Electrical question

[dennisl]

Just returned from a short trip to break in our new Mountaineer 307RKD. Everything (including the tires) seemed to do okay, but I do have a question. I noticed that whenever I turned on the lights in the bathroom, I heard a sound like a fan coming on. The sound seemed to come from inside the wall, and I figured it might be a fan on the converter, but I took the cover off and didn't see one. Any ideas on this? If it is the converter fan, what triggers it to come on? Any info appreciated.

[dsprik]

The converter should not be coming on that soon after turning on 12v lights - that is the convert you hear. It should kick on only after your battery has been drained for a while. Then it will increase in fan noise as you run more 12v items (mostly lights/fans). I would have your dealer check that out..

[Charlie]

Dennis-
You are probably right about being the cooling fan on the converter. It can not be seen by taking the front cover off. The lights are 12V and you are pulling enough amps with the lights on to make the fan come on and cool the converter. This is the way it is designed to work. I think that you have more lights on than just in the bathroom for it to do this. Make sure you have a proper water level in your battery and it is charging as it should otherwise this is normal.

[noneck]

Agree with Charlie...fan is inside next to rectifier heat sinks, thermal activation. Typically runs for a bit then will cycle off even though lights are still on. Questions are;
>How many batteries do you have?
>What group rating are they; 24, 27...Golf cart?
>As previously stated...water level ok?
Let us know...we will continue to provide info if you have different inputs.

[Merv]

If I remember correctly the little fan in the Converter only will run if the camper is plugged into AC. You will also hear this fan run if you came back from a weekend of dry camping and used the batteries. As soon as you plug into AC the little fan will cool the converter as it is recharging the batteries.
I dont believe the fan will run if the camper is not plugged into an AC supply.
The fan is about the size of a cooling fan in a computer. As mentioned before you can not see it by just opening the cover. You would have to remove the whole front panel exposing the wiring behind.

Merv

[kdeiss]

Your battery may be low check voltage

[SlickWillie]

I've always noticed when I turn the toilet room light on, I here the fan on the converter come on.(toilet is next to converter) Service tech says it is normal operation.

[dennisl]

Thanks for all the info. Tomorrow I will check the battery water level etc. , but it should be good because we just bought the unit 3 weeks ago, and SUPPOSEDLY the dealer checked everything out. Anyway, I will take a look at it, and if it is okay then I will assume the fan is working properly.

[Cyrus]

In my Mountaineer 329RL the fan comes on when I turn the bathroom lights on also. But not the bedroom lights. I concluded it was the inverter fan but it never made since that the bedroom lights don't make it run also? Maybe the bathroom lights pull more current then the bedroom.

[rv_nut]

I agree with Cyrus. On my Mountaineer 342PHT, the converter fan comes on when I turn on the bathroom light (the converter is directly below the floor), but not if I turn on the bedroom light only. It will also come on if multiple lights are turned on. I've never noticed if this same behaviour happens when I'm running only on the battery.

Ken

[kdeiss]

quote:Originally posted by dennisl

Thanks for all the info. Tomorrow I will check the battery water level etc. , but it should be good because we just bought the unit 3 weeks ago, and SUPPOSEDLY the dealer checked everything out. Anyway, I will take a look at it, and if it is okay then I will assume the fan is working properly.

My origanal battery was bad lasted 3 months dealer replaced.The first sign was low water level in a month. I would check water level disconnect from charger and check battery voltage.