Resolved Inverter Fault Light Blinking

[BigRig]

New Ventana 4037 owner. Left RV without shore power for 3 weeks after relocating to new concrete pad in back yard. Appears that the house batteries have run down as nothing in the coach works. Plugged in shore power last night (110 using "dog bone"). The inverter monitor in flashing fault (it's a red flashing light - the photo is misleading). Initial research appears to indicate the inverter needs to have a "soft reset." Just wanted a second opinion from someone who may have experienced the same issue. Thanks!
Update: Following the Magnum Inverter owner's manual instructions, I tried to perform as "soft rest." Disconnected AC power then pressed & held the ON/OFF button. Based on the instruction the Status LED should flash. That did not occur.
Also to be clear, when plugged into shore power (only have 110 available using "dog bone" at current location) there is still no electrical power in the coach. Any assistance is appreciated.

 

[BigRig]

New Ventana 4037 owner. Left RV without shore power for 3 weeks after relocating to new concrete pad in back yard. Appears that the house batteries have run down as nothing in the coach works. Plugged in shore power last night (110 using "dog bone"). The inverter monitor in flashing fault (it's a red flashing light - the photo is misleading). Initial research appears to indicate the inverter needs to have a "soft reset." Just wanted a second opinion from someone who may have experienced the same issue. Thanks!
Update: Following the Magnum Inverter owner's manual instructions, I tried to perform as "soft rest." Disconnected AC power then pressed & held the ON/OFF button. Based on the instruction the Status LED should flash. That did not occur.
Also to be clear, when plugged into shore power (only have 110 available using "dog bone" at current location) there is still no electrical power in the coach. Any assistance is appreciated. 

 

[Richpatty]

2.6 v is really low….so your batteries are really dead…and the charger may not be able to charge them. If they are really down to 2.6v, they may no longer be any good. Maybe put a trickle charger on them?
Keep us posted.

 

[BigRig]

2.6 v is really low….so your batteries are really dead…and the charger may not be able to charge them. If they are really down to 2.6v, they may no longer be any good. Maybe put a trickle charger on them?
Keep us posted.

I have a 12 volt trickle charger but was not real sure where to attach the charging cables as there are 6 each 6 volt batteries. Would running the generator be an option to charge the batteries?

 

[Richpatty]

Most trickle charges will figure out the voltage…if it is dual voltage (mine is), and I usually hook it up to the positive on one end of the battery bank and the negative of the other. If it is 8 batteries, it could take a long time….

It may see it as 12v batteries as they are paired that way.

Running from generator won’t make any difference as you are still using the same charger (Magnum) either way.

 

[lostinfla]

I believe you should have the ac power on to perform a soft reset. It works on mine, but I have other problems with it also.

 

[BigRig]

Most trickle charges will figure out the voltage…if it is dual voltage (mine is), and I usually hook it up to the positive on one end of the battery bank and the negative of the other. If it is 8 batteries, it could take a long time….

It may see it as 12v batteries as they are paired that way.

Running from generator won’t make any difference as you are still using the same charger (Magnum) either way.

Thanks so much for replying. I really appreciate it. Sometimes those little nuggets of knowledge shared produce success when combined. Kind of like "the sum of the parts are greater than the whole" (Synergy). So like you letting me know trying the generator would be of no consequence as it utilizes the inverter/charger also. Not out of the woods yet, but we may have made some progress. Long story short, I needed to reposition the RV on it's slab to get a cargo trailer on the slab also. Not sure which one of these operations made the difference, but here's the steps. 1. I unplugged the shore power (which I done a couple of times so that's probably not part of the progress). 2. Started the RV and backed up a bit. 3. Opened the door to check position and the electric steps extended (they were not previously moving nor was any other electric devise like lighting). 4. Flipped a couple of light switches and we had lights! Looked at the Inverter Monitor and all the lights were off but it said something like "charging at 12.9V" (did not take a photo and do not recall exactly what it said). Figured it was reporting chassis battery (but that may not be a reasonable assumption since I am guessing the Inverter Monitor is not actually monitoring the alternator output). 5. Plugged the shore power back in pushed the inverter on/off button and got green lights on power & charge. 6. Checked house batteries with voltmeter and got 6.5V across single battery and 13.3V across a "paired" set. (Which tells me where to hook up a 12V charger, if needed. Mine charger is old and 12V only. Do not think there is anything "smart" about it. Please see attached photos. So currently it's still running (do not want to change anything while it appears to be taking the house batteries back up. Thoughts?

 

[BigRig]

I believe you should have the ac power on to perform a soft reset. It works on mine, but I have other problems with it also.

Thanks for the response. Kind of makes sense, but both the Magnum Inverter and Magnum Monitor Owner's Manual says to disconnect AC power. Someone also posted the "soft reset" steps and emphasized disconnecting AC power. He said "ask me how I know." Sounds like he may have found out the hard way.

Not sure if you can see my reply to Richpatty, but making some progress. Here it is.

