Hi fuse box burnt out.

Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
Got a little problem. Our fuse box on fuse (van batt+) has burnt out and tripped. Anybody know why this could of happened? Been fine up to now. Im definatly going to need a new fuse box but dont know what could of caused it after this long. plug socket working without main switch being on but no lights.
 

Damian

Moderator
Mar 14, 2005
7,510
936
30,935
Visit site
As far as the van battery problem is concerned it would suggest a dead short somewhere.

As far as this " plug socket working without main switch being on but no lights. "
What exactly are you talking about? What "plug socket" What "main switch"?

You will not have lights as the 12v supply is missing following the fuse box issue.
 
Mar 14, 2005
17,557
3,051
50,935
Visit site
You seem to have had a catalog of electrical issues, which despite several answers across the threads you still have problems..

I have read the terminology you have used on this thread and I have no confidence that I understand exactly what has happened, and therefore its unsafe to suggest causes or repairs.

I think its time to bite the bullet and get the caravan checked out by a professional before someone gets hurt.
 
Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. I didnt realize this before. The lights are all on 12v system which explains them. Im new to electrics so didnt realize how it all worked. Just cant figure out why fuse has burnt out. Problematic battery? Or something else as it didnt just blow.
 

Parksy

Moderator
Nov 12, 2009
11,904
2,399
40,935
Visit site
You were asking on a separate topic about the possibility of adding extra light switches to your Bailey Louire.
In this thread you tell us that you're 'new to electrics ' and ' didn't realise how it all worked'
I hate to seem to criticise your DIY skills, but with the greatest respect I'd suggest that you leave your caravan electrical systems alone, both 12v which could cause a fire and 230v which could kill you or somebody else.
Get a caravan engineer to check and to repair your fuse box and electrical systems, ask the engineer to install whatever switches you need and then leave well alone!
 
Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
I intend to. It was an auto electrician that sussed the lights for me but but hes moved abroad now and havent been able to get intouch with him at the moment.
 

Damian

Moderator
Mar 14, 2005
7,510
936
30,935
Visit site
Tommy2704 said:
I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. I didnt realize this before. The lights are all on 12v system which explains them. Im new to electrics so didnt realize how it all worked. Just cant figure out why fuse has burnt out. Problematic battery? Or something else as it didnt just blow.

This is unbelievable !!!!!
First of all, taking this comment " I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains"

What monkey has told you that????????? The main 230v sockets will NOT work with the main RCD in the Off position,,,,,,,,why for safety !!!!!!

Then taking this " Im new to electrics so didnt realize how it all worked. Just cant figure out why fuse has burnt out"

Simple answer, you have made a major mistake which could have set the van on fire and has now got you into a position of needing the whole system checked as you cannot see what damage has been done to wiring all along its length,,,,,and that is going to be expensive and very time consuming,

Then this " Problematic battery? Or something else "

The battery was fine, the problem is YOU!!!!

And this " It was an auto electrician that sussed the lights for me"
Since when was an auto electrician versed in caravan wiring, which is completely different to a car as a caravan does not use the chassis as the return .

My view now as a caravan engineer is that you have made your van potentially a lethal item as a lot of the wiring is suspect but cannot be inspected as it runs behind various panels .

If you don't know what you are doing, DO NOT TOUCH IT !!!!!!!!
 
Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
To DAMIEN MODERATOR. The main RCD IS NOT in the off position. Nobody ever said it was !!! There is only 1 part of it that has tripped. The 12v bit. Everything else is fine n works perfectly while plugged into mains. For your information, he is a caravan engineer and didnt change anything just told me what i needed so nothing has been touched at all. So how the hell is the problem me???? We havent done a thing other than found a burnt out fuse and i havent said anything other than that so what the hell you are reading is news to me. Answer that one. By done it with the lights i ment sussed it. Not rewired it. N it would make it a lot easier.
 
Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
Damian-Moderator said:
Tommy2704 said:
I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. I didnt realize this before. The lights are all on 12v system which explains them. Im new to electrics so didnt realize how it all worked. Just cant figure out why fuse has burnt out. Problematic battery? Or something else as it didnt just blow.

This is unbelievable !!!!!
First of all, taking this comment " I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains"

What monkey has told you that????????? The main 230v sockets will NOT work with the main RCD in the Off position,,,,,,,,why for safety !!!!!!

Then taking this " Im new to electrics so didnt realize how it all worked. Just cant figure out why fuse has burnt out"

Simple answer, you have made a major mistake which could have set the van on fire and has now got you into a position of needing the whole system checked as you cannot see what damage has been done to wiring all along its length,,,,,and that is going to be expensive and very time consuming,

Then this " Problematic battery? Or something else "

The battery was fine, the problem is YOU!!!!

And this " It was an auto electrician that sussed the lights for me"
Since when was an auto electrician versed in caravan wiring, which is completely different to a car as a caravan does not use the chassis as the return .

My view now as a caravan engineer is that you have made your van potentially a lethal item as a lot of the wiring is suspect but cannot be inspected as it runs behind various panels .

If you don't know what you are doing, DO NOT TOUCH IT !!!!!!!!
online but no answer i see. Got all your facts wrong i see. Try asking next time instead of getting on your high horse n getting everything wrong.
 

Parksy

Moderator
Nov 12, 2009
11,904
2,399
40,935
Visit site
Tommy2704 said:
Got a little problem. Our fuse box on fuse (van batt+) has burnt out and tripped. Anybody know why this could of happened? Been fine up to now. Im definatly going to need a new fuse box but dont know what could of caused it after this long. plug socket working without main switch being on but no lights.
 

Parksy

Moderator
Nov 12, 2009
11,904
2,399
40,935
Visit site
Hi Tommy
Some sort of misunderstanding seems to have arisen because of what you wrote earlier or the terminology that you used.
You wrote:
Tommy2704 said:
..... Been fine up to now. Im definatly going to need a new fuse box but dont know what could of caused it after this long. plug socket working without main switch being on but no lights.

And then:
Tommy2704 said:
...... I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. I didnt realize this before. The lights are all on 12v system which explains them. Im new to electrics so didnt realize how it all worked.....

Which 'main switch' are you referring to?
Do you mean the main 240v RCD switch or a habitation switch on a wall panel?

On a separate topic you asked the question:

Tommy2704 said:
We have a bailey louire 6 berth and i need to know if there is a way to add seperate light switches to each part of the van. i.e fronts on 1 switch and back bedroom n toilet on another as the main light switch currently controls all, so turning off at night dissables all including bathroom light etc. This way the kids can use toilet at night and we can read in bed while kids asleep. I know we can switch each light off individually but thats a pain as such a lot of lights. Would love to hear your views.

A perfectly reasonable question to which you appear to have found a solution because later in the same topic you wrote:

Tommy2704 said:
I got answers off another forum. Found out where all the wires were and did it within half an hr. Now its a lot easier for us and the kids.
If you carried out work on your caravan 12v system as you described above then the best place to look for the cause of the current blown fuse and burnt out fuse box would most probably be the work that you carried out.
Nobody likes their feathers to be ruffled on a public internet forum, but I'm sure that you'll understand the genuine concerns of fellow forum members when someone who states that they are unfamiliar with caravan electrical systems carries out work without the knowledge needed to do it safely.
 
Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
Parksy said:
Hi Tommy
Some sort of misunderstanding seems to have arisen because of what you wrote earlier or the terminology that you used.
You wrote:
Tommy2704 said:
..... Been fine up to now. Im definatly going to need a new fuse box but dont know what could of caused it after this long. plug socket working without main switch being on but no lights.

And then:
Tommy2704 said:
...... I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. I didnt realize this before. The lights are all on 12v system which explains them. Im new to electrics so didnt realize how it all worked.....

