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Space heater trips inverter breaker (R-Pod 195)

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Pod_Geek View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Quote Pod_Geek Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Space heater trips inverter breaker (R-Pod 195)
    Posted: 20 Dec 2019 at 8:35am
All of these comments make sense, and FR clarified things, saying what we all suspected:

The invertor is only in R Pods with the solar package. The solar panel charges your battery which is what powers the invertor so after the sun goes down the solar panel will stop charging the battery which will cause the invertor to stop working once the battery is drained. After the sun goes down you will have power in your outlets until your battery is drained but this is only if you are not connected to shore power.

(You can always tell a FR quote because they install invertors in the 195 instead of inverters)

However, the fact remains that the 12A inverter breaker tripped while I was on shore power and the inverter was off and ostensibly simply passing the 120V AC through to the circuits/outlets that were connected to it.  That's what I found perplexing.  Apparently that doesn't matter...any outlets on the inverter-powered circuit are subject to that 12A limit, even on shore power.  That's what this paragraph in the manual points out:

The AC output of the WF-5110R Inverter, when in Pass-Through mode, is protected by a
resettable circuit breaker (see Figure 1 below). A 12A/120 VAC breaker is located on the
upper right on the unit’s rear panel. The breaker will trip in a high current situation. Should a
breaker trip, reduce or remove the connected AC load and reset the circuit breaker. Re-start
the inverter and check for proper operation.

Thanks everyone for your comments...this forum will clearly be of great help as our Podding adventures continue.

2020.5 R-Pod 195 Hood River
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GlueGuy View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Quote GlueGuy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 20 Dec 2019 at 10:21am
That is a peculiar way to wire it. It would make more sense (to me) if there was only one outlet that was connected to the inverter, and the rest were only powered by shore power. 
bp
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Post Options Post Options   Quote podwerkz Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Dec 2019 at 6:27am
So yeah, plug the space heater into a directly shore-powered outlet. 

Next...

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Post Options Post Options   Quote Pod People Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 21 Dec 2019 at 7:26am
I installed an inverter in our 179. For simplicity, all of the outlets that were connected to the inverter have brown face plates rather than white.  this makes it easy for us to remember which outlets to use with different load devices.
Maybe this will help once you can figure out which outlets are powered by the inverter.
Good luck
Vann

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Post Options Post Options   Quote Pod_Geek Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Jan 2020 at 9:03am
Originally posted by podwerkz

So yeah, plug the space heater into a directly shore-powered outlet. 

Next...

Wink

Originally posted by Pod People

I installed an inverter in our 179. For simplicity, all of the outlets that were connected to the inverter have brown face plates rather than white.  this makes it easy for us to remember which outlets to use with different load devices.
Maybe this will help once you can figure out which outlets are powered by the inverter.
Good luck
Vann

Update:

Finally got the 195 back from the shop.  With the unit off shore power I turned the inverter on (switch is indeed just above the microwave next to a light switch) and tested all five interior outlets.  All were live  (so we can watch TV for a while while boondocking...yay?).  So...@podwerkz I have no option to plug anything in to an outlet is not connected to the inverter (i.e., on the pass-through current).  This apparently means the this circuit is limited to a 12A draw rather than 15A as indicated on the breaker in the main box.  Oh well...will have to be careful.

Thanks again everyone...
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Post Options Post Options   Quote GlueGuy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Jan 2020 at 9:19am
If that were mine, I would change where the output of the inverter goes. I would dedicate a single, or maybe two outlets to the inverter, and leave the rest dedicated to shore power.
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Post Options Post Options   Quote mcarter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Jan 2020 at 2:43pm
+1
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Post Options Post Options   Quote Ben Herman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 02 Jan 2020 at 4:55pm
Originally posted by mcarter

+1

Totally agree - the only thing that I use my solar panel for is to keep the battery charged for the 12v functions in the trailer. When I have shore power, I use electrical appliances (a few). The twain shall never meet. Makes no sense.
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Post Options Post Options   Quote Pod_Geek Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Jan 2020 at 10:57am
Originally posted by GlueGuy

If that were mine, I would change where the output of the inverter goes. I would dedicate a single, or maybe two outlets to the inverter, and leave the rest dedicated to shore power.

Excellent suggestion, but sounds like a task for a master RV electrician.  I'm a geologist.

When the outlets were nonfunctional we ran the space heater at 1/2 power (draw = 7 or so amps) off of an extension cord plugged in to a 20-amp circuit and run through the back-left window by the bed (opened it just enough and sealed off the rest of the opening from the outside). Kept the R-Pod nice and warm.

Maybe that will be our solution when on shore power...I would hate to trip that breaker again because it's a total pain to get to.  Alternatively, maybe a much smaller space heater would do the trick.  7-8 amps < 12 amps, but still...

When not on shore power the propane heater would be in play of course.  Also, the TV draws about 1 amp when 120v is available, so on battery it should draw 10 amps, correct (120v/12v = 10x the amp draw I believe)?  That means if the battery is rated at, say, 100 amp-hours then running the TV for two hours at night would draw the battery down about 20%.  That's in addition to any other 12v draws.

During the day the battery would be partially replenished by the solar.  Yesterday about 9 amp-hours were sent to the battery, and that's with our current very low sun angle, so there is hope...

Hope I've got this right...
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Post Options Post Options   Quote mcarter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 03 Jan 2020 at 12:09pm
I added a circuit to my Pod, it's basically a male and female plug with an outside seal, that allows you to connect an extension cord from the power station directly into Pod and not use the CB/fuse panel in the Pod. If I recall I bought is at Camping World. I have used it when I wanted to use a heater and not have it connected to Pod electrics. If I get chance I will post pics.
Mike Carter
2015 178
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