12 volt this time not working

Coolasluck

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Got my mains all working fine,the other day,except the 12 volt on the fridge ,dont seem to have any power at the fuse on my b544 hymer any hints!
 
I don't have a hymer but on mine the 12v feed for the fridge comes from the alternator not the leisure battery circuit. There is also a second relay just for this feed. If the hymer is similar then I would check the relay is clicking over.
 
Right,
Normally the 12V on the fridge is only when the engine (alternator) is running.
Fridge is never working on the leissure battery 12V; it should drain it in no time !
 
The 12 volt light is not lighting and the power is not at the 12 volt fridge fuse,all checked with the engine running and in 12 volt mode;)
 
coolasluck said:
The 12 volt light is not lighting and the power is not at the 12 volt fridge fuse,all checked with the engine running and in 12 volt mode;)
Click to expand...

Again not sure about Hymers in particular but on my swift I have a relay under the bonnet and an additional fuse block under the bonnet. If you have either of these then check em out using a circuit tester. You should have a current both sides of the fuses when the engine is running and before and after the relays when the engine is running. SImply removing and reiserting the relays sometimes fixes a corroded terminal.

When I had a similar problem I checked the color of the live feed at the fridge, white+green and looked for the same colour wire under the bonnet. I was able to diagnose a loose conection on the correct relay by doing this.

Although you seem confident that its the circuit if you want to check the fridge run a cable directly from the positive on the battery.

Don't forget that for a circuit to work the negative needs to be connected as well. Again not sure about yours but I have a negative cable that runs back to the engine compartment as well. You need to ensure this is connected correctly as well. You may just have a short cable that is connected to the MH's frame somewhere, so pehaps this is not giving a good connection.

A lot of guess work, Hopefully someone with a Hymer can give a more definate answer for you :)
 
Somewhere there will be a relay fed from the engine battery as this circuit draws 10amps and does not go via the temp control. So you need to locate the relay, see if there is feed to the relay, then see if it switches over when you run the engine i.e. see if there's now 12v out as well as 12v in!!
 
Fridge

Greetings Coolasmuck,
We need more detailed information in order to give an accurate diagnosis of the problem and the cure.
That said I will make a few assumptions. (Correct me if wrong)
Assumption 1 The fridge works on 240 volts (ie when plugged in to mains)
Assumption 2 Fridge works on gas when wilding.
Now to solve the trouble. Please do as a previous poster has suggested and run a seperate HEAVY DUTY temporary positive cable from the van battery (or a well charged and corrtectly earthed spare battery) to your fridge 12 volt terminal (make sure that you disconnect the original cable and insulate it from accidential earthing) observe if the fridge works ONLY CONNECT LIKE THIS FOR A MAXIMUM OF FIVE MINUTES AS YOUR BATTERY WILL GO FLAT AS THE DEMAND IS QUITE HIGH (10 Amps)
Now for the bad news if the above shows that fridge is fully functional then your problem lies within the ELECTROBLOCK usually found in a locker near the front of the habitation area of your van.
This wonderfull peice of Tutonic design houses all the relays and chargers in one place. Thus the split charge relay is in it as is the relay for the fridge (unlike other vans which house them seperately (Usually under the bonnet).
There are specialist repairers of these things but if you feel competent at electrics you may well be able to fix up a work around by fitting a relay near the electroblock and tieing into the original wiring loom. (or even taking the box to bits and replacing the offending relay inside).
Regards,
Wanderer
 
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Coolie,

I would follow the Wanderers excellent advice. If you find that your Elektroblok is faulty, it is cheaper to send it to Germany for repair.

I have the contact details here somewhere if you need them.

Good Luck.

ps I vaguely remember reading somewhere that there is also a fuse inside the Electroblok which can blow. Maybe The Grand Wanderer will tell me if that is correct or not.
 
maingate said:
Coolie,

I would follow the Wanderers excellent advice. If you find that your Elektroblok is faulty, it is cheaper to send it to Germany for repair.

