2017 Hideout, Electrical

[Wa6cp]

Good afternoon,
I am looking for any advice on repairing an electrical short.
I was about to unhook my trailer when I saw smoke coming from the battery compartment. I have no idea why that would happen. I opened the compartment and found melted wires on the harness by the two wiring connectors, and where the harness goes over the side wall.
My question is, what would be the easiest way to repair and replace the wiring?
I appreciate any help, and thanks for your time.

[workinonit]

Personally, I would rerun all of those damaged conductors. Get replacement wire of the same colors, connectors and wrap. Make sure you eliminate that bend over the piece of metal. It looks as though that is the root cause.

[flybouy]

I have 2 questions first. Do you have insurance coverage for this type of thing and secondly, how comfortable are you with doing electrical work? The reason for the questions? Well, just judging from the pics this will take many hours to trace out what wires go where. You need to strip each and every wire back to undamaged, non discolored wire before splicing in a new wire. Until you "get into it" there's no telling how far the heat damage goes.

Thankfully, that happened where and how it happened. From the looks of it, you came very close to setting the trailer on fire. In the the middle of the night that could have been catastrophic to say the least.

[Don77]

Originally Posted by flybouy

I have 2 questions first. Do you have insurance coverage for this type of thing and secondly, how comfortable are you with doing electrical work? The reason for the questions? Well, just judging from the pics this will take many hours to trace out what wires go where. You need to strip each and every wire back to undamaged, non discolored wire before splicing in a new wire. Until you "get into it" there's no telling how far the heat damage goes.

Thankfully, that happened where and how it happened. From the looks of it, you came very close to setting the trailer on fire. In the the middle of the night that could have been catastrophic to say the least.

I second the above!
Also if doing this yourself make sure to get all crimp connectors that are heat shrink and water proof!

[workinonit]

Yessir. That's days of work. I'm not much for spliced wiring. Those would get run back to the next termination if at all possible. If not possible I would make the splices where they are readily visible. The most important thing is to make sure they are run so they don't short out again.

[Wa6cp]

Thank you,
Insurance doesn’t cover electrical problems.
I am very comfortable with wiring, etc.
I am just not sure how to access the harness that goes over the wall?
I wonder if the box that houses the propane tank can be removed?
Thanks again!





QUOTE=flybouy;578207]I have 2 questions first. Do you have insurance coverage for this type of thing and secondly, how comfortable are you with doing electrical work? The reason for the questions? Well, just judging from the pics this will take many hours to trace out what wires go where. You need to strip each and every wire back to undamaged, non discolored wire before splicing in a new wire. Until you "get into it" there's no telling how far the heat damage goes.

Thankfully, that happened where and how it happened. From the looks of it, you came very close to setting the trailer on fire. In the the middle of the night that could have been catastrophic to say the least.[/QUOTE]

[flybouy]

Originally Posted by Wa6cp

Thank you,
Insurance doesn’t cover electrical problems.
I am very comfortable with wiring, etc.
I am just not sure how to access the harness that goes over the wall?
I wonder if the box that houses the propane tank can be removed?
Thanks again!





QUOTE=flybouy;578207]I have 2 questions first. Do you have insurance coverage for this type of thing and secondly, how comfortable are you with doing electrical work? The reason for the questions? Well, just judging from the pics this will take many hours to trace out what wires go where. You need to strip each and every wire back to undamaged, non discolored wire before splicing in a new wire. Until you "get into it" there's no telling how far the heat damage goes.

Thankfully, that happened where and how it happened. From the looks of it, you came very close to setting the trailer on fire. In the the middle of the night that could have been catastrophic to say the least.

[/QUOTE]

Often the area behind that cross member is under the floor in the underbelly. My advice would be to purchase a scope that attaches to your phone and follow the wires over that beam. The bore scopes can be bought for under $50, many for close to $20.

[Wa6cp]

Great idea, thanks!
I do have one, and will do that!
I appreciate your time!

[Arizonaw56]

Originally Posted by flybouy

I have 2 questions first. Do you have insurance coverage for this type of thing and secondly, how comfortable are you with doing electrical work? The reason for the questions? Well, just judging from the pics this will take many hours to trace out what wires go where. You need to strip each and every wire back to undamaged, non discolored wire before splicing in a new wire. Until you "get into it" there's no telling how far the heat damage goes.

Thankfully, that happened where and how it happened. From the looks of it, you came very close to setting the trailer on fire. In the the middle of the night that could have been catastrophic to say the least.

First step is to determine amount of damage from begining to end of burnt wires. All along looking to determine the cause of the short failure so it can be corrected to prevent future mishaps. Additionally the other wiring looms, routes, tie downs should all be closely inspected as well. This is the type of problem no one needs on an RV, good luck