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Topic: Electric problem

Dreadnought

17/5/2009 at 11:29am
Location: Cannock
Outfit: Freedom sunseeker and Delta Heron static.

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Hi all.when we put a blow heater on in our van if its set on high heat it pops the fuse out in the elecric box.now i dont know a lot about electrics but why does this happen.even if there is nothing else switched on in the van it still pops out.i know its probably to do with safety but can you buy a bigger fuse or something with more resistance so we can use the heater on high.thanx

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eddie marris

17/5/2009 at 11:32am
Location: Leicester
Outfit: Ford Kuga 140 & Senator Vermont 07

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It could be a couple of things, a loose or bad connection or the high heat element is faulty. Does it blow the fuse immediatly or after a while, if it's the first I would suspect the element or even the switch.

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Davebelcanto

17/5/2009 at 11:57am
Location: North Devon
Outfit: Lunar Stellar Peugeot Partner Tepee O

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A couple of questions.

Whats the size of the heater in watts?

Whats the size of the mcb[fuse] tripping in amps?

As a quick guide if the heater is 2400 watts or 2.4 kilowatts divide this by 240 volts and the answer will be 10. If the mcb [fuse] is less than 10 amps it will trip.

Dave

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CandP

17/5/2009 at 11:59am
Location: North West
Outfit: Elddis Avante 554

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I would not put in a bigger fuse, as if you do you may set your van on fire!.

What type of fuse is it, is it a blade fuse or a cartridge fuse? As there are different types of cartridge fuses. You may need a slow blow as these do not react to a sudden surge but too prolonged over current i.e in a fail mode.

Stevieb

17/5/2009 at 1:12pm
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Does the blower sound normal? If its old, the motor bearings can get bunged up with fluff and that slows the fan down, puts more load on the motor and more amps needed to spin it. Might be worth pulling it out and giving it a good clean, maybe also a spot of lubticant on the motor bearings, (not too much as that also collects fluff).

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Dreadnought

17/5/2009 at 6:23pm
Location: Cannock
Outfit: Freedom sunseeker and Delta Heron static.

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Please excuse my terminology about all things electric.when i said fuse i meant the little switch thing that clicks down and cuts of all power.can i get a bigger one of these?

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Those that danced were thought to be quite insane to those who could not hear the music. Angela Monet

michael

17/5/2009 at 6:39pm
Location: Lancashire
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just possible,try to put it on low first and when its running turn temperature to high,maybe trying to get get too much power in one go.

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tykey

17/5/2009 at 6:50pm
Location: Sheffield
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Quote: Originally posted by Dreadnought on 17/5/2009Please excuse my terminology about all things electric.when i said fuse i meant the little switch thing that clicks down and cuts of all power.can i get a bigger one of these?

These are called MCB's.

Simply put, the heater is using more amps than the MCB will allow.

It's not a good idea to put another larger one in, it's the size it is for a reason.

The best answer is to use a fan heater which is smaller.

We all suffer from this problem, if I put my fan heater and the kettle at the same time, my MCB switches the power off, so I don't do it!!

LegsDownKettleOn

17/5/2009 at 7:53pm
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If you put a bigger MCB in the van, you will just trip the one on the post

Dreadnought

17/5/2009 at 8:05pm
Location: Cannock
Outfit: Freedom sunseeker and Delta Heron static.

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Well thanks for all the replies.at least i know its the norm for this to happen.i'll leave it as it is and get a smaller heater as advised.

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Those that danced were thought to be quite insane to those who could not hear the music. Angela Monet

michael

17/5/2009 at 10:09pm
Location: Lancashire
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if you run the heater on 1000 you may get away with it,when you get to 2000 thats when it trips out,i know mine does it.to run ours on 2000 we turn everything but the tv off and dont use the kettle.

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timtheenchanter

17/5/2009 at 10:21pm
Location: Yeadon Leeds!
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does your heater not have a "low" setting? my fan heater has a high (3000W) or low (1500W) the higher of the two trips the van if on for about 10 mins, the low its fine.

Most vans the sockets are on a 10A MCB which is about 2300W

bordercaz

18/5/2009 at 1:51pm
Location: Shropshire North Wales borders
Outfit: Adria Win

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Are we talking about a free standing heater, or the van's own built in one?

The sockets are normally on a 10 amp mcb, if you have a 3 Kw heater it will blow. Stick to a 2Kw one and it should be ok.

If it is built in then giving it a good clean out per StevieB's post may solve the problem, if not I would get it checked.

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If you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, just keep going till you go round the bend.

Dreadnought

18/5/2009 at 9:22pm
Location: Cannock
Outfit: Freedom sunseeker and Delta Heron static.

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No its just a portable one from homebase bordercaz.its got low and high setting.when turned to high it trips everything.

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Those that danced were thought to be quite insane to those who could not hear the music. Angela Monet

Red_Karpet

18/5/2009 at 10:24pm
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Normal fan heaters are too high in wattage to be used in caravans. Some sites don't allow them.

You can buy low wattage portable fan heaters especially for caravans.

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