SOLVED: Transfer Switch for Residential Refrigerator

[DavRosCope]

I am having a small problem with my fridge, which is not really the fridge, but possibly the transfer switch or the inverter. But before I delve into the issue I am dealing with (and posting it to the right group), I wanted to get some opinions of others in the RV world..
I have the Magnum Remote Switch inside the Master Control panel of our 5th wheel (Heartland BigHorn). I only activate this remote switch whenever we are planning a trip and connecting to the RV to the truck.
In discussing my fridge issue with a neighbor, he mentioned that FIRST, he was informed by his dealer / technician, to 100percent of the time, leave the Remote Switch activated.

Does this make perfect sense to others or is this making pure NON-Sense?

All opinions welcomed and appreciated.

 

[danemayer]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

Hi DavRosCope,

When you're at a campground, connected to shore power, if you leave the inverter ON, in the event of a power outage, your refrigerator will get power from the batteries. If you turn the inverter OFF, the refrigerator won't be powered during an outage.

If you're in a cold climate where you might need the battery power to run the furnace, you might prefer to conserve battery power during a power outage so that you can stay warm.

When you put the rig in storage, if the refrigerator is empty, you'll probably want to turn both the refrigerator and the inverter OFF, and perhaps turn the refrigerator circuit's battery cutoff switch OFF as well to ensure you don't inadvertently draw power from the batteries. And when turned off, it's a good idea to leave the refrigerator doors open.

 

[jbeletti]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

As Dan suggests, I too leave my Inverter in Standby mode while camping. This means I never turn that remote switch off.

I don’t put my coach into storage and am always on shore power when not pulling it, so I don’t have to worry about the power drawn from the Inverter in Standby.

I have lost power twice in CGs and the refer stayed on automatically.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[NWILSON]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

I too leave the inverter ready to take over any time we are using the coach.
You can close the doors for storage (remember, they are shipped with the doors closed) but be sure to clean it thoroughly inside beforehand or you will be cleaning it thoroughly the next time you go to use it.

 

[jbeletti]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

I too leave the inverter ready to take over any time we are using the coach.
You can close the doors for storage (remember, they are shipped with the doors closed) but be sure to clean it thoroughly inside beforehand or you will be cleaning it thoroughly the next time you go to use it.

Neale - oftentimes, when one empties their refer to put the RV into storage, they may not have time to allow the interior of the refer to acclimatize to the air in the room. It's in these cases it's advisable to leave the door propped open.

 

[DavRosCope]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

Thanks to all who replied with their great info, I will put that into practice.
We are Full-Time RV'ers, live 100% in it. Taking the rv to a dealer to have them work my issues is really not a possibility, so I try to handle all (most) of the issues that happen on my own (if possible, I am still learning). And speaking of learning;

When we picked up our rv from the dealer, the walk-thru regarding for the Remote Switch went something like this "As long as you're on site power, Leave This Switch OFF. When planning a trip, as you hook up to your tow vehicle, then hit the switch.."
It was explained that if power was ever lost in the parks, then the inverter, through the transfer switch, will automatically switch from site power circuit, to the batteries. There-fore, the inverter (in forward storage) is ON at the moment, the Remote Switch is NOT Activated, fridge is working. Loss of power to the park, inverter should now NOT have power, but the transfer switch should sense the loss of site power and automatically switch to battery circuit.

This is (and has been) my understanding of the power and switching process since purchase.

Here is my dilemma.......

Power hooked up to site pole, 110 supplied to all circuits in rv. Everything working fine. Remote Switch NOT activated (GREEN light out).
Sometime during the early morning hours the fridge went out for several hours.
When we discovered the problem, I immediately activated the Remote (GREEN on), fridge kicked in, temp began coming down.
While researching the issue, I hear this BEEP from the fridge, the display on fridge is still on. GOOD
I went and de-activated the Remote GREEN off) and the fridge stayed on. GREAT
Whatever the issue, something has reset itself and all is good again.
But I was still worried it could happen again, so I left the Remote Switch GREEN (activated), and continued my research, which included the neighbors suggestion of leaving the Remote ON.

Found some info, troubleshooting diagram, which led me to think there might be an issue with the transfer switch, My plan: Research Further.

Woke up this morning and discovered the fridge was dead again. Had been for some time since the freezer side indicated 35 degrees.

Checked Remote Switch (light was GREEN-Activated). Checked the inverter, flashing 12.4 volts. So why is the fridge dead?
Turned off inverter (powered down), unplugged transfer switch, depressed the TEST button on inverter, NOTHING (no click)
OK, the inverter was tripped, so I pushed the RESET button (heard the click), plugged the transfer switch back in, then checked the fridge, still off.
So I hit the Remote Switch, light GREEN, fridge kicked in, all is good.
10 minutes later, noticed the temp rising slightly. Checked inverter, again the inverter tripped, so I ran the reset process again.
Been holding steady now for a couple of hours, but will have to babysit the fridge till I figure out what is causing the inverter to trip.

