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Question for Owners of WINDSORS Originally Equipped with Trace Engineering RV2012 Inverter/Charger


AlanC2

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I have a 2002 Windsor 40 PST and am replacing the Trace Engineering RV 2012 (w/remote/w/auto genstart) with the Magnum Energy  MS-2012 Inverter/Charger, the ME-ARC50 remote, and the ME-AGS-N (remote start). This question is directed at those WINDSOR owners who have swapped out the Trace Engineering RV2012 unit for a Magnum combination that includes the AGS.  Did you use the two posts on the front of the MS-2012 where the battery negative, the main chassis ground, and the battery positive cables attach as the power source for the AGS module? If not, where did you connect?  Were you able to locate a "generator run sense wire" in one of the wiring harness bundles in the bay where the inverter/charger is located? If not, what did you do to access the 12 volt generator run "signal"?

Thanks in advance!

AlanC2

2002 Windsor PST

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Alan

I just had my inverter out, thought I had a problem so I removed but it turned out to be something else.

To remove I had to disconnect all the control wires.  There were 4 sets/multiples of different colored wires.  There was a set of blue wires that were crimped together but not used.  Not 100% sure but on my wiring diagram the generator sense wire is blue and it gets a signal from the generator indicator light that is on the switches.  This is used in the rear run bay for the BIRD, the switches, and also the Intellitec EMS.  It also shows this wire going to the inverter bay, although in my case they were not used??

You might see if you have a pair of blue wires crimped together under the cover of the Trace Inverter.  If so check without the generator running and then with the generator running to see it is the generator sense wires. 

There was a thread that I was looking at on the IRV2 forum when I thought I might have to replace my inverter.  It might answer some of your questing, I know he covers the grounding issue.

https://www.irv2.com/forums/f115/no-120-vac-anywhere-in-coach-419618-9.html

 

If I may ask, why are you replacing the Trace inverter???

Edited by jacwjames
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Jim J,

Thanks for responding. I'll look for the blue wires.  I've been thinking about switching to a PSW inverter for a while now so I don't have to worry about whether I'll be frying an electrical device. 

Last time we were out dry camping, out of the blue, the inverter remote just locked up and started beeping. Had to turn off battery power and back on after a delay to get it to stop. It worked fine for the rest of the trip (8 more days). On an earlier trip, the Samsung RF 197 fridge dropped off line a few times one day. Flipped fridge (110v) circuit breaker off and on and it came back. That has not happened since. Put in 680 watts of solar 2 years ago, and until these two incidents, everything has worked fine. I've got all the new stuff ready to go in. Just need a temperature break in the weather.

AlanC2

2002 Windsor PST

 

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Understand your concern.

I had an issue last month that I thought was inverter related but it turned out to be a problem with a circuit, the feed wire went into the ceiling behind the electrical panels.  That circuit had a dead short in the ceiling.  I was able to reroute a feed wire to fix that circuit. 

I decided to go a different route, I am adding a 1000 watt PSW inverter that will feed the refrigerator circuit and if needed can provide another circuit.  It will also give me a second charging source off the generator. 

Keep us posted on your install, good luck.

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Not a Windsor, but I replaced our Freedom Trace Xantrex inverter with a Magnum inverter in our Monaco coach.  I wrote a detailed post on the issues.  Some of the issues were because of the MSH3012 hybrid peculiar wiring and will not apply to your MS2012.  I also installed an ME-ARC50 remote and an ME-AGS-N auto gen start. 

The older Trace inverter has two negative 12v attachment lugs. The one on the front is from the house battery negative terminal, and one on the side has a short cable routed to the main frame rail.
The one on the side to the frame rail provides the main ground for the entire house 12v system. Monaco does not ground the house battery system in the battery box area.

When you install a Magnum inverter it does not have the ground lug on the side. To replace it, you can run a 4/0 ground cable from the frame ground lug to either the front of the Magnum inverter negative battery lug (this would make two negative cables attached here and the plastic cover will not fit), or you can route a new cable from the frame rail ground lug to the main battery junction box up near the front of the compartment (this is about a 3' run).

Hope this helps.  

Swapping a Trace Xantrex Inverter for a Magnum in a 2004 Monaco 

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f115/swapping-a-trace-xantrex-inverter-for-a-magnum-in-a-2004-monaco-signature-386835.html

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Vito,

The Trace was actually a great unit.  It had the shunt and the AGS built in, whereas Magnum Energy makes you ad on everything separately. The shunt is the reason for the battery negative connection and the chassis ground on the side of the trace, and I realize that without that, there is no ground.

I installed a Victron BMV 712 battery monitor when I installed solar 2 years ago and it is great.

What did you use for a power source for the ME-AGS-N?

Thanks.

AlanC2

2002 Windsor PST 

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I also replaced my Trace Inverter, but replaced it with a Xantrex Freedom PSW.  I also had the same issue with the Trace having three cable connections, while the Freedom has 2 battery cable connections.  As described above, I also connected the ground cable to the negative battery cable.  I noticed something though while monitoring the system with my clamp meter.  First, in charging mode, I measured the amps on the positive cable.  Then I measured the amps on the negative battery cable, and it was not the same.  So, I then measured the ground cable and found some of the amps on that cable as well.  Here's the numbers I found in my test while charging which I don't understand.  On the positive cable at the battery, I measured +20A while in charge mode, on the negative battery cable I read -23A, and on the ground cable I read +3A.  Does this make sense?  I see that the total Amps on both negative/ground cable add up to the value on the positive cable, but how do you get positive amps coming from a ground cable which is attached to a ground lug on the frame.  Maybe I don't understand the flow of current here.  Has anyone else noticed if there are amps flowing thru the ground cable?  I found similar results when testing the inverter except that the numbers are reversed.

steveg 2005 ddiv

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Your right.  I think your question was about the generator sense wire. If I remember correctly,  I had a temperature sensitive auto start feature on my coach.  I was able to use that wire to connect to the new AGS that I purchased with the inverter.  Not sure if you have such a feature to leverage from

steveg 2005 DDIV

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  • 1 month later...

Thanks again to everyone for your suggestions.  I finally had the time and the weather to do the install of the Magnum MS2012 inverter/charger, the remote, and the AGS module. When I was removing the Trace RV2012, I discovered the apparent source of my problems with the old inverter.  One of the HOT OUT wires was loose enough in the connection to come right out and was apparently making an intermittent contact. I wanted to switch to a pure sine wave inverter anyway, so finding my problems were caused by a loose wire did not change my desire to make the swap. It went pretty smoothly, but I do want to mention that my wire colors for the AGS did not match any description I've seen in any of the posts on the subject. I had red, green, brown and my generator sense wire (Blue) was right in the old Trace as part of the wire bundle.  Thanks Jim J for mentioning that possibility. Also thanks to Vito for the tip about the jumper between the two pins on the AGS plug rather than using a separate ground wire. It makes a difference.  Everything tested out okay and works well.  No sparks, no glowing cables, or smoke.

AlanC2

2002 Windsor PST

 

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