Thanks so much for replying. I really appreciate it. Sometimes those little nuggets of knowledge shared produce success when combined. Kind of like "the sum of the parts are greater than the whole" (Synergy). So like you letting me know trying the generator would be of no consequence as it utilizes the inverter/charger also. Not out of the woods yet, but we may have made some progress. Long story short, I needed to reposition the RV on it's slab to get a cargo trailer on the slab also. Not sure which one of these operations made the difference, but here's the steps. 1. I unplugged the shore power (which I done a couple of times so that's probably not part of the progress). 2. Started the RV and backed up a bit. 3. Opened the door to check position and the electric steps extended (they were not previously moving nor was any other electric devise like lighting). 4. Flipped a couple of light switches and we had lights! Looked at the Inverter Monitor, and all the lights were off, but it said something like "charging at 12.9V" (did not take a photo and do not recall exactly what it said). Figured it was reporting chassis battery (but that may not be a reasonable assumption since I am guessing the Inverter Monitor is not actually monitoring the alternator output). 5. Plugged the shore power back in pushed the inverter on/off button and got green lights on power & charge. 6. Checked house batteries with voltmeter and got 6.5V across single battery and 13.3V across a "paired" set. (Which tells me where to hook up a 12V charger, if needed. Mine charger is old and 12V only. Do not think there is anything "smart" about it. Please see attached photos. So currently it's still running (do not want to change anything while it appears to be taking the house batteries back up. Thoughts?

 

[Richpatty]

It sounds like starting the engines helped…which kinda makes sense as the alternator will charge the batteries…and maybe they got enough charge to allow the charger to start charging.

I would think that it should be Bulk charging…instead of float, so that is puzzling…. Let it charge for awhile and see how it goes.

 

[BigRig]

Rich,
Thanks for all the help. I'll keep an eye on it and follow up with an update.

I think I read something about the going into "float charge" mode when batteries are way down, so they are brought back up slow. But I have read so much "stuff" today that may not be correct. Don't take that on to the back!

 

[NWIP]

I think the chassis batteries have a minimum voltage (11.7 comes to mind) to close a relay allowing the house batteries to charge. When you started engine to reposition coach alternator may have charged chassis batteries enough to close the relay. Glad things are charging and you have 12v lighting.

 

[BigRig]

I think the chassis batteries have a minimum voltage (11.7 comes to mind) to close a relay allowing the house batteries to charge. When you started engine to reposition coach alternator may have charged chassis batteries enough to close the relay. Glad things are charging and you have 12v lighting.

Thanks!! It was a bit nerve racking situation. And I am going to say it was my own fault for not hooking up to shore power. I installed a 50-amp connection in my garage, so when the RV was first in the driveway all was good. When I added the concrete slab in the back of the house to get it behind the privacy fence, all I had was a 110V available. But it worked fine. The 50 amp connection is in the works, it's just the trenching is slow going. In any event the last time I moved the RV back to the new slab; I did not plug in the shore power (DUH). And that is why I was "scrambling" today.

Going to be interesting where we end up tomorrow.

Switching gears on you. Generator question.
I am in the commercial construction business. When we build buildings with emergency generators, they have an "exercise" schedule the Owner's facilities folks have to maintain. ie. the generator is started at some specified interval. My whole house generator is programed to run time the first day of each month. If you do not regularly use your RV generator, does the same principal apply. Seems like it should. I had the generator professionally serviced last month. It was an appointment the previous Owner had. Probably should have asked those folks what they recommend. But did not think of it at the time.

 

[AbdRahim]

You may have to shut off the inverter and charge the batteries with an external charger. After disconnecting the charger, once batteries are well charged, turn the inverter back on. The voltage is too low for the inverter to operate.

Someone with the same system may chime in, but that is what I would try.

 

[MemoriesByTheMile]

Our Onan 12.5 gen, according the owners manual, is supposed to be run each month for a couple hours with a load.

 

[NWIP]

Recommendation for exercising the generator monthly @ at least 50% load for 1 hour.

 

[Texas Clodhopper]

When you unhook from shore power, watch the house batteries to see if they drop voltage quickly. I'm concerned your batteries may be toast.

 

[Kevin D Pem]

Recommendation for exercising the generator monthly @ at least 50% load for 1 hour.

Absolutely! The concept is an idle is destructive/hard on an engine.

Electricians are charged with manually rotating motors/generators in their care on a schedule to reduce the chance of developing flat spots on the bearing. My guess is if your oil is fresh a few cranks of the starter would do the trick..

That's all I do because 50% load doesn't happen in my world very often.

 

[Kevin D Pem]

I am curious. How many flashes did you get before the pause?

Just wanted to know what code it came up with.

 

[BigRig]

When you unhook from shore power, watch the house batteries to see if they drop voltage quickly. I'm concerned your batteries may be toast.

Thanks for the tip! As of this AM the Inverter Monitor is reporting the house batteries are fully charged and is in standby mode.

During all the research I did yesterday, I did run across the cautionary information indicating batteries that have been completely discharged may not regain function.

Will keep you updated.

Thanks,

 

[BigRig]

I am curious. How many flashes did you get before the pause?

Just wanted to know what code it came up with.

Kevin,

Thanks for the response. I am not sure I understand your question, but interested in your question regarding flashes & code. Could you elaborate?

Thanks,