Which 'main switch' are you referring to?
Do you mean the main 240v RCD switch or a habitation switch on a wall panel?

On a separate topic you asked the question:

Tommy2704 said:
We have a bailey louire 6 berth and i need to know if there is a way to add seperate light switches to each part of the van. i.e fronts on 1 switch and back bedroom n toilet on another as the main light switch currently controls all, so turning off at night dissables all including bathroom light etc. This way the kids can use toilet at night and we can read in bed while kids asleep. I know we can switch each light off individually but thats a pain as such a lot of lights. Would love to hear your views.

A perfectly reasonable question to which you appear to have found a solution because later in the same topic you wrote:

Tommy2704 said:
I got answers off another forum. Found out where all the wires were and did it within half an hr. Now its a lot easier for us and the kids.
If you carried out work on your caravan 12v system as you described above then the best place to look for the cause of the current blown fuse and burnt out fuse box would most probably be the work that you carried out.
Nobody likes their feathers to be ruffled on a public internet forum, but I'm sure that you'll understand the genuine concerns of fellow forum members when someone who states that they are unfamiliar with caravan electrical systems carries out work without the knowledge needed to do it safely.
well i understand you perfectly. Im not an electrician and do not know the terminology. Yes i ment the switch on the wall. The only trip gone is on the light, fridge circuit and not the main rcd. The only work that has been done is a motor mover fitted and yes i can see i have not explained it properly but no need for damien to blast people like that on a public forum. Id put pics up but dont know how.
 
Sep 26, 2018
620
180
10,935
Visit site
It's also not clear whether you've just "burnt out" a single fuse, or the whole fuse box has melted... The former is a relatively straightforward thing to diagnose (switch everything on that fuse off, replace the fuse then turn on devices one at a time until the fuse blows, the last thing turned on is the problem) the latter even as a reasonably competent amateur 12V electrician, I wouldn't even start to diagnose, because of the potential to set the van on fire. Although 12 V won't kill you by a shock, in order to get the same power output as 240V, the current has to be twenty times higher!!!!

It's dead easy to do something "accidental" with 12V which will result in insulation melting at the least... There's a joke, that one of the issues with 12V is it's easy to "let the smoke out of the wires" but difficult to get it back in again!
 
Jun 20, 2005
17,263
3,486
50,935
Visit site
Tommy2704 said:
Parksy said:
Hi Tommy
Some sort of misunderstanding seems to have arisen because of what you wrote earlier or the terminology that you used.
You wrote:
Tommy2704 said:
..... Been fine up to now. Im definatly going to need a new fuse box but dont know what could of caused it after this long. plug socket working without main switch being on but no lights.

And then:
Tommy2704 said:
...... I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. I didnt realize this before. The lights are all on 12v system which explains them. Im new to electrics so didnt realize how it all worked.....

Which 'main switch' are you referring to?
Do you mean the main 240v RCD switch or a habitation switch on a wall panel?

On a separate topic you asked the question:

Tommy2704 said:
We have a bailey louire 6 berth and i need to know if there is a way to add seperate light switches to each part of the van. i.e fronts on 1 switch and back bedroom n toilet on another as the main light switch currently controls all, so turning off at night dissables all including bathroom light etc. This way the kids can use toilet at night and we can read in bed while kids asleep. I know we can switch each light off individually but thats a pain as such a lot of lights. Would love to hear your views.

A perfectly reasonable question to which you appear to have found a solution because later in the same topic you wrote:

Tommy2704 said:
I got answers off another forum. Found out where all the wires were and did it within half an hr. Now its a lot easier for us and the kids.
If you carried out work on your caravan 12v system as you described above then the best place to look for the cause of the current blown fuse and burnt out fuse box would most probably be the work that you carried out.
Nobody likes their feathers to be ruffled on a public internet forum, but I'm sure that you'll understand the genuine concerns of fellow forum members when someone who states that they are unfamiliar with caravan electrical systems carries out work without the knowledge needed to do it safely.
well i understand you perfectly. Im not an electrician and do not know the terminology. Yes i ment the switch on the wall. The only trip gone is on the light, fridge circuit and not the main rcd. The only work that has been done is a motor mover fitted and yes i can see i have not explained it properly but no need for damien to blast people like that on a public forum. Id put pics up but dont know how.

