flloyd
04-22-2011, 12:48 PM
It began with the satellite receiver unexpectedly rebooting. My first thought was that the power plug was loose and/or the receiver was bad. We were driving home from Tucson last night and I noticed on my digital voltage monitor that the house voltage had suddenly spiked to 16.8 volts. The refrigerator light went out, then back on. Things were starting to go haywire.
I pulled over at a rest stop and was immediately concerned that the voltage regulator on the house 12V alternator had failed. The spike in voltage was causing the inverters to trip off for safety. The condition was a bit intermittent, but it did finally last long enough for me to be concerned that this could be serious.
Rather than continue to risk over-voltage, I opted to disconnect the battery lead from the alternator. Once disconnected, the system returned to about normal and we were able to complete the 90 minute drive without problems. The house batteries were at 12.4 volts upon our arrival and when I plugged the coach back in, the bus voltage returned to the customary 13.6 V, inverter charge level.
So, I guess I need a new alternator. I was a bit curious that in this particular installation is that aside from the ground lug, there is only one wire connected to the alternator. The main output terminal is hooked up but neither of the two smaller terminals (BAT and ?) are connected. I'm assuming that this device has an integral regulator, right?
If anyone has any comments about this wiring, and if someone could tell me what the base amp rating of this device might be, I'll go about finding a suitable replacement.
Thanks,
-fred
I pulled over at a rest stop and was immediately concerned that the voltage regulator on the house 12V alternator had failed. The spike in voltage was causing the inverters to trip off for safety. The condition was a bit intermittent, but it did finally last long enough for me to be concerned that this could be serious.
Rather than continue to risk over-voltage, I opted to disconnect the battery lead from the alternator. Once disconnected, the system returned to about normal and we were able to complete the 90 minute drive without problems. The house batteries were at 12.4 volts upon our arrival and when I plugged the coach back in, the bus voltage returned to the customary 13.6 V, inverter charge level.
So, I guess I need a new alternator. I was a bit curious that in this particular installation is that aside from the ground lug, there is only one wire connected to the alternator. The main output terminal is hooked up but neither of the two smaller terminals (BAT and ?) are connected. I'm assuming that this device has an integral regulator, right?
If anyone has any comments about this wiring, and if someone could tell me what the base amp rating of this device might be, I'll go about finding a suitable replacement.
Thanks,
-fred