Swift Major 6 Interior Lights Electrical issue

[Craigyoung]

Hi ,
don't know how long ago this topic was posted but we have recently bought a Sprite Major 6TD in may and have been out in it in the last few months and our lights do not flash when the water pump is coming up to the pressure !!!

 

[WoodlandsCamper]

don't know how long ago this topic was posted

3 weeks and 1 day

 

[Howzatt]

Just an idea, but I'm thinking could be back emf not being suppressed from the pump motor as it stops. The first thing I would do is to try another pump if you can, could be just a faulty pump.

 

[Maz23]

Just had confirmation from swift that its a known fault and its to do with the pump! but they say to ring sargent as they have developed a part to stop this happening. I think its just a noise suppressor that needs to be fitted in somewhere.

 

[Martin24]

Glad it's sorted. :cheer:
Just a shame that they aren't getting in touch with sergeant and organising it for you. Just a little more customer service would go a long way. Dealers should also be informed of such a fault so it can be dealt with quickly and easily from the start

 

[StevieRuss]

Just an idea, but I'm thinking could be back emf not being suppressed from the pump motor as it stops. The first thing I would do is to try another pump if you can, could be just a faulty pump.

I suspect you hit the nail on the head!

 

[Icaru5]

Just got back from a 2 week stay in France, and despite having previously already replied to this thread stating that my Siena 6 TD (Dealer special of Sprite Major 6 TD) doesn’t do this, I can confirm that it does Not a every time a tap is closed, but I would say around 50% of the time.

However, I’m not remotely concerned and although I haven’t had the chance to investigate, I expect it to be as Howzatt says. There’s a slight change in tone of the pump just before it stops, as it is subject to an increased load, after which the pump abruptly stops and there is a very brief flash of the LED lighting strips above the kitchen units and those above the units in the rear.

I’m not familiar with the design of this particular pump, but am now considering the possibility that after closing a tap, once the pump has re-pressurised the system, the 12v feed Is removed, and then the pressure within the system is causing the pumps impeller to momentarily spin the opposite way ? - as since the +12V feed to these LED’s is physically switched, it is impossible they they are receiving power through the 12V supply, and so my suspicion is that when this occurs, the pump is somehow introducing a small back emf on the -‘ve (or 0V) rail which is enough to cause a momentary illumination of the LED’s.

I will put my fluke meter across the terminals of one of the LED’s when I can find their time and will report back. I’m guessing that this has only become an issue with the later models of van with the LED lights.

I really hadn’t noticed this previously as during daylight it’s not easy to spot. It only came to my attention after my son used the bathroom tap during the night. Coincidentally, I hadn’t previously noticed the change in tone of the pump which occurs a couple of seconds after switching the tap off.

I really am not concerned about this, and if it is as above, If it does ever end up bothering me, I will just put a diode in the 0V (or -‘ve) connection to the pump.

 

[Zakspeed]

Hi
I have a new sprite quatro eb and the end bedroom lights flash on when the bathroom tap is switched off. My dealer is going to give me a ring about this next week. I will keep you posted on what there reply is

 

[Dustydog]

Hi
I have a new sprite quatro eb and the end bedroom lights flash on when the bathroom tap is switched off. My dealer is going to give me a ring about this next week. I will keep you posted on what there reply is

Zak
Something is not quite right. Don’t be fobbed off. Probaly simple like a poor earth.
Please tell us what happens

 

[Craigyoung]

Hi Zack,
have a stroll down the topics and look for the topic titled "flickering lights" and have a read through that .

Craig .

 

[xtrailman]

Sargent have provided a varistor to connect across the pump for some owners.
Or you could fit a reverse bias diode across the pump, or even a R/C network (snubber).

 

[Zakspeed]

Hi
Had a reply from Wandahome south cave and they have ordered a MOV pump suppressor from Swift and said this will cure my flashing light problem. Hope this helps
Cheers Zak

 

[Craigyoung]

That's what mine is getting done next Wednesday fingers crossed it cures the problem

 

[CustardAvenger]

That's what mine is getting done next Wednesday fingers crossed it cures the problem

Hi Craig, Zak,

Did the 'MOV pump suppressor' cure the flickering lights issue?

I have just returned from the inaugural tour with my new Sprite, (A surprisingly dry week in Dorset) and have the same problem with lights; the LED strips above cupboards, flicker when the inboard water pump (Which sounds like a pneumatic breaker) is active. I have a few other snagging issues which need to be reported to the dealer so I wanted to be clued up before I called them.

Thanks,
Paul.

 

[Craigyoung]

Hi Zak , or Paul ?
It was booked into have it done but canceled it due to not being able to get the van there so it is yet to be done . Sorry !!

 

[otherclive]

That's what mine is getting done next Wednesday fingers crossed it cures the problem

Hi Craig, Zak,

Did the 'MOV pump suppressor' cure the flickering lights issue?

I have just returned from the inaugural tour with my new Sprite, (A surprisingly dry week in Dorset) and have the same problem with lights; the LED strips above cupboards, flicker when the inboard water pump (Which sounds like a pneumatic breaker) is active. I have a few other snagging issues which need to be reported to the dealer so I wanted to be clued up before I called them.

Thanks,
Paul.

