Hi everyone. I am new to this forum but have checked it out many times over the years and really appreciate to great ideas and advice offered by so many. I now have a question to a issue that has me totally baffled. Just recently upgraded to a 2004 Newmar Kountry Star, 330 cummings on a spartan chassis. 50 amp service. While parked in driveway, I wanted to plug into garage 20 amp circuit just to keep batteries charged. Tripped breaker in house panel immediately. Turned off both main 50 amp breakers in coach, unplugged battery charger and still trips circuit breaker when I plug in. House is new so all wiring is up to code and also tried different circuit. Plug into my RV 30 amp circuit and everything works fine. The relays in the automatic transfer switch would not by themselves draw that much amperage to trip a 20 amp circuit with no further load, would they???? Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.
What is causing circut breaker to trip, no load.
- Thread starter Dave_H
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The outside outlet trips gfi breaker in house breaker panel. If I try to reset it while plugged in, it trips again immediately. When I plug into garage 20 amp outlet, it trips the GFI outlet in garage and will not reset until I unplug cord from RV. I will try to plug into a non-GFI outlet and see what happens.
Back2PA
Well-known member
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Dave_H said:
What do you mean by this? You have a dedicated 30 amp RV receptacle and that works fine?
I have a 30 amp circuit I can reach when parked in my garage but can not reach it when in front of house. Works fine on that circuit. Sometimes when we visit friends for a weekend we only have access to a 20 amp garage circuit to keep batteries charged and maybe watch a little TV, very little load. Wondering why this doesn't work on 20 amp outlet.
Lou Schneider
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Dave_H said:
The 30 amp outlet is not GFCI protected, since the house is up to code all of the 20 amp outside outlets have GFCI protection.
GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interruption) trips when it detects a very small amount of current leaking to ground. It could be the current is leaking to the ground wire and flowing harmlessly to ground, or it could be because someone is getting a shock, so the power cuts out at a very low leakage level.
There are several possibilities, a bit of dirt in an outlet box that provides a leakage path to the ground wire, a partially shorted heating element in the refrigerator or water heater that provides a path to ground, or a wiring mistake in the RV's breaker box that ties neutral and ground together. That's how a house's main panel is wired, but the RV is a subpanel in the electrical system where neutral and ground are kept separated.
Look at the 20 amp circuit breaker that's tripping. If it's labeled GFCI and has a TEST button on it, it's a GFCI breaker and works the same as the GFCI outlets in your kitchen, etc.
Jim Godward
Well-known member
Lou,
What about this, there are surge protectors is various electronic items like TV, Satellite boxes, etc. Would the leakage current from those be enough to trip the GCFI. I have this problem in my MH as I have a surge protected transfer switch that trips a 30 amp gcfi circuit. If I pull the surge protectors everything works fine.
What about this, there are surge protectors is various electronic items like TV, Satellite boxes, etc. Would the leakage current from those be enough to trip the GCFI. I have this problem in my MH as I have a surge protected transfer switch that trips a 30 amp gcfi circuit. If I pull the surge protectors everything works fine.
Lou Schneider
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That's another good possibility, Jim. Thanks!
grashley
Well-known member
I suspect the real cause is that the neutral and ground are connected in your panel, which will trip the GFCI. These do not go through the breakers.
Gary RV_Wizard
Site Team
You are basically right that the fault would seem to be in either the ATS or the shore cord itself. Both are possible. A single strand of wire or a bitof corrosion or dirt is all it takes.
Grashley refers to a bonding between neutral & ground in the RVs load center - that should never be. However, if there is no voltage anywhere in the RV system (main breakers are off), neither the neutral nor the ground should have any current so an improper ground bond should not have any effect.
Grashley refers to a bonding between neutral & ground in the RVs load center - that should never be. However, if there is no voltage anywhere in the RV system (main breakers are off), neither the neutral nor the ground should have any current so an improper ground bond should not have any effect.