Tommy,
Damian is a very clever articulate well qualified caravan engineer of many years standing. Like the rest of us on here we are all for suggesting resolutions to problems. However , safety must come first. With no disrespect to all your posts they were incoherent, misleading and quite frankly worrying especially as you have children on board.
Damian’s advice to you , like it or not may well be a life saver!
 

Damian

Moderator
Mar 14, 2005
7,510
936
30,935
Visit site
To answer some of the comments from earlier on:
Quote " The main RCD IS NOT in the off position. Nobody ever said it was "

No, that's true but what you actually said is " I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. "

That is completely wrong. You did not qualify your post with exactly what was happening, and I don't have a crystal ball.

You said " It was an auto electrician that sussed the lights for me "

Nowhere did you say he was a caravan engineer,,,,yet again a serious lack of information, and no mention of what kind of "caravan engineer" he is, like what qualifications or membership of a trade body.

Quote " For your information, he is a caravan engineer and didnt change anything just told me what i needed so nothing has been touched at all. So how the hell is the problem me???? We havent done a thing other than found a burnt out fuse

Yet on another thread you say:
Quote " I have since put a switch on the back lights in the bedroom and a seperate switch on all the front lights from the main switch. As long as i leave the main light switch on i can now use all front n backs seperatly.

And also " I got answers off another forum. Found out where all the wires were and did it within half an hr. Now its a lot easier for us and the kids. "

Yet again misleading information.

And Quote" Oh sorry. The only thing weve had done since buying the caravan is have a motor mover fitted "

But that is contrary to earlier posts about what you have done,see above

And lastly Quote " online but no answer i see. Got all your facts wrong i see."

Just because I appear to be on line does not mean that I am sitting here all day and night.
As far as facts go, it seems to me that you have provided such inaccurate information it is almost impossible to make any sense out of the contradictory information.

The reason for no answer earlier on is that I was busy on site helping people with faults on their vans, which is where I am most days, and quite often well into the evening, so don't assume !!!!

At the end of the day my advice which I gave earlier is the same, and that is "If you don't know how to do something DONT TOUCH IT !!!

One late last thought:
You say " but no need for damien to blast people like that on a public forum."

When it comes to safety , not only for you but also for your family and anyone who happens to be close to your van when it all goes wrong, there is every need to blast people on a public forum and I will always do so if needed.
You may not like what I say but I believe in very straight talking, not fluffing it up in cotton wool or being particularly PC, that approach does not work and sometimes people need to appreciate that they should not do certain things that they have no working knowledge of , particularly those things that can easily turn very nasty.
 
Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
Guzzilazz said:
It's also not clear whether you've just "burnt out" a single fuse, or the whole fuse box has melted... The former is a relatively straightforward thing to diagnose (switch everything on that fuse off, replace the fuse then turn on devices one at a time until the fuse blows, the last thing turned on is the problem) the latter even as a reasonably competent amateur 12V electrician, I wouldn't even start to diagnose, because of the potential to set the van on fire. Although 12 V won't kill you by a shock, in order to get the same power output as 240V, the current has to be twenty times higher!!!!

It's dead easy to do something "accidental" with 12V which will result in insulation melting at the least... There's a joke, that one of the issues with 12V is it's easy to "let the smoke out of the wires" but difficult to get it back in again!
its just the one fuse. The one that states batt+ .
 
Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
Damian-Moderator said:
To answer some of the comments from earlier on:
Quote " The main RCD IS NOT in the off position. Nobody ever said it was "

No, that's true but what you actually said is " I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. "

That is completely wrong. You did not qualify your post with exactly what was happening, and I don't have a crystal ball.

