Power

[Nan]

I finally had the power run to my Oliver.  Can someone please tell me why there are two outside plugs for the 30 amp service.  I plugged into the one on the side and everything looks good, except I have no 110 volts AC at any of the plugs inside the camper.  Also, and this is minor, I do not have a sink stopper so where can I buy one?  One more thing please, am I right in that you cannot run your heater off power (must use propane), but you can check out your air conditioner with power.  

I have not been able to check out any of the systems (other than solar) since I bought this camper a couple of months ago because of not having power.  I had to move the camper to another place than my original place and have power and water run.

Thank you for your patience.    Nan Wallace-hull 267

 

[Overland]

I’m guessing that your trailer has the optional generator hookup on the front, which is why you have two 30a inputs. The one on the side is correct for hooking up to shore power though I guess that either is fine. The one in front is placed to be convenient for a generator either in the back of the truck or in the optional basket on the tongue. 
 

There are two common reasons that your interior sockets might not be working. First is a tripped breaker on the outlet under the dinette. So first try pressing the reset button on it. If that doesn’t work then check your surge protector display to see if it shows an error. It’s possible that the new outlet could have been wired incorrectly causing the protector to shut off. 

You’re correct that the heat is propane only. The AC is shore power/generator only and the water heater is either. 

Edited November 24, 2019 by Overland

[Nan]

Thanks so much.  I will check this.

[John E Davies]

Nan, in case you were not aware, you can run your trailer on a 15 amp household circuit using an adapter and a HEAVY extension cord (12 or 10 AWG wires, no more than 25 ft long). You can run your air conditioner by itself off that circuit - be sure to turn off all the other circuit breakers -  or everything EXCEPT the AC, but if you want to run everything at once including AC, microwave and converter to charge the batteries, you must use the 30 amp one. The AC is a real power hog, especially when it first starts up.

https://smile.amazon.com/s?k=Adapter+30a+to+15+a+male&ref=nb_sb_noss

John Davies

Spokane WA

 

[Nan]

Thanks, John.  I was not aware of this.

 

[Nan]

OK,  the main breaker was turned off and turning it on put the 110 into the camper.  However, when I turned the main on, I did not know the breaker for the hot water heater was on and it heated up for a couple of minutes before I figured out what was going on.  The HW heater is empty.  Did I hurt anything?

 

[topgun2]

Nan -

Yes, it is very likely that by not having water in the water heater the heater coil has been destroyed.  Bet you wouldn't do that again.

Bill

[John E Davies]

My Suburban  water heater has a hard to see black On/Off switch outside, near the bottom. If it is switched OFF then you haven’t hurt anything. If it is switched on, then, maybe it is gone, but maybe not. The heating element will overheat really fast when it isn’t surrounded by water. If it is messed up, it is really easy and cheap to replace.

https://olivertraveltrailers.com/forums/topic/2937-how-to-hot-water-heater-110v-element-switch-two-safety-labels/

It is probably wise to put a piece of blue masking tape over the the propane water heater switch, inside the cabin next to the water pump switch.... so that you don’t accidentally turn that on when the tank is empty.

You are not alone..... They call these Senior Moments and they become more frequent as we get more mature. I am resigned to mine, but they really piss me off sometimes. 

John Davies

Spokane WA

Edited November 24, 2019 by John E Davies

[Nan]

Thanks for the pictures.  Do you think I should go ahead and order one?

[John E Davies]

4 hours ago, Nan said:

Do you think I should go ahead and order one?

????..... I don’t understand.

John Davies

Spokane WA

[Nan]

John, I should have said:  should I go ahead and order another heater element?

 

[topgun2]

Nan -

Be a bit careful here with knowing which switches and breakers one is talking about.  On most (if not all) Olivers there is a water heater circuit breaker that is located amongst all of the other circuit breakers AND there is the switch that John is talking about.  If your circuit breaker was in the "on" position but the water heater switch for electric was in the "off" position then it is unlikely that any damage was done to your heating element.  However, if both were in the "on" position it is more than likely you element is destroyed. 

The easiest way to tell is to simply fill the water heater and turn it on, wait a few minutes and see if the water is hot.  If it is not hot after about 15 minutes then it is almost certain that the element will need to be replaced (or, you will simply need to only use propane for heating water in that tank).

Bill

Edited November 25, 2019 by topgun2

[Overland]

I moved a handful of posts from another topic into this one.  Please try to limit a conversation to a single thread, as it can be confusing.

[John E Davies]

4 hours ago, Nan said:

should I go ahead and order another heater element?

Nan, it is usually a good practice to use the Quote feature (below the post) when replying, especially with a question. You can shorten the content of the quote if you like, for clarity, just don’t add anything extra to it.  Doing it this way makes your post confusion-free for its readers.

IMHO you shouldn't fret about the element until Spring, it may possibly be fine. It isn’t a part that normally wears out, like the anode rod: you should buy a cheap generic spare anode, or two, to have on hand, as well as a rinsing wand if you don’t already have one.

https://smile.amazon.com/Eleventree-Heaters-Magnesium-Suburban-length-2pack/dp/B07CHNPZ79/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Eleventree+2+Pack+RV+Water+Heaters+Anode+Rod%2C+Extends+the+Life+of+Suburban+and+Mor-Flo+Water+Heaters+Tank-3%2F4"NPT+threads+9.25+length-Magnesium+Anode+Rod&qid=1574696852&s=hi&sr=1-1

https://smile.amazon.com/Camco-Rinser-Cleanses-Sediment-Collects-11691/dp/B002XL2IBS/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Camco+water+heater+rinse+wand&qid=1574697554&sr=8-1

BTW is your knee healed up and working OK?

John Davies

Spokane WA

Edited November 25, 2019 by John E Davies

[Nan]

Thanks, John and the knee is about as good as it is going to get, so I am living with it.

[Nan]

On 11/25/2019 at 10:43 AM, John E Davies said:

Nan, it is usually a good practice to use the Quote feature (below the post) when replying, especially with a question. You can shorten the content of the quote if you like, for clarity, just don’t add anything extra to it.  Doing it this way makes your post confusion-free for its readers.

IMHO you shouldn't fret about the element until Spring, it may possibly be fine. It isn’t a part that normally wears out, like the anode rod: you should buy a cheap generic spare anode, or two, to have on hand, as well as a rinsing wand if you don’t already have one.

https://smile.amazon.com/Eleventree-Heaters-Magnesium-Suburban-length-2pack/dp/B07CHNPZ79/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Eleventree+2+Pack+RV+Water+Heaters+Anode+Rod%2C+Extends+the+Life+of+Suburban+and+Mor-Flo+Water+Heaters+Tank-3%2F4"NPT+threads+9.25+length-Magnesium+Anode+Rod&qid=1574696852&s=hi&sr=1-1

https://smile.amazon.com/Camco-Rinser-Cleanses-Sediment-Collects-11691/dp/B002XL2IBS/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Camco+water+heater+rinse+wand&qid=1574697554&sr=8-1

BTW is your knee healed up and working OK?

John Davies

Spokane WA

OK, hope I am posting correctly this time.  John, I just ordered the anodes and the rinsing wand.  Thank you very much.