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Old 04-01-2015, 08:25 PM   #1
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Name: Tim
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Exclamation Fuse Blows When Towing

Hello,
For my 17' Boler, whenever I tow it, the fuse immediately off the battery blows. Now I have seen fuses put there before, and the vehicle we tow with was already set up for towing so I assume that isn't the problem. I had a 15 amp and then even put in a 20 amp (probably not the best idea) and it blew too. I can't imagine why the power coming from the vehicle to charge the battery would be so much to blow the fuse.

I had it it only a short time when the previous own wired in a lighter receptacle that burnt the wires from the battery back!! Which is why I put in the fuse in the first place.

Any thoughts welcome.

Thanks in advance!
Tim
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Old 04-01-2015, 10:54 PM   #2
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Depending on the wire size. My guess is that a 20 amp fuse is the correct size. Now possible reason it's blowing when towing. Best guess is that the battery has a bad cell and the tow is attempting to charge up to normal values. I suggest taking the trailer battery to a battery store that can test it properly.
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Old 04-02-2015, 12:32 AM   #3
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Would the vehicle have a mechanism to measure if it was bringing the battery up to normal values?
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Old 04-02-2015, 03:48 AM   #4
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Does the charge line have a circuit breaker? If not or if it's shorted then the trailer battery could be providing current to start the tow vehicle. Without the circuit breaker the next protection on the charge line is the fuse. Raz
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Old 04-02-2015, 03:56 AM   #5
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I don't think there is a circuit breaker at all. I think a line comes straight from the plug of the tow vehicle and to the battery. I don't really need the battery to be charged that way so may just disconnect it.
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Old 04-02-2015, 04:05 AM   #6
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Typically there is a circuit breaker installed at the tow vehicle battery. Thirty - 40 amps is common. Raz
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Old 04-02-2015, 06:12 AM   #7
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If you continue to blow the fuse you have a direct short in that charge circuit. I would encourage you to have someone familiar with dc voltage check it. Leaving it unattended could possibly start a fire. If you have an RV or automotive shop you trust they can do it.


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Old 04-02-2015, 06:23 AM   #8
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try removing the fuse and momentarily replace with an ammeter . hook up the trailer , and have someone start the TV while you watch the meter . it will suprise you how much amperage the trailer will draw ( 30-50 amps ) . replace the 20 amp fuse with a 50 amp self reseting breaker . enlarge the charge wire to 8 or 10 gauge . also add a battery isolator . if this doesn't fix the problem start looking for a short in the system . Good Luck
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Old 04-02-2015, 06:53 AM   #9
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Disconnect the trailer battery and then plug the trailer into the tow vehicle and see if the trailer fuse blows (eliminating battery as source of problems). I agree with Raz in that there is normally a 30 or 40 amp over current device in the TV to protect the TV's wiring and a 20 or 30 amp fuse at the trailer to protect the trailers wiring. Considering your experience with the PO' s wiring ,I would look at anything he touched first .
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Old 04-02-2015, 09:19 AM   #10
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We had a towing package on our van for years and had no problems. Then we bought our Trillium and had the van wired for the brakes on the trillium. All of a sudden we were blowing our four-ways every time we hooked up. turned out the mechanic who wired for the brakes disconnected the ground wire.
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Old 04-02-2015, 10:05 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jcstanley View Post
try removing the fuse and momentarily replace with an ammeter . hook up the trailer , and have someone start the TV while you watch the meter . it will suprise you how much amperage the trailer will draw ( 30-50 amps ) . replace the 20 amp fuse with a 50 amp self reseting breaker . enlarge the charge wire to 8 or 10 gauge . also add a battery isolator . if this doesn't fix the problem start looking for a short in the system . Good Luck
WARNING WARNING...... Going to much larger fuse could result in burning up the tow vehicle. DO NOT go any larger than a 20 amp fuse.
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Old 04-02-2015, 12:10 PM   #12
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the fuse Tim is blowing is the charge circuit fuse . it will NOT affect the trailer , because it is only supplying a charge to the trailer battery .
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Old 04-02-2015, 12:31 PM   #13
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Cool We need all the info

JC gave us some more info, but WHEN is the fuse blowing? If it only blows when moving, you may have an insulation problem somewhere. If it blows immediately upon starting the tow vehicle, you still could have insulation problem, but maybe a crossed wire.
I found, with a problem I had with the directional signal lights, that trailers have hot wires going to all the things, turning them on and off by connecting to ground, (I think), because everything had a black wire and black wire in home wiring means hot.
Electrical things can be frustrating. They go together fine until you turn on the power and then interesting things can happen. LOL

BTW: Automotive batteries are designed to provide LOTS of amperage. That is how they start the engine. If you didn't have a fuse, there is ample amps to melt a wire at any weak spot along it.
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Old 04-02-2015, 04:20 PM   #14
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Sometimes you will have an intermittent ground or short in a wiring system
( Branch Circuit) that is difficult to locate . One of the ways to find the problem is to disconnect the load ,isolate the branch circuit or feeder conductors and hook the wires up to a large amperage breaker . The short or ground will either blow themselves clear or do enough damage to allow you to find the problem . An other method is to apply a megger to the circuit conductors to find a short or ground .Meggers impose 500/1000 volts on the conductors. High impedance shorts or grounds will often not show up on an ohm meter because only 9 VDC is being applied to the circuit. It still sounds to me that something is miswired.
Mr .Stanley was headed in the right direction
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Old 04-03-2015, 12:59 AM   #15
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Talking Good analysis

Steve gave good advice.

This illustrates a principle I think is good to follow: INTOW

I Never Trust Other's Work.
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Old 04-03-2015, 01:13 AM   #16
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Hmmm I may have given inaccurate info then. The only reason I know the fuse is blown is that I have no power to the trailer. But when the tow vehicle is disconnected it doesn't blow. Only when I hook up, drive, then disconnect and go to use power in the trailer, nothing will work. I think having a RV tech look at it is my best bet. I swear after the line burned back from the previous owners wiring nightmare that I only took out the portion going to the lighter receptacle and then put the inline fuse coming off the battery.
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Old 04-03-2015, 03:26 AM   #17
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I would suggest that replacing the fuse with an ammeter and starting the tow vehicle could destroy the meter. Most DMM's have 10-20 amp maximums and are not fused.

I would be surprised if the charge line is shorted but a simple voltage measurement at the 7 pin charge line contacts on the tow vehicle will tell you. You can't have a voltage across a short.

Tim, did you get the battery tested? Is there a breaker in the charge line at the tow vehicle battery? Raz
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Old 04-03-2015, 03:30 AM   #18
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I haven't had the battery tested. It's still in storage (but not for much longer!!) I haven't seen a breaker or fuse in the charge line unless it is hidden somewhere in the tow vehicle. Definitely need to do some more investigation and follow the lines to see where they go.
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Old 04-03-2015, 03:40 AM   #19
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Did you have the vehicle wired or was it wired from the factory?
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Old 04-03-2015, 03:45 AM   #20
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I think the previous owner did a fair amount of "tinkering" And I did some myself after it burnt up from the battery to inside the cabin. But all I did was replace the burnt sections and put the inline fuse to hopefully prevent it from happening again.
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