All fuses are GOOD, no circuit breakers are TRIPPED on the main panel, voltage, amps and hertz are all well within the normal limits.

Thoughts anyone?

 

[Squirlee]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

Do you get a long beep when the inverter shuts down? Ours was doing something similar to yours and it was caused by one of the batteries being weak. Replaced the battery and it worked again. Even if your batteries are showing 12 volts that may decrease significantly when under load with a bad battery.

I would also check your connections to the inverter to make sure they aren't loose.

Thanks to all who replied with their great info, I will put that into practice.
We are Full-Time RV'ers, live 100% in it. Taking the rv to a dealer to have them work my issues is really not a possibility, so I try to handle all (most) of the issues that happen on my own (if possible, I am still learning). And speaking of learning;

When we picked up our rv from the dealer, the walk-thru regarding for the Remote Switch went something like this "As long as you're on site power, Leave This Switch OFF. When planning a trip, as you hook up to your tow vehicle, then hit the switch.."
It was explained that if power was ever lost in the parks, then the inverter, through the transfer switch, will automatically switch from site power circuit, to the batteries. There-fore, the inverter (in forward storage) is ON at the moment, the Remote Switch is NOT Activated, fridge is working. Loss of power to the park, inverter should now NOT have power, but the transfer switch should sense the loss of site power and automatically switch to battery circuit.

This is (and has been) my understanding of the power and switching process since purchase.

Here is my dilemma.......

Power hooked up to site pole, 110 supplied to all circuits in rv. Everything working fine. Remote Switch NOT activated (GREEN light out).
Sometime during the early morning hours the fridge went out for several hours.
When we discovered the problem, I immediately activated the Remote (GREEN on), fridge kicked in, temp began coming down.
While researching the issue, I hear this BEEP from the fridge, the display on fridge is still on. GOOD
I went and de-activated the Remote GREEN off) and the fridge stayed on. GREAT
Whatever the issue, something has reset itself and all is good again.
But I was still worried it could happen again, so I left the Remote Switch GREEN (activated), and continued my research, which included the neighbors suggestion of leaving the Remote ON.

Found some info, troubleshooting diagram, which led me to think there might be an issue with the transfer switch, My plan: Research Further.

Woke up this morning and discovered the fridge was dead again. Had been for some time since the freezer side indicated 35 degrees.

Checked Remote Switch (light was GREEN-Activated). Checked the inverter, flashing 12.4 volts. So why is the fridge dead?
Turned off inverter (powered down), unplugged transfer switch, depressed the TEST button on inverter, NOTHING (no click)
OK, the inverter was tripped, so I pushed the RESET button (heard the click), plugged the transfer switch back in, then checked the fridge, still off.
So I hit the Remote Switch, light GREEN, fridge kicked in, all is good.
10 minutes later, noticed the temp rising slightly. Checked inverter, again the inverter tripped, so I ran the reset process again.
Been holding steady now for a couple of hours, but will have to babysit the fridge till I figure out what is causing the inverter to trip.

All fuses are GOOD, no circuit breakers are TRIPPED on the main panel, voltage, amps and hertz are all well within the normal limits.

Thoughts anyone?

 

[danemayer]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

If you've been plugged into shore power all this time, it sounds like a problem with the refrigerator's small transfer switch. The inverter may or may not have a problem as well, but when on shore power, the refrigerator should get power from the shore power connection, whether the inverter is ON or OFF.

 

[DavRosCope]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

Do you get a long beep when the inverter shuts down? Ours was doing something similar to yours and it was caused by one of the batteries being weak. Replaced the battery and it worked again. Even if your batteries are showing 12 volts that may decrease significantly when under load with a bad battery.

I would also check your connections to the inverter to make sure they aren't loose.

Since the inverter is in the forward storage area, the hearing of any beeps is pretty much nil. When I discovered the problem initially, as well as today when the unit was not working and the internal circuit breaker popped, I heard nothing.
There was one time we had to evacuate due to flood warnings and boondocked at the local mall for a couple of nights. The first night we had issues, heard a strange beep coming from under the bedroom floor (forward storage). The power level at the inverter was low and error code indicated that. Had to hook up the truck to charge back up, while at the same time, looked for a cheap generator.
After getting back to the park, first thing I did was get new batteries (one battery was low and other was not taking a charge)
I bought 4 new batteries, deep cycle, sealed, marine type. I checked the batteries this morning, all connections are good, tight, clean, no corrosion, etc.

