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Thread: 120 volt system
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06-14-2020, 05:27 PM #1
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120 volt system
Hi, new to forums. Just wanted to post about an electrical problem I had in a 2018 fifth wheel Reflection. After putting a slide out, I lost the electrical to my outlets connected to that slide. This was my fridge circuit. Trying to track down the problem: Not the circuit breaker. Not a fuse.Really nothing to do with the slide other than it vibrated the main trailer of the camper enough to cause a loose wire. Power left circuit breaker and did not make it to outlets. Discovered, finally, an outlet that was used to t-off left and right to other outlets not working. As it turns out, RVs use some pretty cheap outlets. Romex wiring is connected with a press together connection in the outlet. Small sharp teeth dig into the insulation to make a contact when squashed together by the plastic back. As you can imagine, contact is minimal but works when leaving the factory. In my camper, the connection loosened up enough that the neutral no longer made contact. This was due partly to the fact that the installer tried to cram a third wire connection , to T-off, into the outlet. They really don't seem to be made to hold that many and consequently one of the neutral whites lost connectivity. Needless to say, it was a nightmare to track down. My fix was to wire nut the three romex together and clamp the outlet to just one of the romex which is how most of the outlets are wired. My biggest worry was that hauling it to a repair shop would cause the very close non connection to reconnect and there would be 'nothing to fix'. Hope this experience I had makes sense.
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06-19-2020, 10:25 AM #2
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Old sayings:
The only thing that works on an RV is the owner.
RVs have an earthquake every mile.
If RVs were built like cars they would cost like houses.
FYI standard wire nuts at not reliable under vibration. Crimp on fittings are cheap and easy.Rick
2019 Reflection 150 273MK
2015 Ford F350 CC SB Lariat Powerstroke
PullRite Superglide
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06-19-2020, 07:39 PM #3
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Hopefully wire nuts on tight with black electrical tape will hold much longer than the original wiring. I think I forgot to mention there is no one schematic. RV's seem to be wired however the 'electrician' feels like wiring that day. Something that might help in the future is with shore power connected and all breakers on, turn one off at a time and see what quits working. Might help later on if there is a problem to know which breaker it is on and if everything on that breaker is off. I agree with Rick, RV owners have to fix and repair regularly. Thought new might buy a few years but I have repaired many things from day one.
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