You said " It was an auto electrician that sussed the lights for me "

Nowhere did you say he was a caravan engineer,,,,yet again a serious lack of information, and no mention of what kind of "caravan engineer" he is, like what qualifications or membership of a trade body.

Quote " For your information, he is a caravan engineer and didnt change anything just told me what i needed so nothing has been touched at all. So how the hell is the problem me???? We havent done a thing other than found a burnt out fuse

Yet on another thread you say:
Quote " I have since put a switch on the back lights in the bedroom and a seperate switch on all the front lights from the main switch. As long as i leave the main light switch on i can now use all front n backs seperatly.

And also " I got answers off another forum. Found out where all the wires were and did it within half an hr. Now its a lot easier for us and the kids. "

Yet again misleading information.

And Quote" Oh sorry. The only thing weve had done since buying the caravan is have a motor mover fitted "

But that is contrary to earlier posts about what you have done,see above

And lastly Quote " online but no answer i see. Got all your facts wrong i see."

Just because I appear to be on line does not mean that I am sitting here all day and night.
As far as facts go, it seems to me that you have provided such inaccurate information it is almost impossible to make any sense out of the contradictory information.

The reason for no answer earlier on is that I was busy on site helping people with faults on their vans, which is where I am most days, and quite often well into the evening, so don't assume !!!!

At the end of the day my advice which I gave earlier is the same, and that is "If you don't know how to do something DONT TOUCH IT !!!
and as i said, i havent touched anything. Nothing has been done by me and the mover was fitted by towsure themselves on wednesday gone. As said many times, i dont know anything about electrics which is why i was asking for advice on what the problem could be n all i get from you is DONT TOUCH. My other posts were nothing to do with this one and wernt even about this caravan and were not put up by me but by a friend who asked to use my account as he has no pc of his own. I never asked you to bring them posts into it. You just assumed. I didnt contradict anything in this initial post (my 1st question) at all, i just didnt use the right terminology as im no electrician. One simple question n you turn it into a lecture. If you like helping people then help them and stick to the question they asked. dont assume all posts are related. And i have no idea what sort of caravan engineer he is and why would i even ask him that. I just know what he did for a living.
 
Nov 11, 2009
20,100
6,131
50,935
Visit site
Tommy2704 said:
Damian-Moderator said:
To answer some of the comments from earlier on:
Quote " The main RCD IS NOT in the off position. Nobody ever said it was "

No, that's true but what you actually said is " I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. "

That is completely wrong. You did not qualify your post with exactly what was happening, and I don't have a crystal ball.

You said " It was an auto electrician that sussed the lights for me "

Nowhere did you say he was a caravan engineer,,,,yet again a serious lack of information, and no mention of what kind of "caravan engineer" he is, like what qualifications or membership of a trade body.

Quote " For your information, he is a caravan engineer and didnt change anything just told me what i needed so nothing has been touched at all. So how the hell is the problem me???? We havent done a thing other than found a burnt out fuse

Yet on another thread you say:
Quote " I have since put a switch on the back lights in the bedroom and a seperate switch on all the front lights from the main switch. As long as i leave the main light switch on i can now use all front n backs seperatly.

And also " I got answers off another forum. Found out where all the wires were and did it within half an hr. Now its a lot easier for us and the kids. "

Yet again misleading information.

And Quote" Oh sorry. The only thing weve had done since buying the caravan is have a motor mover fitted "

But that is contrary to earlier posts about what you have done,see above

And lastly Quote " online but no answer i see. Got all your facts wrong i see."

Just because I appear to be on line does not mean that I am sitting here all day and night.
As far as facts go, it seems to me that you have provided such inaccurate information it is almost impossible to make any sense out of the contradictory information.

The reason for no answer earlier on is that I was busy on site helping people with faults on their vans, which is where I am most days, and quite often well into the evening, so don't assume !!!!

