My interior "house" lights don't get power unless the engine is running or I'm plugged in to shore power. However, I get power to the water pump all the time. Is this normal, or do I have a wiring issue?
Thanks for any and all responses.
Richard

Sounds like a blown fuse or breaker somewhere in your coach circuits. Step one is to locate your 12v fuse or breaker box. You might have breakers, but in 1976 it was more likely old fashioned glass tube fuses. They're usually located on or near your converter, but not necessarily, there's little that's standard in RV wiring, in or between brands. You may have to do some sleuthing, but finding your fuses/breakers is the place to start.

Those were the first thing I checked; no breakers were tripped and all fuses were good. I'm stumped. The interior lights get power when the engine is running, but not when the ignition is in the "ACC" position. My coach battery is fully charged...but the power from the coach battery isn't getting to breaker box.

It could be that you are getting the 12v to run the lights when the engine is running through a charging isolator designed to charge the coach batteries while driving. The first thing I'd look for is a main switch for the coach batteries in the 'off' position. After that, trace the battery cables. It also may be a large fuse on the main feed from the coach batteries, which is designed to protect the entire battery system.

Thanks, Fellas. I've heard some say that they don't trust the battery isolator and I should replace it with $15 relay. Any thoughts on this?

quote:

Originally posted by RichieC:
My coach battery is fully charged...but the power from the coach battery isn't getting to breaker box.

It is fairly typical for the battery cable to go to the genset starter terrminal, then another cable goes to the fuse box. Check there first. Clean the connections, etc.

Then, attach a test light to a T pin and follow the lead from the battery to the genset and fuse box, sticking the pin through the insulation to contact the conductor along its length.

Some commercial test lights have an icepick tip on them, but I prefer to make as small a hole in the insulation as possible to increase the liklihood of it sealing up again.

quote:

Originally posted by RichieC:
Thanks, Fellas. I've heard some say that they don't trust the battery isolator and I should replace it with $15 relay. Any thoughts on this?

Even if you do trust the isolator, it steals .7 volts from the charging of both coach and chassis batteries. Use the wretched search function to find some posts on a relay setup that combines isolator and emergency parallel functions. You will likely be able to use the emergency parallel relay already installed on your Barth.

Thanks, Bill. You've given me some good advice and I appreciate it.