would set it off every time.

[Gejandsons]

https://www.keystonerv.com/innovatio...r-coded-wiring

[LHaven]

Originally Posted by Gejandsons

https://www.keystonerv.com/innovatio...r-coded-wiring

I don't know what's magic about that link, but it jams hard and shows nothing.

[sourdough]

Originally Posted by LHaven

I don't know what's magic about that link, but it jams hard and shows nothing.

The link works fine for me. It's an explanation and video of Keystone's color coding.

[LHaven]

Looks like my ISP is having issues, sorry. Link works fine when I tether to my cellphone on cell data only.

[Gejandsons]

https://keystonerv-prod.zaneray.com/...box_Oct20b.pdf

[NH_Bulldog]

Just so you are aware, the post is over 3 years old and the OP has not logged in since…..

[Gejandsons]

Are these forums to help people? The op had wiring issues. Anyone that searches about propane detector wiring can find and read. Relevant info is still relevant even after 3 years. Unlike your post about the thread being 3 years old. I’m sorry you were offended.

[NH_Bulldog]

Originally Posted by Gejandsons

Are these forums to help people? The op had wiring issues. Anyone that searches about propane detector wiring can find and read. Relevant info is still relevant even after 3 years. Unlike your post about the thread being 3 years old. I’m sorry you were offended.

Responses to old threads happen every day, often inadvertently. Certainly not offended in the least, but it sounds like you may have been?

I simply pointed out that this was a very old thread and the OP disappeared after posting their solution and has not been back to the site since.

But since you brought this up for discussion, the OP resolved the issue and shared what they found for others who might follow in the intervening years. The color-coded wiring standard was irrelevant to the issue at hand. The wire colors and numbers were correct, just connected in the wrong way at a switch. Having the color coded wire standard interjected to the thread added no relevance to the conversation at hand.

I had a similar situation as the OP on my previous RV, where the wiring for the exterior lighting was connected to the interior control panel switch incorrectly. The wire color and numbers were absolutely correct, but someone on the production line connected the wrong wire to the switch, so that my exterior dump valve light was on all the time instead of being switched on and off with the awning light like it was supposed to, and a light fixture at the hitch with it's own switch, was on the switched circuit instead of being "hot" all the time. Like the OP, it was a simple fix.