In getting my Chinook ready for a trip cross state next week I went to turn on the Fridge and it blew the GFCI on the outlet by the back door. I reset it and it was fine until again trying to turn the fridge on. The fridge then automatically goes to Gas.
I read flames thread on this but was curious as why it was fine other than when trying to fun the fridge on. (Higher power draw ?) Also wondered about the outlet in the fridge compartment which is on the same circuit. Has that outlet ever been an issue for anyone?
That said I guess I'll start at the exterior outlet first and work backwards.
On a side note the water valve on the toilet burst this morning while filling and pressurizing the water tank. Luckily Amazon has one with same day delivery that is coming today. (It took about 2 minutes to remove the toilet)
Well I removed and eliminated the exterior outlet and wire nutted the wires together to complete the circuit. It didn't help. There was no moisture of corrosion at all. The outlet where the fridge plugs in is a goofy looking outlet that you have to press tabs to release it. It is not a GFI but it states on it that the circuit is. It is the type that by inserting wires they cut into the insulation to make contact. I am not a big fan of those and wonder why this type was used. No evidence of corrosion at all on this outlet either. Again all outlets work until the fridge is turned on tripping the GFCI at the back door.
Electrical is not my strong suit so my frustration continues......
Hey Steve. GFI outlets protect against "ground faults" or current leaks, and they do this by detecting a variance in current between hot and neutral. They're quite sensitive. The fridge outlet, and all the other 120V circuits, are GFI protected since they all branch off of that one GFI outlet at the back door.
Based on what you've noted, I'm thinking you might have a ground fault in your fridge. Look back there for any obvious corrosion or damage or evidence of pests [edit: I see you've already done that]. The circuit boards can also be a problem.
Lastly, if I had a propane fridge, I'd run it solely on propane...
I think you may be correct as I hooked up a 1300 watt space heater to the same outlet the fridge plugs into and the GFCI didn't trip so I am suspecting the fridge as the issue. I will look at the grounds in the compartment. I replaced the circuit board soon after I bought the Chinook with the Dinosaur.
The reason I use 110v is to load it prior to a trip and then usually run it on LPG.
On the "RV style" outlets. I think one reason they are used is that they are basically box and guts in one piece. That has some advantages for mounting/space. I thought about converting mine to a more conventional style, because I didn't want the "Scotch Lock" of AC outlets; but ultimately decided to use a combination of the existing ones and some new ones (same type) and make sure the wires were inserted well and properly. There might have been some other reasons that I now forget (that was a few years ago).
Blue~Go wrote: June 2nd, 2018, 10:31 pm
On the "RV style" outlets. I think one reason they are used is that they are basically box and guts in one piece. That has some advantages for mounting/space. I thought about converting mine to a more conventional style, because I didn't want the "Scotch Lock" of AC outlets; but ultimately decided to use a combination of the existing ones and some new ones (same type) and make sure the wires were inserted well and properly. There might have been some other reasons that I now forget (that was a few years ago).
I think you are right on the reason they use them. I considered changing to a Junction box but I'll let it be for now.
As of today the fridge is no longer tripping the GFI outlet. I think the issue was the amount of cleaning the roof required probably caused water/moisture entering the large vent. It has been running all day without issue. The GFI circuit was just doing its job.
