Can anyone help?
We just picked up the coach and everything was working fine. All lights on, fridge working, and closed the slides with no issue.
I arrived at resort, plugged in 50 amp. Tried to open the slides and it didn't have enough power to open - only opened about 2 inches and then stopped. After that, all coach lights went out, inverter not working, generator not starting, but engine starts right up but doesn't power anything.
We checked the panel under the bed, one switch was tripped and we reset that - didn't change anything.
This is for a 2007 Nimbus.
New owners so looking for troubleshooting help - thank you in advance.
Check your batter voltage. The shore,power will go into the inverter and charge the batteries. It sounds like the batteries died but they should have been charged by the alternator while you were driving. In my coach I would have to run the engine to put out the slides as the key had to be on. I know different years had that removed.
.? Salesman switch?
The slides operate on 12V, not shore power. Since the slides did start to open, you had some charge but not enough. Combined with the other symptoms, it sounds like the house batteries are low on charge.
Once you plugged in, your inverter/charger should start charging the batteries. Which model inverter do you have? Once we know that, folks can walk you through how to make sure it is working and charging the batteries properly. Sometimes (depends on inverter), there is a breaker or reset physically on the inverter that needs to be reset.
Do you see any sign that there is shore power to anything? Lights on the microwave? Do any outlets have power? If not, do you have a multimeter to check to see if you actually have incoming shore power?
Couple of points:
Since this happened after driving, IF house battery voltage is low, either the house batteries are bad or your alternator, through the battery isolator is not charging them.
If battery voltage is too low, the inverter charger will NOT charge them (a safety measure). So you may need to start their charging from an external source-- "dumb" charger, toad battery with engine running using jumper cables, etc.
Please start by telling us what your digital voltmeter says as measured at the house batteries and that connections on the batteries are clean and tight.
I had a similar problem on my 2007 Nimbus and it turned out to be the battery isolator was not charging the batteries. You may also want to check the Xantrex inverter controller inside your coach next to the fridge and make sure that you have the charger "enabled" and all another settings are set appropriately.
Also, you could turn on the "boost" switch and see if that temporarily solves the issue of extending or retracting your slides. The HWH requires lots of amps to operate the hydraulic pump and the other components. Lastly, check the age of the house batteries.
Thanks everyone - I'm working on charging the house battery and will let you know how that goes. Hopefully this will be enough to get the slides closed and back on the road.
BUT, I would suggest you verify that your charging system is working before hitting the road or at least have a "plan B" so you do not end up on the side of the road.
Again, with voltage readings from both batteries with shore power on/off and engine on/off (shore power disconnected) we can guide you.
Sounds like a plan. You might try running the generator as you try to move the slides in and out, as should raise the voltage too.
That happened to me two weeks ago in our 2013 IH-45. Funny thing was after checking everything from inverters to fuses, the 50amp plug at the end of cord was loose. This has happened to me twice over the past several months. The wires come out of the lugs in the plug.
You might want to replace the plug. The loose connections cause the terminals to get hot. Some time once they have been hot they won't stay tight.
4 years ago, the round pin broke on our (original factory installed shore power cord) plug. It was still held in place by the molded plastic material so it was not evident on casual inspection. I noticed it looked kinda like it was bent at an odd angle. When I tried to straighten it with my fingers it pulled right out in my hand. I replaced it with a Camco. Has held up just fine ever since.
Camco 55255 Heavy Duty RV 50 AMP Male Plug Replacement with Power Grip... (https://www.walmart.com/ip/Camco-55255-Heavy-Duty-RV-50-AMP-Male-Plug-Replacement-with-Power-Grip-Handle/29764608?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&adid=22222222227021475762&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=40839453992&wl4=pla-78653438552&wl5=9028279&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=online&wl12=29764608&wl13=&veh=sem)
Chuck I had the same issue with my FT. The Progressive wouldn't allow power into the coach and gave me an open neutral error. Replaced the plug and got the same error. Checked the breaker panel where I store it and the neutral wire had burnt through! Fixed that and no problems since. I can only guess when the plug went bad it caused the neutral to burn at the breaker box.