Short Story on a Short Circuit

silverloaf · Post by **silverloaf** » Wed May 02, 2018 9:23 pm

As I prepared to install the 1st refinished cabinet in our 30-P, I decided to run a 12v circuit check. Sure enough, the lights in the rear of the trailer, as well as the two new ventilation fans, were not working.

After 2 hours of diagnostics (including dropping 3 feet of ceiling), I was able to trace the problem to wire that was grounding out on a sharp edge of the roof framing near a fan. I was able to install some shrink wrap on the wires and install electrical tape on the sharp edge.

Sometimes it's the small things that can create the biggest obstacle. Overall, Avion did a pretty good job of isolating the wires thought the metal chassis. I consider this to be fluke.

Post by **KYAvion** » Wed May 02, 2018 10:28 pm

Good find and glad you got the issue resolved. Just curious...were those fans and lights working when you first got the trailer?

silverloaf · Post by **silverloaf** » Wed May 02, 2018 11:02 pm

From my recollection, none of the fans worked., including the front one and the range hood. The middle fan was one of those OEM rounded rascals which I replaced with a square one.
It is possible I nicked a wire when I resized the hole. The metal encasing the fans is pretty sharp with little clearance for wiring connections. It’s the only vulnerable area I’ve found in the trailer.

Post by **KYAvion** » Wed May 02, 2018 11:09 pm

Sounds like you're getting close to your maiden voyage?

Post by **Razorback** » Thu May 03, 2018 2:25 am

Thank you for the post, glad you found the problem! Don’t you love the feeling of getting something like that fixed?

Huge milestone!

Like KYAvion said.... one step closer!

silverloaf · Post by **silverloaf** » Thu May 03, 2018 11:36 am

There certainly was a measure of satisfaction finding and fixing this problem. My biggest fear was the prospect of dropping the entire rear ceiling to chase a bad wire. I'm grateful it was restricted to a termination point.

One thing I learned is Avion did the rough wiring in the shell first and then embedded it in the spray foam insulation. The wiring is very well protected from sources of abrasion or damage.

We will probably have 75% of the interior back together in about 2 weeks. This includes laminating 2 new countertops. After that, there are some potential moisture issues in the front corners of the floor I need to examine.

We'll plan to take the trailer out for a road test by Memorial Day to check brake function and wheel alignment.

AVION Travel Trailers