Escapees March-April 2019 Vol 40 Issue 5

Mark, My Words

Your RV Questions              

         

       

                   

                                                                       A . The idea is to use the inverter to supply 120VAC power to run the refrigerator in AC mode. To accomplish this, you’ll need to either run a separate 120V circuit from the inverter to the fridge or tie the inverter’s 120V output to selected circuits in the RV using a transfer switch. Under no circumstances should you try to accomplish this by using a male-to-male AC power cord between the inverter and an AC outlet. This could be extremely dangerous. You would wind up with a 120VAC present on the unshielded lugs of your RV power cord plug! One possibility is to run a dedicated circuit from the inverter output to a dedicated 120V outlet located in the refrigerator’s outside compartment. With this setup, you’d have to plug the refrigerator AC cord into the dedicated outlet to run it on the inverter. A better answer would be to install a transfer switch, either manually operated or automatic, that would switch selected AC circuits between shore power and the inverter. This requires a qualified electrician to implement. Inverters that are designed for RV use often incorporate this transfer switch into their design. Safety is of the utmost concern here as 120VAC can kill you. An inverter designed for RV use that hard-wires to the battery system and incorporates the transfer switch function is the best way to go. If your present inverter does not have that capability, you may want to consider replacing it with one that does.

  Q. When I plug into land power, the battery for the engine doesn’t charge. Is this normal or is there a problem with my charging system.  A . It is normal for most motorhomes. The reason your house battery system charger doesn’t charge your engine-starter battery is because starting batteries don’t like to be under constant float charge. I have seen cases where a well-meaning RV owner will run a wire from the converter to charge the engine-starting battery as well. Unfortunately, that continuous low-level charge will boil the starting battery dry and ruin it. If you are concerned with maintaining the charge on your starter battery (like during a period of extended storage), a good quality regulated trickle charger works well and won’t harm the battery. I have been using a brand of charger for many years, and I highly recommend it. It’s the Schumacher Battery Charger/ Maintainer—1.5 Amp, Model# SEM-1562A. I use this brand on my motorcycles and vehicles, and they have extended the life of those batteries by keeping them properly charged without over-charging during long inactive periods. Schumacher recently discontinued this charger, but they have a newer version that does the same job: Model SC1319 1.5A 6V/12V Fully Automatic Battery Maintainer. www.amazon.com/gp/product/ B0756Q88J5

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