Arcing/Popping when plugging in Hawk

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Bwht4x4

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Nov 6, 2013
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Morro Bay
When I plug my Hawk in at home to 110 volt with the yellow cord to an extension chord I get a pop and a bit of an arc and a blue flash (at night). When I look at the terminals of the plugs I'm also seeing some charring on one of the terminals on both sides of the short yellow chord. So, basically it's doing this regardless of what I plug in first.

Anyone else have this issue?
 
I get the same thing with mine. My guess is, since there is no "off" button on the charger/inverter, there is always a load being drawn when you plug it into the 110v outlet. Since it's likely to draw a few amps, this would cause the pop/spark you get. It's similar to when you jumper two batteries with jumper cables. If one is fairly dead, you'll get sparks when you connect them together.

I haven't been concerned.
 
Yeah, I think I remember reading a thread here before about the same thing. In my case, the IOTA Power Converter/charger is most likely the culprit.

Steve
 
NorCalSteve said:
Yeah, I think I remember reading a thread here before about the same thing. In my case, the IOTA Power Converter/charger is most likely the culprit.

Steve
Click to expand...
This happened with us also with our first camper. I had installed an Iota unit during the remodel and figured it was the culprit/cause of the pop.
 
Same here, Just the charger/converter. Also, check to see that anything that would pull high AC amps is off(frig, a/c, etc.)But sure not to be standing in a puddle or have wet hands, if there is an open arc getting shocked is very possible.
 
I'm about half out of it after a nasty trip to the dentist (broken root), but there should be a circuit breaker that you could pop prior to plugging in, then reset after connecting. I haven't plugged my Grandby in yet, just running on solar.
 
Our Phoenix also did this until I disconnected the so-called "battery charger". Now it does not do it.
Second flipping the breaker to off. It will be SOP once I have the new 'smart' charger in place.
 
Basically if you get a spark when plugging in it means that you have a load on the system and its drawing amps. Find a way to turn everything off and it won't happen. The spark also causes a voltage spike that can damage electronics like inverters, etc. So the electronics that are causing the arc are the most likely to be damaged/ruined by the voltage spike.
 
Would using the 12v master kill switch to turn off all loads before plugging in, then turning back on to use and/or charge aux battery be a solution?

I have not noticed arcing when plugging into shore power but then can't really say if that's due to kill switch being in the off position when plugging in. Just not sure I want to experiment. No mention of needing to do that in the user manual for my 2012 fleet, either.
 
This is not something to worry about. Yes, the charger/converter starts pulling juice as soon as the extension cord is connected, but it's no more worry than plugging in a lamp with the switch in the ON position. In fact, I am pleased to hear the "pop" when I connect the extension cord as that shows me that the shore power is on and confirms that I've made a connection.
 
Except that the contacts in plugs and sockets aren't designed to make/break under load. Switch & breaker contacts are and they can handle it. Plug & socket contacts are not designed for this and they will spark erode, eventually rendering them useless or poor at making the connection.

I wouldn't worry about it once in a while, but I wouldn't promote this as SOP. the charger/converter should be on a breaker. Turn it off before connecting to shore power and then turn it back on after if you want/need it to work.
 
Someone mentioned voltage spikes.....well mine will blow a 20A fuse (I can't remember 4 sure which one - probably the charge wire from the IOTA to the battery) most of the time when I plug or unplug to shore-power. Now, SOP is to use the breaker as suggested.

Kinda bugs me that they do this. Any standard 12v battery charger doesn't "pop" or "arc" like this when plugging them in to an outlet......and you typically clamp chargers to the battery and select the charger settings before plugging them in. Why should the camper charger be any different???? Has anyone asked FWC about this? - seems to be a common mystery.
 
I've already purchased, but not yet mounted a Battery Tender 8A battery charger. As I've already disconnected the "charger" that is part of the fuse/breaker panel in the Phoenix this will replace it. I am expecting those same 'soft' starts from it and not to need to turn it's breaker off. The fridge is always turned to "Off" when we return from a trip, so won't normally be an issue there either.
 
I will agree that it's annoying, but not the end of the world.

If there was a switch outside of the camper that would toggle off the IOTA charger just before you plug in the camper it would work perfectly. I might consider adding a switch to do this under the camper that is accessible when you are about to plug the camper in.
 
Ok, it was dry enough this afternoon to get the top up and putter in the Grandby. As I suspected, the converter caused a slight pop when connecting up the extension cord. Throw the circuit breaker and no pop. The load from the refrigerator would do the same, so turn it off to eliminate the arc/pop.
 
I think the converter is still active even if the master switch is off. I also think the master switch controls power to all the equipment and not the converter. I could be wrong and will check tomorrow.
 
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