I have the contact details here somewhere if you need them.

Good Luck.

ps I vaguely remember reading somewhere that there is also a fuse inside the Electroblok which can blow. Maybe The Grand Wanderer will tell me if that is correct or not.
Click to expand...

You are correct. It is however in the mains (240 volt system) part of the battery charger system.
In this case I fear the worst and that Coolasmuck has run out of luck and it is in fact, the fridge relay. To be certain though I would like to know if his leisure battery/ies are charging correctly, as if they are not he should look to the inline fuse and holder near the van battery that carries all the current to the Elektroblock. This can be easily assertained by starting the van and looking at the control panel above the habitation door and seeing if the meter is showing a charge (or plus) reading. I have heard of the fuses getting old and although not blown getting so corroded as to prevent the current getting through. Even getting so hot as to melt the fuse holder.
Regards,
Wanderer
 
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Here's the contact for Your Electroblock. they're very helpful.

Udo Lang, technical support
Schaudt GmbH Elektrotechnik & Apparatebau
Planckstr. 8 - 88677 Markdorf - Germany
email: udo.lang@schaudt-gmbh.de


Tel. +49 7544 9577-70 Fax +49 - 7544 - 9577-29
 
Alas i am not very good with electrics,in all honesty i am a bit AJ-ish,its nice too have your views and expertise.For me electrics are a bit of a mystery but i am trying to learn and i suppose i will be an expert before i full-time,(he said hopefully)
Am using the motorhome to stay at freinds tonight and will be going somewhere tommorow although i aint quite sure yet !;) where.

I remember how interested i was in physics at school,that was until i was taught by the most boring person in the universe,so learnt nought much worth knowing.Still these things come back to haunt us!
 
coolasluck said:
Alas i am not very good with electrics,in all honesty i am a bit AJ-ish,its nice too have your views and expertise.For me electrics are a bit of a mystery but i am trying to learn and i suppose i will be an expert before i full-time,(he said hopefully)
Am using the motorhome to stay at freinds tonight and will be going somewhere tommorow although i aint quite sure yet !;) where.

I remember how interested i was in physics at school,that was until i was taught by the most boring person in the universe,so learnt nought much worth knowing.Still these things come back to haunt us!
Click to expand...

Yup I too remember being described as not worth the paper he refuses to write on :eek:

This boy is the waste of a good skin was another :eek:

I found my school reports a few years back and made the mistake of letting my daughter read them.... She was in the end proper chuckling :eek::)

I am still trying to work out where the national river survey of 1973 and caddice larvae postively affects my life in 2010 :eek:

Channa
 
coolasluck said:
Alas i am not very good with electrics,in all honesty i am a bit AJ-ish,its nice too have your views and expertise.For me electrics are a bit of a mystery but i am trying to learn and i suppose i will be an expert before i full-time,(he said hopefully)
Am using the motorhome to stay at freinds tonight and will be going somewhere tommorow although i aint quite sure yet !;) where.

I remember how interested i was in physics at school,that was until i was taught by the most boring person in the universe,so learnt nought much worth knowing.Still these things come back to haunt us!
Click to expand...

Life is a journey not a destination.
I left school with nothing more than a wave goodbye.:eek::eek:
In my experience we learn only that which we need to learn. Thus I learnt about motorhome electrics because I could not afford to pay for someone to fix them for me.:p:p
Experience is a great teacher. Take hold the nettle and be damned.:cool::cool:
 
The Grand Wanderer said:
Life is a journey not a destination.
I left school with nothing more than a wave goodbye.:eek::eek:
In my experience we learn only that which we need to learn. Thus I learnt about motorhome electrics because I could not afford to pay for someone to fix them for me.:p:p
Experience is a great teacher. Take hold the nettle and be damned.:cool::cool:
Click to expand...

Here here or is it hear hear crap at English too ;)

Matters not, Your sentiments I share 100 percent

Channa
 
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