 

[DavRosCope]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

If you've been plugged into shore power all this time, it sounds like a problem with the refrigerator's small transfer switch. The inverter may or may not have a problem as well, but when on shore power, the refrigerator should get power from the shore power connection, whether the inverter is ON or OFF.

I too am leaning toward the Transfer Switch. In the past, I could toggle the Transfer Switch (on and Green, off and light out). and the fridge would stay on.
Outside power connected, all circuit breakers set properly, everything working Great.
Remote Switch, light OUT, fridge works (fridge getting power from site pole)
Remote Switch, light ON (GREEN), fridge works. Although I am still connected to pole, I anticipate the power is coming from the batteries (the display on front of fridge is dimmed slightly)
I do know on our most recent trip (Jul 4th), the fridge worked all the way to our destination and back home (Remote Switch GREEN, pigtail connected to truck, site pole 50 amp disconnected, fridge working fine).

This morning, while trying to reset everything, I do know that I am connected to 50amp power at the pole. Turning the Remote Switch OFF (light OUT), the fridge should now be transferred to the 110 side of the Transfer Switch. But it wasn't.
Is the Transfer Switch creating some sort of feedback (short) causing the inverter to trip? It wasn't till I disconnected the Transfer Switch, ands Reset the inverter, that the fridge began working again.

Hope I am not making this more confusing to everyone...

 

[danemayer]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

I too am leaning toward the Transfer Switch. In the past, I could toggle the Transfer Switch (on and Green, off and light out). and the fridge would stay on.
Outside power connected, all circuit breakers set properly, everything working Great.
Remote Switch, light OUT, fridge works (fridge getting power from site pole)
Remote Switch, light ON (GREEN), fridge works. Although I am still connected to pole, I anticipate the power is coming from the batteries (the display on front of fridge is dimmed slightly)
I do know on our most recent trip (Jul 4th), the fridge worked all the way to our destination and back home (Remote Switch GREEN, pigtail connected to truck, site pole 50 amp disconnected, fridge working fine).

This morning, while trying to reset everything, I do know that I am connected to 50amp power at the pole. Turning the Remote Switch OFF (light OUT), the fridge should now be transferred to the 110 side of the Transfer Switch. But it wasn't.
Is the Transfer Switch creating some sort of feedback (short) causing the inverter to trip? It wasn't till I disconnected the Transfer Switch, ands Reset the inverter, that the fridge began working again.

Hope I am not making this more confusing to everyone...

I believe the transfer switch is supposed to default to shore power if both shore power and inverter power are available. While on shore power, nothing should change at the transfer switch by operating the inverter.

If the transfer switch is changing to the inverter side while on shore power, there's either a problem with the wiring to the transfer switch, or a problem with the transfer switch itself.

You might open the junction boxes to see if perhaps wires are loose. Turn off the refrigerator circuit breaker and unplug the transfer switch from the inverter before opening the boxes.

If no loose wires, it's probably a transfer switch problem.

It's possible there could also be an inverter problem, but that would typically show up when shore power is not available.

 

[klindgren]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

I just got my rig (2015 Landmark365 Newport) back after having difficulties with the inverter. I could not turn it off or on at the remote switch and the inverter would not run the refrigerator for very long before shutting off. My last couple of trips were like that. Found out 1) the data wire from the inverter switch to the inverter was bad. Had to replace it. 2) Also, while I had a load test run on the batteries this past spring, the batteries were too weak to hold the inverter on while traveling down the road. Replaced the data cable and I can now turn the inverter off and on at the remote switch and had 2 new batteries installed and now the inverter will run the refrigerator for about 28 hours before shutting down. Just like it is suppose to. Also, just to double check, had my truck plug checked out to make sure I was getting 12V power to the batteries as we were driving down the road.

 

[DavRosCope]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

I believe the transfer switch is supposed to default to shore power if both shore power and inverter power are available. While on shore power, nothing should change at the transfer switch by operating the inverter.

If the transfer switch is changing to the inverter side while on shore power, there's either a problem with the wiring to the transfer switch, or a problem with the transfer switch itself.

You might open the junction boxes to see if perhaps wires are loose. Turn off the refrigerator circuit breaker and unplug the transfer switch from the inverter before opening the boxes.

If no loose wires, it's probably a transfer switch problem.

It's possible there could also be an inverter problem, but that would typically show up when shore power is not available.

