RV Fix and Advise on Inverters

This following RV fix advice is intended to provide basic preventive/corrective measures to keep your RV working properly. The first subject concerns the function and maintenance of the Inverter. There are a few brand/models on the market with varying load capacities. First off is to ascertain what brand and load capacity was supplied with your RV. Most models have a basic instruction manual detailing what the Inverter will actually do including what 120 volt loads it provides power for. These loads normally will be located in a separate load center/breaker box in the RV. After reading the manual and turning the Inverter on insure all the supplied loads have power. If for some reason a designated load is not working the first thing to do is check that the circuit breaker has not tripped due to an overload condition. In addition, insure the 12 volt power source is available.

Some of the jargon in your manual may overwhelm you but let?s give it a try. First, go to the specification page of your manual which normally lists the electrical capabilities of your unit e,g,: Amperage, voltage, wattage (volts x amps). The.wattage number is important since this is the total load carrying capacity of your Inverter. So if you had a choice of what to get when you purchased your RV, bigger in this case is better. The rest of the stuff normally is about safety issues to prevent personal injury, etc. and overheating of the space where the unit is actually located. Very important, don?t store anything near or next to the unit, it has to ?breath? to survive. Lets now go over some preventive/corrective measures that hopefully will aid you in trouble shooting some common problems that can arise. Along with the technical data in the manual, an electrical elementary diagram is provided. One frequent problem that comes up in addition to just a tripped load breaker or inadequate 12 volt power source being available (normally covered in your manual under the trouble shooting section), is a blown fuse located inside the Inverter itself. If you look closely at that electrical diagram you will notice a small device that is labeled FUSE ~. I point this out because if that special fuse is blown the Inverter will not function properly and will cost you an hours worth of labor/material to replace it at a shop. The fuse is a protective device designed to protect the Inverter in case of an electrical overload condition. This overload condition may have been only there briefly and the fuse can safely be replaced with the same type available at an electronics repair shop or maybe even Radio Shack. Do Not substitute with a higher value or different type fuse. If the overload condition is still present the fuse will blow again but, lets be optimistic.

To replace the fuse, turn off the Inverter and disconnect/turn off ALL power sources to the Inverter The cover of the inverter has to be then carefully removed (lots of screws). After replacing the fuse, and again using care, replace the cover and reconnect/turn-on all power sources to the Inverter and then turn it on to see if it works properly. If it still does not work, we have done all we can and you will have to contact the manufacturer for repair.