I don’t have a problem with the flickering lights issue, but as you say that inboard water pump is something else. Putting it under a bed only exacerbates the problem especially if someone runs a tap to wash hands at night. Bring back the external submersible pump.

 

[CustardAvenger]

Hi Zak , or Paul ?
It was booked into have it done but canceled it due to not being able to get the van there so it is yet to be done . Sorry !!

Hi Craig... Thanks for the response... I was aiming the question at both yourself and Zak(speed). Sorry for confusion.

 

[CustardAvenger]

I don’t have a problem with the flickering lights issue, but as you say that inboard water pump is something else. Putting it under a bed only exacerbates the problem especially if someone runs a tap to wash hands at night. Bring back the external submersible pump.

I'm going to see if the dealer will do anything about the pump... but I think the built in machine gun sound generator is a permanent feature.

 

[Craigyoung]

We had the same problem on ours where is if I put the pump on it sound like a machine gun under the my wifes head where she lies so we took ours back and they put some kind of rubber fitting under the pump area which did silence it quite a bit .

 

[CustardAvenger]

We had the same problem on ours where is if I put the pump on it sound like a machine gun under the my wifes head where she lies so we took ours back and they put some kind of rubber fitting under the pump area which did silence it quite a bit .

I think I saw a similar workaround mentioned somewhere else... hopefully they can do the same.

 

[Leewurf]

Has anyone got an update on the fix for this? My new Quattro FB has the flickering lights issue and although it is new/under warranty I have little to no faith in the dealer to sort this out. Just to clarify - the LED strips above the cupboards flash briefly once when the water pump stops. Not a huge problem but its another small one to add the the list.
1 - no radio reception. 12v supply to the AM amp in the mast itself wasn't connected to anything so was (according to the helpful technician from the aerial manufacturer) blocking the FM/DAB output. Found it hanging behind the trim panel in the back corner of the cupboard.
2 - when unlocking the front locker one of the barrels comes out on the end of the key, a bit of delicate filing required.
3 - hinges under front bench seat completely bent and broken. Replacements purchased from screwfix for £6.
4- one of the blackout blinds will only latch on one side or the other, never both. Needs runner adjusting.
5 - the aforementioned flashing lights.
6 - 2 oclock in the morning alarm telling me the tank level is low... What tank level?
7 - additional 2 am alarm telling me I have "fridge error 12". Still not identified that one yet.

This is in addition to the van not being ready to collect at the pre-arranged time. External socket we had asked for not fitted and when we took it back at the pre arranged time to get that done we were greeted with blank looks all round.

 

[ProfJohnL]

Has anyone got an update on the fix for this? My new Quattro FB has the flickering lights issue and although it is new/under warranty I have little to no faith in the dealer to sort this out. Just to clarify - the LED strips above the cupboards flash briefly once when the water pump stops. Not a huge problem but its another small one to add the the list.
1 - no radio reception. 12v supply to the AM amp in the mast itself wasn't connected to anything so was (according to the helpful technician from the aerial manufacturer) blocking the FM/DAB output. Found it hanging behind the trim panel in the back corner of the cupboard.
2 - when unlocking the front locker one of the barrels comes out on the end of the key, a bit of delicate filing required.
3 - hinges under front bench seat completely bent and broken. Replacements purchased from screwfix for £6.
4- one of the blackout blinds will only latch on one side or the other, never both. Needs runner adjusting.
5 - the aforementioned flashing lights.
6 - 2 oclock in the morning alarm telling me the tank level is low... What tank level?
7 - additional 2 am alarm telling me I have "fridge error 12". Still not identified that one yet.

This is in addition to the van not being ready to collect at the pre-arranged time. External socket we had asked for not fitted and when we took it back at the pre arranged time to get that done we were greeted with blank looks all round.

If the caravan is that new, and the dealer is as incompetent as you suspect, I suggest your best course of action is to thoroughly read up about the Consumer rights Act 2015, then consider if you feel you want to reject the caravan and get your money back.

 

[Thingy]

2 oclock in the morning alarm telling me the tank level is low... What tank level?

Do you have the Alde wet heating system. If so, check in your control panel for the antimicrobial setting, which operates at 0200 hrs daily if turned on. As this is set to heat the water in the tank, it could be that triggering a false alarm.

 

[Leewurf]

Dont get me wrong, we love the caravan and I have a lack of trust/respect for tradesmen in general which spills over into me preferring to fix these problems myself.
A friend had a string of much more serious problems with his new caravan (from a different dealer) and went down the route of demanding his money back. Even with 'consumer rights' on his side it was still a very long and stressful process.
Have just received an email from dometic with the manual for my fridge attached and a list of error codes, their meanings and possible solutions.

 

[Leewurf]

2 oclock in the morning alarm telling me the tank level is low... What tank level?

Do you have the Alde wet heating system. If so, check in your control panel for the antimicrobial setting, which operates at 0200 hrs daily if turned on. As this is set to heat the water in the tank, it could be that triggering a false alarm.

I have the Truma hot water system. From what I can tell the tank level monitoring is more suited to caravans/motorhomes with on-board water and waste tanks so shouldn't even be active in my case. I managed to disable the tank monitoring in the settings. I did speculate that these alarms sounding in the middle of the night might be related to some remote access software update type activity going on but thats just a theory.