Power keeps tripping

[ScouseIan]

Hello

I'm currently working away from home, staying in my caravan mon-fri down essex way. I returned home for the first time last friday after placing my caravan on-site. So I hadn't stayed there yet, just placed my caravan and 'hooked up' the electric so the fridge would work. When I returned tuesday night, the electric had tripped at some point in between and everything in fridge/freezer was ruined. Not too much really though. Anyway I thought maybe it had been switched off by site people as I was not there. I asked and it had not been. When I returned yesterday to the caravan it had gone again. Each time all I had on was the fridge so I could not have overloaded it.

I have spoken to the site who have checked the bollard all ok. Has anybody any suggestions on what to do next?

I did have a problem last month whereby my battery was completely dischared. Turned out to be a fuse blown which I have now replaced (mental note to self to replace again with correct rating fuse).

Don't want to switch to gas fridge in case it goes out whilst I am away. At least I can get the site to check the electric over the weekend and during the day.

Ian

 

[Parksy]

Are you sure that nobody has turned off your electric hook up while you've been at work?

If the site management hasn't turned it off there might be a 'public spirited' eco warrior on the site who has taken it upon himself to save the planet by meddlng with your hook up.

If that's definitely not the case the first thing to check is your ehu lead. A break in the cable or a loose connection at either end would trip the bollard.

If that's not causing the problem check the connections behind the 240v socket which your ehu lead plugs into. If there are no loose connections check for signs of damp.

Was the rcd on the consumer unit inside your caravan tripped Ian?

If not it suggests to me that the fault lies between the site bollard and the consumer unit with the ehu lead being the prime suspect.

 

[ScouseIan]

1. I will never know if an 'eco warrior' is switching it off. Its not staff apparently, anyway.

2. I'll check the EHU lead for signs of damage.

3. So, behind the EHU socket in the van is a 240v socket? ok, I'll have a little look there, but the vans only 2 years old so I wouldn't expect a problem.

4. The rcd in the van was NOT tripped.

5. Will change to a different EHU socket on the bollard to see if that helps.

On the bollard, there are 3 identical trip switches and two smaller ones. But, there are only 2 sockets so I'm not sure what they are all for?

Thanks

Ian

 

[forestgump]

can you leave fridge of all day but still be pluged in.then if its tripped when you come there is no other reason than some one beeing a div.(try this with a change of ehu lead).

 

[Parksy]

'3. So, behind the EHU socket in the van is a 240v socket? ok, I'll have a little look there, but the vans only 2 years old so I wouldn't expect a problem.'

No Ian, the ehu socket is the 240v 'socket' that I was referring to. What I was trying to say was if the ehu lead is ok check back from the ehu socket to the consumer unit.

 

[ScouseIan]

Sorry Parksy, I did understand you.

Tripped again when I got back yesterday.

I have my EHU lead still wrapped round the reel and I was advised this morning that this could be generating heat causing the problem during the day. So I've done that.

The EHU lead looks fine on inspection last night.

I've changed to a different socket on the same bollard so I will see what happens by monday.

Ian

 

[Garfield]

We did have a problem with a much older caravan where the fridge developed an earth leakage fault that kept tripping the RCD, Although most RCD's you will come across on caravans and posts will be a 30milliamp trip current, the actual current they trip at, varies very slightly, so a fault in the caravan could trip the post without tripping the caravan.

Also you could turn the fridge off, but this probably will be a single pole switch on the live wire, if there is a fault between the fridge element and earth, there will still be a connection between earth and neutral which can still trip an RCD even with the live switched off!.

Try turning your caravan RCD off as this will be a double pole device that cuts both live and neutral and run the fridge on gas if you need it. If the post still trips, it means that the problem is almost certainly in the wiring (EHU etc) between the two RCD's, if the post stops tripping, then the problem lies within your caravan.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Ian,

Its not a good idea to keep the EHU wrapped up on a reel, when using it. It can easily begin to over heat, so uncoil it completely.

The effect of coiling and it heating up will not affect the RCD, unless it gets so hot it begins to melt

 

[ScouseIan]

Reel is now unfurled.

I shall inspect status later today

 

[ScouseIan]

All sorted. It was either the bollard or the fact that the cable wound up caused it to trip (although I would have thought that would have been mostly a problem when I was using most appliances).

Ian

 

[Steve L]

Hi Ian.

Glad you tracked the issue down to the EHU lead being wound on the roll. However I would replace the lead asap as if it has heated up enough to trip the electric, the insulation properties have been compromised.

Basically a coiled lead acts in a simlar way to a transformer. In doing so it generates heat which affects the insulation.

As your lead has been tripping, I would replace it to avoid future problems in Rain or winter frost & snow.

As a new one is only about