Foretravel Owners' Forum For owners and Fans of Foretravel Motorcoaches September 10, 2025 ...

Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

August 04, 2010, 07:43:03 pm

The title of this post says it all.  The generator starts fine with the switch on the front of the generator, but the remote start on/off switch on the dash or above the bed do not work.  Neither the fault (red) or run (green) lights work on the remote switchs.  I checked the manual for the generator and it says nothing (that I could find) on these switches.  Any ideas?

Thanks in advance,

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #1 – August 04, 2010, 07:55:14 pm

George, Check the master battery switch at the door, When mine is off all dash goes dead and since that is where remote switch is I would guess that this is a place to start.  IF DW was not asleep on the couch I would try it on mine.

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #2 – August 04, 2010, 11:28:24 pm

The same thing happened to me. It was a broken wire inside the control box.

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #3 – August 05, 2010, 08:12:10 am

Thanks for the input.  I checked the main 12v switch.... on.  Where is the control box for the generator located?

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #4 – August 05, 2010, 08:49:37 am

George, you have the high output more modern genset compared to mine.  But, I would say that the control box is likely in the area of the breakers on the genset.  My unit is open and does not have a shroud like yours probaly has, so on mine it's easy to get to the control box circuit board to check the connections.  The control board should have dip switches that control the low volt "auto start" as well as the "high volt" auto start shut off.

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #5 – August 05, 2010, 11:18:41 pm

In my case the control box is where the circuit breaker and fault lights are located. Acess is gained by  removing four screws from top of box and the lid comes off. The broken wire was in a plug in harness that went to the control board . It took me a long time to find because the wire was broken inside the wire insulation which was intact. Finally found it after checking continuity with a DVM.

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #6 – December 05, 2010, 11:43:36 am

Below is a photo of the electronics box on my Powertech generator.  As mentioned above, the remote switches on the dash and above the bed no longer work.  This was a bit of a pain to get to since the exhaust extension/muffler has to be removed in order to for the generator to pull out.  Two days of penetrating oil on the rusted bolts/nuts did the trick.  Anyway, any ideas on where to look for trouble?  No wires appear to be loose or broken that I can find.  Thanks in advance.

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #7 – December 05, 2010, 12:47:43 pm

Thanks Mark, but mine starts fine if I throw the start switch on the generator.  Its just the remote that does not work.  The lights on the remote also don't work. 

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #8 – December 05, 2010, 02:47:00 pm

George, Just a thought, but on  my Power Tech, if I have the switch mounted on the generator panel in the  wrong position it will not operate remotely.  I do not have access to my unit now, but if you have not played with the  different positions of the switch, it might be worth a look-see.
Know it sounds real dumb, but as said, I found the same issue before I figured out the different positions.
Cheers

Quote Selected

Re: Remote start for Powertech 10K generator quit working

Reply #9 – December 06, 2010, 09:08:02 am

Thanks Dave..... good idea.  I'll give it a try when we bring the coach back from storage. 

Quote Selected