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Old 10-08-2020, 12:07 PM   #1
bcavin
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Electrical issues

HELP!! We have a 2017 Cougar 5th wheel trailer. We are having random electrical issues. All of the plug in outlets work and the microwave and thats it. None of the lights, vent or awning switches in the panel box work or anywhere else. If you try and turn on the A/C it give a E1 code. We contacted the dealer who sent us to Keystone who sent us here to the Keystone forum. Any suggestions?
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Old 10-08-2020, 12:14 PM   #2
flybouy
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HELP!! We have a 2017 Cougar 5th wheel trailer. We are having random electrical issues. All of the plug in outlets work and the microwave and thats it. None of the lights, vent or awning switches in the panel box work or anywhere else. If you try and turn on the A/C it give a E1 code. We contacted the dealer who sent us to Keystone who sent us here to the Keystone forum. Any suggestions?
Doesn't sound random to me. What you are describing as working are the items that are 120v ac and the ones not working are 12v dc. You are not getting 12v dc to these circuits. Has the battery been disconnected or changed lately? If the battery leads are connected backwards for even an instant it blow the two 40 amp "reverse polarity protection fuses" in the electrical center and you will have no 12v dc from the battery.

If those fuses are blown then the converter will not charge the battery or allow 12v dc power to anmy circuits.
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Old 10-08-2020, 12:19 PM   #3
bcavin
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The batteries have not been changed or disconnected. Any other suggestions to possible check?
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Old 10-08-2020, 12:29 PM   #4
Texas Steve
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Check to make sure your battery disconnect switch is turned on.
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Old 10-08-2020, 12:51 PM   #5
flybouy
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Check the voltage at the battery. If it's above 12 volts then follow the positive battery cable until you find a terminal block that looks like a large leggo block. That's the 12v auto resetting circuit breaker. if that fails then it will interrupt the voltage from the battery.
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Old 10-08-2020, 12:59 PM   #6
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Yep, sounds like you've lost your 12v. Also sounds like you are plugged into shore power if everything else is working (AC). Running down where you are losing the 12v is the trick and you've been given some good places to start. Sounds like a blown fuse somewhere from your description since the converter would run your DC even if you had a bad battery....maybe.
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Old 10-08-2020, 01:58 PM   #7
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HELP!! We have a 2017 Cougar 5th wheel trailer. We are having random electrical issues. All of the plug in outlets work and the microwave and thats it. None of the lights, vent or awning switches in the panel box work or anywhere else. If you try and turn on the A/C it give a E1 code. We contacted the dealer who sent us to Keystone who sent us here to the Keystone forum. Any suggestions?

You GOTTA BE KIDDING! Keystone sent you to this mob. I will answer your questions as a certified amateur electrician for $89 an hour. Your camper is out of warranty and I would check the battery (LOAD TEST AT AUTO PARTS STORE) or buy a new one. The battery sends DC to the converter box and from there feeds all the things that are not working. If you have a 2017, chances are you have at least a 4 year old battery.
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Old 10-09-2020, 06:12 AM   #8
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You GOTTA BE KIDDING! Keystone sent you to this mob. I will answer your questions as a certified amateur electrician for $89 an hour. Your camper is out of warranty and I would check the battery (LOAD TEST AT AUTO PARTS STORE) or buy a new one. The battery sends DC to the converter box and from there feeds all the things that are not working. If you have a 2017, chances are you have at least a 4 year old battery.
The converter take AC reduces it to 12 V DC charges the batteries. The batteries do not send power to the converter. The converter will run the 12 volt system in the camper with no batteries.
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Old 10-09-2020, 08:50 AM   #9
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The converter take AC reduces it to 12 V DC charges the batteries. The batteries do not send power to the converter. The converter will run the 12 volt system in the camper with no batteries.

I would suspect if the battery was totally toast the converter will give up the ghost as well. OP has a Cougar 5th wheel which would indicate he has slides; possibly self leveling etc. If he is operating everything as if all was well the converter will kick the bucket trying to do all of it without the assistance of the battery(s) in the system to help. Just sat through that conversation with the dealership talking to another customer yesterday. He said he didn't have enough money for a battery so he just disconnected it and ran off the converter; now, everything had died and his converter no longer worked. They offered a battery and converter at steeply discounted rates to help him out but said he didn't have the money. His solution was going to be to try to connect a battery charger to the battery cables and see if he could run like that....
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Old 10-09-2020, 10:13 AM   #10
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I would suspect if the battery was totally toast the converter will give up the ghost as well. OP has a Cougar 5th wheel which would indicate he has slides; possibly self leveling etc. If he is operating everything as if all was well the converter will kick the bucket trying to do all of it without the assistance of the battery(s) in the system to help. Just sat through that conversation with the dealership talking to another customer yesterday. He said he didn't have enough money for a battery so he just disconnected it and ran off the converter; now, everything had died and his converter no longer worked. They offered a battery and converter at steeply discounted rates to help him out but said he didn't have the money. His solution was going to be to try to connect a battery charger to the battery cables and see if he could run like that....
Ouch. You can run a rig indefinitely on shore power with no battery at all, but things that need the battery as a short-term source of bulk raw current, like slides and levelers, will throw failures, and if you persist in trying to get them to work, I imagine you could well burn out the converter. Trying to run off a battery charger is equivalent to trying to run off a converter -- it works on the small devices but will blow up on the large devices.

Speaking of which, I learned a new tip this week. When my leveler screen comes up saying "READY NN.N," the number isn't a status code or a firmware level, it's the current battery voltage. Good to know -- I did in fact have a puzzling leveler failure away from shore power while my battery was running other things without showing an obvious problem.
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Old 10-09-2020, 10:25 AM   #11
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Suggested reading...

https://wfcoelectronics.com/wp-conte...eration-v2.pdf
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Old 10-09-2020, 11:05 AM   #12
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Ouch. You can run a rig indefinitely on shore power with no battery at all, but things that need the battery as a short-term source of bulk raw current, like slides and levelers, will throw failures, and if you persist in trying to get them to work, I imagine you could well burn out the converter. Trying to run off a battery charger is equivalent to trying to run off a converter -- it works on the small devices but will blow up on the large devices.

Speaking of which, I learned a new tip this week. When my leveler screen comes up saying "READY NN.N," the number isn't a status code or a firmware level, it's the current battery voltage. Good to know -- I did in fact have a puzzling leveler failure away from shore power while my battery was running other things without showing an obvious problem.
That's IF you have in command. I don't on my trailer and the factory placed warning labels on the slide out switches that "battery must be connected before use". So with a dead or missing battery and using the slide outs will destroy the converter.
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Old 10-09-2020, 01:23 PM   #13
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That's IF you have in command. I don't on my trailer and the factory placed warning labels on the slide out switches that "battery must be connected before use". So with a dead or missing battery and using the slide outs will destroy the converter.
Sound like the the slides and landing gear have there own designated wires to the batteries. With the disconnect switch off all power to the trailer is off except the landing gear and slides . Years ago using shore power with a dead battery the converter ran all the time along with the meter to the pole. I have solar and never here the Converter running because the batteries are always at full charge.
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