Reversed polarity light is lit

[Jkraft]

Hey all, I have my 28 TE on the hard and wanted to charge the batteries up. I hooked up my 110 to 30 amp converter and an extension cord to a 110 outlet at the marina and when I turn my panel on I get the green power light. If I turn on my 110 volt outlets the reverse polarity lights very dimly. If I turn on the water heater it lights brightly. If I turn on the battery charger it lights up as well. It seems to light up brighter for items that are drawing more juice. Everything is working correctly but the reverse polarity light is lit.

This is the first time I hooked it up to 110 Instead if dockside power. I did recently have the shore power connection unhooked because i had the side panel Inserts painted. I went green to green, black to black, and white to white. So where is my issue? Should I try reversing the hot and the neutral or will I fry something?

Thanks

[WillieC]

Should I try reversing the hot and the neutral or will I fry something?

Stop right there and call an electrician.

[dkirsop]

Something I keep in my tool bag is a 110V, 3 Prong circuit tester. It looks like a plug with 3 led lights on it. You can buy one at most building supply stores. Plug it into the receptacle and it will show if there is a problem by which led lights illuminate. Start with the marina outlet as sometimes these can be a problem. The tester is not an expensive item and you might want to keep one on the boat.

[Pitou]

As suggested,start with the 3 prong tester.

One season, I had a hard storage location and my reverse polarity light was illuminated when plugged into the 3 prong outlet waaaaay down the line of boats and my ammeter only read 98 amps. The low amperage turned out to be the issue.

[RobS]

my voltage tester only read 98 amps.

So how many volts did your ammeter read ?

No boat should leave the dock without an adapter and tester. Even if you don't plan on docking somewhere and plugging in, unforeseen circumstances can come up.

I keep this 30F/15M adapter and 3 prong tester easily accessible on the boat and never plug in away from home without a quick check. Helped out a bunch of transients over the years too...

[Pitou]

my voltage tester only read 98 amps.

So how many volts did your ammeter read ?

Duh .. in a hurry posting on my way out the door this morning and hadn't had enough coffee!

Corrected to ammeter and amperage!!!

[WillieC]

"So how many volts did your ammeter read ?
Duh .. in a hurry posting on my way out the door this morning and hadn't had enough coffee!

Corrected to ammeter and amperage!!! "


You guys are scaring me, tongue firmly in cheek here. Sorta lends credence to my earlier post.

Not trying to be alarmist or anything to the OP. Sounds simple enough, something happened very likely from recent work, or loosening connection, something. But a little knowledge, and a handful of tools, especially with electrical work, can indeed be a dangerous thing. And a major waste of time, to say nothing of what else might end up busted along the way.

Case in point. Got a call last week from nephew putting his house up for sale and had a question about a three-way switch. Easy, simple enough to explain over the phone. Fortunately he didn't have time just then so I agreed to meet him the next day. One hour tops...including travel, one can hope. Well, he had replaced a four-way switch with a new one and I was pretty sure he had crossed wires there so I got my meter out and I couldn't make head nor tails out of it when I noticed the new switch had "on/off" notation on it. HUH? Three and four-way switches have no "on/off" designation as they only switch source and output. That was my first clue. The box in the trash was my second. He had installed a two-pole switch that looks very much like a 4-way switch.

Nerdy post, sorry. There was NO WAY I was going to suss that out over the phone, let alone a community forum website like AOG. It's all in the very specific details.

[Norseman]

I got the little tester, but the adapter between the tester and the outlet, where do you get that one..?

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[WillieC]

West Maroon has them.

[Jkraft]

Got the tester. Outlet tested good. Extension cord tested good. Double checked the connection at the plug. Good there too. Threw on the power and checked the 110 outlets onboard and they are good. I’m thinking it has to be something with not being hooked up to dockside power.