Electrics tripping on site

[Bluebird1]

I am currently in France and am experiencing problems with my van electrics
i have been on site in Brittany for 3 days with no problems but have experienced some electical problems this evening
There are 2 main circuit breakers on my caravan. This evening the site electric tripped when we put the kettle and microwave on at the same time . i turned the 2 MCBs off in the fuse box and tried to turn them back on. Ii was able to turn one back on but not the other as it continued to trip . Once the site electric was restored I turned the one main circuit breaker on but the other one has continued to trip. The one tripping is for the water heater and charger. The one for the fridge and the sockets is working fine I have turned the water heater off and disconnected the mains leads to no avail does anyone have any idea on what else I can try
Thanks in anticipation
Regards
Andy

 

[forestgump]

have you tested the sockets it may be reverse polarity some sites still do ?

 

[Damian]

What van? What year?

 

[Dustydog]

Some mcb's after tripping need to be manually fully turned off, switched off and then reset. Repeat the process manually to ensure the mcb is fully reset.

 

[ProfJohnL]

The symptoms and sequence of events you describe holds an important clue.

You describe the case that the site's circuit breaker tripped, which means there was no mains reaching the caravan. Under these conditions one power MCB inside the would not re-engage. So as there was no power, even if there was an appliance fault there would be no current to cause the MCB to trip out. So this suggests the MCB is faulty.

MCB's have been known to fail (e.g. wont re-engage), and not become apparent until the switch is tested.

I disagree with Forest Gump, as caravan consumer units are all use double pole operation and isolation and thus polarity has no influence on their safety or operation.

For your safety electric should only be repaired by a competent electrical fitter.

 

[Bluebird1]

Thank you all for your responses

The van is a bailey ranger gt60 20009 momodels have spoken to red pennant today who have suggested that the charger has gone however I have also spoken to my local dealer who after instructing me on how to disconnect the charger and the problem persisted suggested that the MCB had gone and is a job for a competent person

I am reluctant to pay £130 for a new charger plus fitting which red pennant will send over to me . 8 have therefore decided to wait until I return to the uk but in the meantime buy a battery charger to keep the battery topped up and heat the water on gas
Once again hank you for your help and advice

 

[Bluebird1]

Sorry for the typos. I haven't mastered typing on a tablet yet

andy

 

[Bluebird1]

Update
Now back in UK and the MCB has been replaced and all is working well
Thanks for your help

 

[copaul1]

Glad you got it sorted Bluebird, you didnt say what the site max amps were a kettle (hope it wasn't a domestic one) a microwave and the water heater on at the same time ? I think you might have blown your van MCB
We always use a gas kettle a lot of French sites are only 6amp which would explain it tripping

 

[ProfJohnL]

Glad you got it sorted Bluebird, you didnt say what the site max amps were a kettle (hope it wasn't a domestic one) a microwave and the water heater on at the same time ? I think you might have blown your van MCB

Hello copaul,
The purpose of an MCB is to open if excess current is drawn. So its unlikely that connecting to many loads would 'Blow' the MCB, it would simply disconnect as it is supposed to do.
The ability of an MCB to engage and hold is down to a magnetic component which may have failed, but its failure is unlikely to be the result of excess current.