towbar

[pkh]

Hi everyone hve just tried to wire a 12s to the surf to take the caravan away at the end of the month but it is not running the fridge for some reason ,I have a relay fitted and have run a wire back to the battery for a supply. In between the output for the fridge and the battery charging wires I have fitted a light so I can see if the relay is out putting anything. Well the battery charging light came on but not the fridge output. When I looked in the caravan the battery light on the fridge was not on, anyone got any Ideas.
Should I take the supply from the altonator also I have seen something on the "tinternet" about not useing the black wire as an earth on anything before 1998.

[Taliesins]

Hi everyone hve just tried to wire a 12s to the surf to take the caravan away at the end of the month but it is not running the fridge for some reason ,I have a relay fitted and have run a wire back to the battery for a supply. In between the output for the fridge and the battery charging wires I have fitted a light so I can see if the relay is out putting anything. Well the battery charging light came on but not the fridge output. When I looked in the caravan the battery light on the fridge was not on, anyone got any Ideas.
Should I take the supply from the altonator also I have seen something on the "tinternet" about not useing the black wire as an earth on anything before 1998.

As far as I am aware the black wire is for a chassis earth for the fridge.

[paulh]

Hi everyone hve just tried to wire a 12s to the surf to take the caravan away at the end of the month but it is not running the fridge for some reason ,I have a relay fitted and have run a wire back to the battery for a supply. In between the output for the fridge and the battery charging wires I have fitted a light so I can see if the relay is out putting anything. Well the battery charging light came on but not the fridge output. When I looked in the caravan the battery light on the fridge was not on, anyone got any Ideas.
Should I take the supply from the altonator also I have seen something on the "tinternet" about not useing the black wire as an earth on anything before 1998.

How are you operating the relay for the fridge ?
You should be using the alternator charging supply (the wire that goes to the light on the dash) this should operate the relay when the engine is running.
You could if you wish use any ignition switched supply to operate the relay provided you are not going to leave the car with the grey plug in and the ignition on without the engine running.
What year is the caravan, if it was built after 1998 they use a separate earth wire for the fridge and there is no separate charging pin, sorry don't have my diagram to hand at the mo and i'm terrible at remembering numbers.

[paulh]

Some very useful diagrams and explanations here.
http://www.volvoclub.org.uk/towbar_electrics.shtml

[pkh]

Towbar elec 12s

I have got a wire straight from the battery ,Had a messs today and it is now flashing the fridge off and on and the relay keeps clicking I,ll change in to the alto tommorow and see what happens.

[paulh]

I have got a wire straight from the battery ,Had a messs today and it is now flashing the fridge off and on and the relay keeps clicking I,ll change in to the alto tommorow and see what happens.

Do you mean the feed for the relay or the switching supply from the battery?
I think you'll find the charging wire a little hard to find, you may be better off switching the relay with an ignition supply, can't think what you have done to cause it to click off and on.

[pkh]

towbar

the feed for the relay to a 15 amp fuse then to relay

[paulh]

the feed for the relay to a 15 amp fuse then to relay

And what supply are you using to operate the relay?

[pkh]

towbar

this is it

battery--------15 amp fuse-----relay------ towbar

[paulh]

this is it

battery--------15 amp fuse-----relay------ towbar

Don't take this the wrong way mate, but if you really are as unclued up on car electrics as you seem to be then I would advise you to take it to someone who knows what they are doing.
You can't afford to take risks with even 12v electrics they have a tendency to bite.
I wouldn't want you to burn out your wiring harness while I'm the one giving you advise.

Good luck

[pkh]

towbar

I spoke to TCP the people who make the relay, and they told me to take the power from the battery to the relay direct and not to use the alto. Have spoken to them again today and told them about the clicking on and off and they said the relay is working but it sounds as if on tick over there is not power coming from the battery so I'll try it again and rev it up a bit,They have also told me not to use the black wire as an earth as the caravan is pre 98.

[paulh]

Can you tell me what type of relay you are using and what number terminals you are connecting too?
The relay will not switch the power to the socket until it is operated by another source.
You only want the fridge to operate when the engine is running or at least when the ignition is switched on!

[pkh]

towbar

Hi Paul this is the stuff they sent me.
http://www.pct-automotive.co.uk/Fitt...df/ZK3020A.pdf
its the bottom of these pages the ZR 1220.

[paulh]

Hi Paul this is the stuff they sent me.
http://www.pct-automotive.co.uk/Fitt...df/ZK3020A.pdf
its the bottom of these pages the ZR 1220.

AAAAAAHHHHHH that explains things a bit better, you are using a voltage sensing relay, they sense the rise in voltage when the engine is running and switch the fridge and charging supplies in.
Now it make sense to try revving the engine up a bit.
Mine needs to go up to about 2500 rpm before the relay switches, I notice yours has an adjusting screw so if revving the engine does not operate it you may have to try a slight adjustment on it.
Make sure first that your batteries are well charged as the relay will not operate untill they reach a set voltage.

[pkh]

towbar

Thanks for having a look I'm not a pro as you can tell, once again thanks