Electrical Gremlins Help Needed

I think you have some how managed a short between youre 12 volt wiring burning through to the 240v wiring some where in the van. Maybe the 240 volt part of the fridge has died and done some damage there.

But all the same I would be very worried that there maybe some 240 volt leakage to the van body it self mate you don't want an electric shock.

Auto electrition would be a good start to get it sorted.

Cheers.

Your 240 electrical fuses/overload system may have dirty contacts and not allowing power through to the fridge while on 240 v
Pull the one out which runs the fridge circuit and put one of the others in it's place. A phone charger in the fridge 240v plug will tell you whenyou have the right one out.
Refit the fuse/overload and plug in the fridge and see if it heats and sends heat out the vent. The 12 charger may also work off the same circuit and this will then charge the 12v batteries and the lights will become full bright again.

Have you tried another lead? as it may be faulty and acting as a high resistance. Borrow someones lead as a test.

Hi OznJb

As an electrician I think your main issue is low voltage.
I will list each item and comment.

Item 1: Fridge is useless on 230 volts. Issue is the fridge has a heater (yes) to make it cold and if the 230 volts is too low then it will not operate correctly. low volts = low heat. Gas is good and 12vdc is ok points to low mains voltage.

Item 2: refer above.

Item 3: May be an issue with the element and not the power. If it was power then it would at least get warm. (see a local sparky)

Item 4: Again it all points to low mains power.

Item 5: most lights run off 12vdc its easier to make it happen when building the van

Item 6: Where are you with Sub Zero temps???? Antarctica?? Again its a low power issue.

Item 7: maybe 2 issues . Again low power not giving the charger the ability to output 14vdc or so to charge the battery or a faulty battery charger. the modern ones like voltage within the range stated on them.


The issue of a short in the van is unlikely. BUT if in doubt have it checked by a Licensed Sparky.
The issue of a poor connection somewhere between the camp power outlet and the van switchboard is a real possibility. If this is the case then an electrical fire may result Not Good at all to have your home burn down around you.

Someone mentioned the power lead for the van>
How long is it?
What size is the lead? It should be a 15 amp lead and as I have seem on many occasions people use a 10 amp lead. How do you know the difference? the earth pin is wider than a 10 amp model. And the cable is a lot heavier. By law the plug inlet on the van must be rated at 15 amps so use a 15 amp lead. and all van parks must have 15 amp outlets.
So if your lead will fit one of you plug outlets at home (domestic outlet) it is only 10 amp.

Power is like water. Less resistance and more pressure.
So a long lead, rated at 10 amps and low voltage at the van park and a possible poor electrical connection somewhere in between can and will cause all the issues noted above.

As I have said spend 50$ on a sparky to have him check it all may be better than a fire and warm spoiled food.

Hope this helps
Regards

Geoff

Hi OzNjB,

Others have discussed the 240v side of things, so won't go there, except to say that a 240v sparky needs to check whether your power supply/battery charger in the van is working properly.

As far as the vehicle electrics are concerned, one other issue might be to do with your alternator or auxiliary battery set-up in your vehicle. I had a somewhat similar, but certainly not identical, issue with my own truck when the battery isolator went out to lunch and my aux battery died at the same time. The alternator was trying to charge the aux without any success at all, so might be worth checking that circuit and the state of charge of your vehicle aux as well.

Physically and electrically isolate your vehicle from the van as a first step. Unplug the trailer plug and any Anderson plugs you might have.

Then a multi-meter set to read 20 volts across the terminals of both your main battery and your aux with your motor is running and fridge switched off will at least tell you whether anything and what is going into the battery. If the cranking battery is showing charge going in and the aux battery does not, then it's likely there's something wrong with the isolator or the isolator-aux battery wiring or fuses or circuit breakers. If there is a good rate of charge going into the aux. I'd probably run it for an hour like that, then allow to stand, again with the motor and fridge switched off, for a couple of hours before checking both batteries again to see how much charge they've retained. if that's starting to look promising for your aux, then maybe the fridge is the culprit.

If your main vehicle battery is charging OK and your aux isn't, then there could be something wrong in there - sure, a big fridge will draw a fair bit of current but there should still be some current going into the aux. Assuming you've got a good electrical connection and adequate diameter wiring between the tug's charging system and the van battery, AND the isolator and alternator are both working, something should also be going into the van battery too. If that is also an issue, then perhaps something should be done to boost that tug battery-to-van battery charge rate (e.g. bigger diameter wiring or DC-DC charger).

I know that in my own case (above) I drove 200km with my 60L Engel running, only to have the aux run out of grunt an hour after I stopped. A new battery and a new isolator fixed that for me, but I can't predict a similar outcome for you.

Apart from the above, I can only wish you good luck. At Yulara your options might be a bit more limited than if you were in a larger town, so if you can get to The Alice that might provide a few more options.

If you don't feel confident enough to make the checks I've suggested above, by all means have an auto-electrician check it all over for you - he'll be able to load-test your auxiliary battery too and that will give you a definitive answer as to its state of life.

Good luck with it all.

Charlie

Hi OznJb

Problems of apparent low mains voltage are not to be played with
Some bad connection is most likely the cause &THAT CAN LEAD TO FIRE
We have no idea of your van's elecrical set up, so all are just stabbing in the dark
The van is very very unlikely to have fuses in the 240v wiring
Have you seen any signs of heat at connections such:-
as the power input socket on the van?
The 240v main switch/ circuit breaker [if fitted]?
[Try turning the Main Sw /Circuit breaker on & off a few times]
any connections in the extension lead?
The van battery charger is appantly not charging the van battery
Another indication of a serious problem with the 240v, which again could lead to a fire
If you cannot get a well qualified sparky to look at it NOW .I would NOT ATTEMPT TO USE, until it is throughly checked.


Unplug the power input lead NOW.
I am a qualified electrician !!!


Peter

G`day,

Just a thought, but have you put some notices up around the area, the office, toilets/showers, etc. asking for an Electrician ?
There may be one camping nearby.

Good luck,

Scrubby.