Taking your advice, here it what i discovered this afternoon. But first off, i learned that my thinking of how this all worked was all wrong, but I am chalking it all up to my being Electrically Challenged.
Anyway, my thinking of the Remote Switch is not that it was used to switch from 110 to battery, but nothing more than a remote On/Off power for the Inverter. This epiphany came when i going through some checks. Remote Switch light Green, inverter is powered on. Remote Switch light OFF, inverter is now Off. Pushing the power button on the inverter turned it on, and thus when I checked the Remote Switch, is was now Green. Lesson learned, confusion on my part lessened.

Seeing as I was not really considering the inverter was the culprit, I wanted to isolate the Transfer Switch and test.

So I proceeded to remove the cover plate to access the internal wiring. First I made sure each wire was secure to the bus bar, some were snug, others snugged up a bit more.
Next I disconnected the power plug for the Transfer Switch from the inverter.
Using the multimeter, I found 110 volts on the input side of the Transfer Switch, and found 110 volts on the output side of the Transfer Switch. All is good at this point.
Stepped inside the RV and found the fridge display nice and bright displaying the correct temps.

So Far, So Good

Tic-Toc-Tic-Toc 15 minutes pass

****. The fridge is DEAD, no display. But I guess this puts the approval stamp to my having a Transfer Switch (BAD) issue. Normally the fridge should have continued to run and run and run while going through the Transfer Switch. Went to the forward storage area with my trusty multimeter and checked for 110 volts coming into the switch (there was), but the output side of the Transfer Switch was DEAD. Hard to tell what is actually wrong with it, but cheaper to just order a new one, which I did last night for 65bucks.

Is my thinking on point for this issue and test result?

 

[danemayer]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

Sounds right. Circle back around after installing the new transfer switch and let us know the result.

 

[DavRosCope]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

Good Morning All,

To those who helped with info regarding my issue, THANKS. To those than can take my experience and learn from it, here is the final result.

After getting the new replacement Transfer Switch, model: Magnum CSW‑TS15 - 15 Amp, read the entire instructions (fairly simple and short) then slept on it for a bit. Actually I was waiting for the hot Texas sun to on the backside of the RV to give me some shade to work.

Turned off all power to the RV, took a snapshot of the wire configuration (I sometimes lose track of what went where), then removed the suspected BAD unit.

Wired up the new unit then secured it back to the wall with screws. I then proceeded with the suggested Testing Steps from the enclosed instructions supplied by Magnum.

Everything Passed.

Now, sit and wait to see what happens for a few days. The BAD unit would work for around 5 - 10 hours before it would die.

12 - 24 - 36 - 48 - 60 hours and counting. The new switch is working, The Inverter is On (waiting for that potential power outage), and the fridge has not hiccuped yet.


Looks like my issue is resolved.

Hopes this helps anyone else with future fridge, inverter, transfer switch concerns.

 

[klindgren]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions

Good Morning All,
Looks like my issue is resolved.
Hopes this helps anyone else with future fridge, inverter, transfer switch concerns.

Thanks for the follow up David. Your summary sure helps me. Hopefully no more problems for you.

 

[pmpcrowley]

Re: Inverter Consensus of Opinions




Taking your advice, here it what i discovered this afternoon. But first off, i learned that my thinking of how this all worked was all wrong, but I am chalking it all up to my being Electrically Challenged.
Anyway, my thinking of the Remote Switch is not that it was used to switch from 110 to battery, but nothing more than a remote On/Off power for the Inverter. This epiphany came when i going through some checks. Remote Switch light Green, inverter is powered on. Remote Switch light OFF, inverter is now Off. Pushing the power button on the inverter turned it on, and thus when I checked the Remote Switch, is was now Green. Lesson learned, confusion on my part lessened.

Seeing as I was not really considering the inverter was the culprit, I wanted to isolate the Transfer Switch and test.

So I proceeded to remove the cover plate to access the internal wiring. First I made sure each wire was secure to the bus bar, some were snug, others snugged up a bit more.
Next I disconnected the power plug for the Transfer Switch from the inverter.
Using the multimeter, I found 110 volts on the input side of the Transfer Switch, and found 110 volts on the output side of the Transfer Switch. All is good at this point.
Stepped inside the RV and found the fridge display nice and bright displaying the correct temps.

So Far, So Good

Tic-Toc-Tic-Toc 15 minutes pass

****. The fridge is DEAD, no display. But I guess this puts the approval stamp to my having a Transfer Switch (BAD) issue. Normally the fridge should have continued to run and run and run while going through the Transfer Switch. Went to the forward storage area with my trusty multimeter and checked for 110 volts coming into the switch (there was), but the output side of the Transfer Switch was DEAD. Hard to tell what is actually wrong with it, but cheaper to just order a new one, which I did last night for 65bucks.

Is my thinking on point for this issue and test result?

 

[pmpcrowley]

Wher did you find the Transfer Switch and where can I buy it ?