Plugs not working

[Deb Bradford]

I had 2 space heaters going powered by the generator and started to make coffee.  All plugs in the entire motorhome now will not work & have no power.  No breakers are tripped.  I tried turning all breakers off and then back on and still nothing.

[Dr4Film]

Did you check the circuit breakers on your Inverter/Charger too?

[Deb Bradford]

That was it!  Thank you!

[JJMonaco]

Check for a reset button on the  inverter.

[Will52]

When we are on shore power we turn off our inverter JS 

[WayneC]

Going all electric with the generator running,two space heaters,heated tile floor, I will usually turn one heater off before running an air fryer , kettle for making press coffee.

All that hardware operating all at once is a little much.

Wayne 

1999 Signature ceaser 

[Rick A]

50 amps isn’t Disney World it’s basically 3 15 amp outlets running 1500 watt appliances!! That is almost enough to trip it AND if the hot water tank is on that’s it, instant overload and possible overheated wires and switches tripping. 

[Tom Cherry]

2 hours ago, Deb Bradford said:

I had 2 space heaters going powered by the generator and started to make coffee.  All plugs in the entire motorhome now will not work & have no power.  No breakers are tripped.  I tried turning all breakers off and then back on and still nothing.

As a matter of information, you overloaded the Generator.  When you do that, you are actually overheating the wiring from the Generator to the ATS as well as to the main breaker.  The wiring is designed for 65 amps from your generator.  The circuit breaker is (probablyj) 35 amps.  But there are two lines circuits which will allow over 70 Amps to flow through wire only rated for 65 amps.  This is not only dangerous from a fire potential, but the two heaters are overloading your inverter as it actually has the AC current (Shore or Generator) flowing through it.  It is not designed for that.  You also don’t comment whether the inverter was charging or the microwave in use or your water heater was using the electric element.

Not only is this a fire or safety risk, but you could do major damage to your inverter.

As an aside, please locate your Automatic Transfer Switch.  If it says IOTA - 50R or some version, that ATS was recalled and is a fire hazard and should be replaced immediately for your personal safety as well as the motor home. The ESCO LPT50BRD is the most used, but there are other brands.

Glad the only casualty was the generator CB Tripping.

[Happycarz]

Deb,

I’ve been through the same thing. My wife had the heater on, a coffee maker going, and then tried the toaster. Poof! Then I headed out to the inverter in my pajamas to push the reset buttons. 

Most Magnum inverters, but not all, have two 20 breakers. But the inverter is only capable of handling 30 amps total.

Even when on shore power, the 110 volts pass through the inverter. So you are still limited to the two 20 amp circuits. There are a few outlets that don’t work on the inverter, like the bed nightstand outlets. They are wired to shore power.

I bought a super heavy duty 10’ extension cord that I plug into a nightstand outlet, run it down the hall and plug in a cube heater, when plugged into a pedestal.  That is 11 amps not on the inverter.

I used a Kill-A-Watt meter on each appliance and pasted a sticker on each one. Both my wife and I both know how many items that can be plugged in on those circuits that pass through the inverter. No more unexpected trips outside to the inverter.

[Ivylog]

3 hours ago, Will52 said:

When we are on shore power we turn off our inverter JS 

That’s fine BUT the micro and some outlets are still powered through it…has a transfer switch in it.

[johncvandoren@gmail.com]

5 hours ago, Deb Bradford said:

I had 2 space heaters going powered by the generator and started to make coffee.  All plugs in the entire motorhome now will not work & have no power.  No breakers are tripped.  I tried turning all breakers off and then back on and still nothing.

Glad you found to the tripped breaker(s).  Besides the inverter, there is one on the generator that trips if/when we have too many heat sources running.

[Dr4Film]

4 hours ago, Will52 said:

When we are on shore power we turn off our inverter JS 

When you are on shore power or generator power your Inverter is not running anyhow whether you have it on or off. it is basically in "standby mode". The benefit to having the Inverter in Standby Mode is that when you disconnect from Shore or generator power the Inverter kicks on within nanoseconds eliminating the need ot reset any 120 VAC powered clocks or the microwave clock or any device that needs power to keep it running.

I keep my Inverter on 24/7/365 unless I am doing something special where I want ALL power disconnected. However, each person manages their RV power systems differently so, whatever rocks your RV!

[Will52]

3 hours ago, Ivylog said:

That’s fine BUT the micro and some outlets are still powered through it…has a transfer switch in it.

Every thing is working fine with it off

[Larry Laursen]

Refer to Dr4Film regarding how the inverter works.  When connected to shore power or on generator, it automatically stops inverting.  There is an internal transfer switch that preforms the changeover. The inverter/charger has a 30-amp 120 supply from the main distribution panel. That is split into 2 20-amp 120-volt circuits.  One circuit supplies the microwave.  The other circuit supplies nearly ALL of the 120 outlets.  Thus, you have only 20 amps to work with when connecting appliances. i.e. space heaters, toasters, hair dryers, coffee pots, etc.  Any combination of these that exceed about 18-amps for a reasonable time will trip the circuit breaker on the inverter independent of whether or not the inverter is ON or OFF. On my 05 Endeavor there is one outlet in the bedroom that is supplied directly from the distribution panel and therefore will allow other appliances to be powered from it.

You can do a simple test with a 120-volt circuit tester that costs about $5 when disconnected from shore or generator power to see if you have some circuits not on the inverter.

In addition to the circuit breakers in the 120-volt distribution panel and inverter, there are circuit breakers directly on the generator.  These can be tripped and are not easily recognized as the problem.