No power in back at all

[Pwilliams]

Hi I have a swift sundance 530lp I brought it 2 years ago but never went out in it so was parked up for the 2 years. I went to take it for mot and noticed the step would not go up and the control panel had no life in it, I've checked all fuses and they are good I've also brought a new leisure battery but nothing seems to be working. Any ideas of what to check next would be very much appreciated

 

[Landy Andy]

Are you turning on the habitation power?

Normally a switch near hab door.

Are you trying this with engine running or off. Some vans need engine not running for hab electrics to work.

 

[Pwilliams]

There is no power at all in the back. The digit display and control panel does not light up. I have tried it with engine running and engine off but nothing.

 

[Red Sonja]

Do you have the 12volt switched on?

 

[Pwilliams]

There's no power going to the control panel at all

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[PaulW2]

Hi I have a swift sundance 530lp I brought it 2 years ago but never went out in it so was parked up for the 2 years. I went to take it for mot and noticed the step would not go up and the control panel had no life in it, I've checked all fuses and they are good I've also brought a new leisure battery but nothing seems to be working. Any ideas of what to check next would be very much appreciated

Did it work when you bought it?

 

[Pwilliams]

Yes all was working the step the control panel all was working. I first thought it was the leisure battery so I changed that, also changed the battery in the control panel but still no power at all

 

[autorouter]

You say you have checked all the fuses, what is the make/model of the fuse box? There will be a fairly thick wire to take the power from the leisure battery to the fusebox. In that wire there will be a fuse, at least 20A, maybe up to 50A, located quite near the leisure battery. I'd first check that power from the leisure battery is getting to that fuse, then check that the power reaches the other end where it connects to the fusebox.

 

[The Old Man]

You say you have checked all the fuses, what is the make/model of the fuse box? There will be a fairly thick wire to take the power from the leisure battery to the fusebox. In that wire there will be a fuse, at least 20A, maybe up to 50A, located quite near the leisure battery. I'd first check that power from the leisure battery is getting to that fuse, then check that the power reaches the other end where it connects to the fusebox.

Suffered this fault recently.

 

[FrankNicklin]

What sort of leisure battery. If Lithium, I believe it can cause issues with older electrics, I might be wrong and will stand corrected, but there is a post on this forum of strange things happening to their power after having a lithium battery installed replacing an old wet battery. The step I believe was one of the issues.

The step also operates irrespective of the panel switch position otherwise you would not be able to get in to the MH if power is switched off. I believe the step fuse is under the bonnet. When the engine is started with the step out, there should be a beep and the step auto-retract.

On another note as the MH has been stood for 2 years its also quite possible you have had little visitors who have had a nibble on some cables. This will be very difficult to trace without testing each endpoint in the circuit. Check draws and cupboards for droppings and shredding. It might indicate where to start looking for electrical issues.

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[Pwilliams]

What sort of leisure battery. If Lithium, I believe it can cause issues with older electrics, I might be wrong and will stand corrected, but there is a post on this forum of strange things happening to their power after having a lithium battery installed replacing an old wet battery. The step I believe was one of the issues.

The step also operates irrespective of the panel switch position otherwise you would not be able to get in to the MH if power is switched off. I believe the step fuse is under the bonnet. When the engine is started with the step out, there should be a beep and the step auto-retract.

On another note as the MH has been stood for 2 years its also quite possible you have had little visitors who have had a nibble on some cables. This will be very difficult to trace without testing each endpoint in the circuit. Check draws and cupboards for droppings and shredding. It might indicate where to start looking for electrical issues.

That was my other fear of little visitors but no signs of them I have a funny feeling that it's the box that feeds all the electrics in the back.

 

[FrankNicklin]

That was my other fear of little visitors but no signs of them I have a funny feeling that it's the box that feeds all the electrics in the back.

To what box are you referring. A photo might help identify what you mean.

 

[Kannon Fodda]

Presumably the replacement battery was charged before installation. Are there any switches on the main power box itself that need to be turned on / off to activate the 12V supply, in addition to any control panel. Are the fuses in the main box all intact (they may look OK, but have blown so perhaps swap a couple out).

You will need an electronic multimeter to start to trace between connections and see at what point the power cuts out. Start at the battery and confirm power across the terminals. Then at the big fuse near the battery (on the load side) between the fuse and a negative point. Then at the back of the power supply unit, and so on.

 

[The Old Man]

Suffered this fault recently.

A follow up with more info.

Having checked all fuses and none blown I was at a loss, as was the local van repair man.

Someone on here asked about the fuses by the Hab Battery? I didn't know abot them or ever noticed them.

I took the van to the guy who services the car and Fiat parts of the van.

He found the mystery fuse box next to the Hab battery and discovered that the 10A fuse of the two wasn't just blown, it was melted in the fuse holder.

So he removed the fuse and cleaned out the debris, replaced the 10A use and all came alive when switching the 12v on at the Control Panel, all good.

However when I started the engine, the 10A fuse blew immediately.

Examining the wires he reckoned that the wires were rated at least 25A, so he tried a 25A fuse. Again all worked with the engine off. When I started the engine the fuse held but the fuse and fuse holder started to get very hot. We both agreed that was neither good nor correct, so the fuse was removed.

The van was then booked in for a deeper examination.

Once on the big ramp it was found that the cable went from the mini fuse block into the engine compartment and met up with the engine battery.

Deeper examination revealed that one of the rubber blocks that supported the exhaust system was missing. This allowed extra movement of the hot pipes. These pipes were in close proximity to the aforementioned cable and with the movement of the exhaust the hot pipes could touch the cable.

Closer examination of the cable revealed that it could touch the exhaust and that the cable insulation had melted away. Therefore with the engine running the cable was shorting out on the metal exhaust pipe and this was causing the fuse to melt!

Remedy;

Exhaust bracket replaced and exhaust pipe secured.
Cable removed and replaced.
Mini Fuse Box replaced as some of the debris in the bottom could not be cleaned out.
20A fuse inserted.

All now working well, 12v working, no overheating of fusebox.

 

[autorouter]

A follow up with more info.

Interesting. Maybe relevant to VXman's problems, ie sudden drain and voltage drops for no obvious reason.

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[pappajohn]

If you're still reading there should be a 50a fuse near the battery, may be blown or corroded.
It completely isolates the hab electrics from the hab battery

 

[VXman]

Interesting. Maybe relevant to VXman's problems, ie sudden drain and voltage drops for no obvious reason.

Does sound similar. I have been looking at the cables from the 20amp fuse by the leisure and the 20 amp by the starter but it's difficult to trace where they go as they disappear under a false floor.