Camping this past mother's day weekend around 9pm we lost all power to the rv. it's a 50 amp rv. we were running the electric water heater, fridge, & tv. basically while connected to shore power nothing would operate the lights were dim and going out.....the battery was empty. After I plugged into my truck for 15 mins and let run it charged the batter back up and everything worked great. I could understand why the battery power mattered since I was connected to shore power. Is this a converter issue or fuse issue? Where is the converter on a 2017 Mallard M 312? thanks.
Electrical problem charging battery when connected to shore power
danemayer
Well-known member
Hi BY-851,
Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum.
If the television went out along with everything else, you lost shore power. I'm assuming that was a campground power problem. But sometimes, if the shore power cord isn't seated fully at the trailer connection, you can lose one or both power legs. So make sure your shore power cord is ok.
Normally your battery would have kept the lights on, along with other 12V devices. Since your battery was depleted, it sounds like it wasn't getting charged. Sometimes that's because a 12V DC mini-circuit breaker between Converter and battery trips. But since the lights came back on when you recharged the battery from the truck, that's not the issue.
So it seems like while shore power was working, at least on one leg, your 12V devices were sucking power from the battery, rather than from the Power Converter. So it could be a problem with the Power Converter. On Heartland's larger 5th wheels, the Converter is usually behind the rear wall of the pass through storage. On a Mallard, I'm afraid I don't know the location. But it's probably pretty close to the fuse box. Perhaps another Mallard M312 owner will see this and chime in, or you can call Heartland Customer Service at 877-262-8032 / 574-262-8030. Have your VIN # ready.
Before tearing things apart, make sure the 120V circuit breaker that powers the Converter hasn't tripped. If that's ok, when you locate the converter, make sure it's plugged into its outlet. Then check the on-board fuses on the Converter. If the battery was connected with wrong polarity for a second, it'll blow those fuses.
And again, make sure the shore power cord is fully seated.
If you need a new Power Converter, a temporary workaround would be to purchase a battery charger and hook it directly to the battery terminals to keep the battery charged.
Welcome to the Heartland Owners Forum.
If the television went out along with everything else, you lost shore power. I'm assuming that was a campground power problem. But sometimes, if the shore power cord isn't seated fully at the trailer connection, you can lose one or both power legs. So make sure your shore power cord is ok.
Normally your battery would have kept the lights on, along with other 12V devices. Since your battery was depleted, it sounds like it wasn't getting charged. Sometimes that's because a 12V DC mini-circuit breaker between Converter and battery trips. But since the lights came back on when you recharged the battery from the truck, that's not the issue.
So it seems like while shore power was working, at least on one leg, your 12V devices were sucking power from the battery, rather than from the Power Converter. So it could be a problem with the Power Converter. On Heartland's larger 5th wheels, the Converter is usually behind the rear wall of the pass through storage. On a Mallard, I'm afraid I don't know the location. But it's probably pretty close to the fuse box. Perhaps another Mallard M312 owner will see this and chime in, or you can call Heartland Customer Service at 877-262-8032 / 574-262-8030. Have your VIN # ready.
Before tearing things apart, make sure the 120V circuit breaker that powers the Converter hasn't tripped. If that's ok, when you locate the converter, make sure it's plugged into its outlet. Then check the on-board fuses on the Converter. If the battery was connected with wrong polarity for a second, it'll blow those fuses.
And again, make sure the shore power cord is fully seated.
If you need a new Power Converter, a temporary workaround would be to purchase a battery charger and hook it directly to the battery terminals to keep the battery charged.