At the end of the day my advice which I gave earlier is the same, and that is "If you don't know how to do something DONT TOUCH IT !!!
and as i said, i havent touched anything. Nothing has been done by me and the mover was fitted by towsure themselves on wednesday gone. As said many times, i dont know anything about electrics which is why i was asking for advice on what the problem could be n all i get from you is DONT TOUCH. My other posts were nothing to do with this one and wernt even about this caravan and were not put up by me but by a friend who asked to use my account as he has no pc of his own. I never asked you to bring them posts into it. You just assumed. I didnt contradict anything in this initial post (my 1st question) at all, i just didnt use the right terminology as im no electrician. One simple question n you turn it into a lecture. If you like helping people then help them and stick to the question they asked. dont assume all posts are related. And i have no idea what sort of caravan engineer he is and why would i even ask him that. I just know what he did for a living.

It’s not surprising is it that confusion reigns if you allow a friend to use your Username. How do you expect responders to know that you’ve let someone else post using your Username. Plain stupid if you ask me.
 
Aug 18, 2019
20
0
0
Visit site
otherclive said:
Tommy2704 said:
Damian-Moderator said:
To answer some of the comments from earlier on:
Quote " The main RCD IS NOT in the off position. Nobody ever said it was "

No, that's true but what you actually said is " I have since been told that all the plug sockets will work without main switch on when the caravan is plugged into the mains. "

That is completely wrong. You did not qualify your post with exactly what was happening, and I don't have a crystal ball.

You said " It was an auto electrician that sussed the lights for me "

Nowhere did you say he was a caravan engineer,,,,yet again a serious lack of information, and no mention of what kind of "caravan engineer" he is, like what qualifications or membership of a trade body.

Quote " For your information, he is a caravan engineer and didnt change anything just told me what i needed so nothing has been touched at all. So how the hell is the problem me???? We havent done a thing other than found a burnt out fuse

Yet on another thread you say:
Quote " I have since put a switch on the back lights in the bedroom and a seperate switch on all the front lights from the main switch. As long as i leave the main light switch on i can now use all front n backs seperatly.

And also " I got answers off another forum. Found out where all the wires were and did it within half an hr. Now its a lot easier for us and the kids. "

Yet again misleading information.

And Quote" Oh sorry. The only thing weve had done since buying the caravan is have a motor mover fitted "

But that is contrary to earlier posts about what you have done,see above

And lastly Quote " online but no answer i see. Got all your facts wrong i see."

Just because I appear to be on line does not mean that I am sitting here all day and night.
As far as facts go, it seems to me that you have provided such inaccurate information it is almost impossible to make any sense out of the contradictory information.

The reason for no answer earlier on is that I was busy on site helping people with faults on their vans, which is where I am most days, and quite often well into the evening, so don't assume !!!!

At the end of the day my advice which I gave earlier is the same, and that is "If you don't know how to do something DONT TOUCH IT !!!
and as i said, i havent touched anything. Nothing has been done by me and the mover was fitted by towsure themselves on wednesday gone. As said many times, i dont know anything about electrics which is why i was asking for advice on what the problem could be n all i get from you is DONT TOUCH. My other posts were nothing to do with this one and wernt even about this caravan and were not put up by me but by a friend who asked to use my account as he has no pc of his own. I never asked you to bring them posts into it. You just assumed. I didnt contradict anything in this initial post (my 1st question) at all, i just didnt use the right terminology as im no electrician. One simple question n you turn it into a lecture. If you like helping people then help them and stick to the question they asked. dont assume all posts are related. And i have no idea what sort of caravan engineer he is and why would i even ask him that. I just know what he did for a living.

It’s not surprising is it that confusion reigns if you allow a friend to use your Username. How do you expect responders to know that you’ve let someone else post using your Username. Plain stupid if you ask me.

Moderator Note: Extremely rude reply to otherclives post above removed.
Poster will have to get information from elsewhere in future as he is banned from the site.
 

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts