u/tedhb

So when we took the cover off of the positive bus bar, it had melted where the inverter was connected. We almost had a fire, thankfully we were in the van and my nose caught it.

It was difficult to pull the cover off the bus bar. When finally pulled off, it turns out it was melted at the cable for the inverter. So prior to turning on the inverter, Hubby checked all the connections. But since they were tightened up two weeks ago, none were loose. The other, 1000w inverter (with a 600w load for several minutes) ran fine with absolutely no heat at the bus.

Last night, when I smelled the hot wires I didn't feel the inverter, nor did I notice if the fan on the inverter was running as it normally does under load (I'll blame the two margaritas I had at dinner). So after checking everything else today, we moved on to the inverter. We turned it on, then the air conditioner. The inverter got very hot fast and I noticed that the inverter fan was not running, even with a 1300w load.

So all my components are Victron except for the cheap Chinese Amazon inverter. Not a good idea, I could have lost my van.

We sometimes leave the dogs in the van with the a/c on. I shudder to think that this could have happened if I wasn't in there to smell the hot wires.

So I'll buy a new bus bar, a better inverter from a reputable company,replace the cables and get a temperature probe for the BMV-712.

So, suggestion for an inverter vendor and brand? The inverter needs to be 24v, 3500/7000w (3000/6000w will work).

Thank you guys for all your help!

Of course it happens at night, but we were parked at family's house so spending the night there.

We went in to the van tonight, switched on the inverter and the a/c. I smelled hot wires. The positive busbar was HOT, too hot to touch!

So we turned off the a/c and the inverter, disconnected everything except the fridge, hit the breakers on the panels and turned off the DC to DC charger. And are spending the night in the house.

Since we can't investigate in the dark, I could use ideas on what we can check tomorrow. We just tightened up all connections a couple of weeks ago and everything has been running well. Including the a/c overnight last night. This is the first time this has happened.

Any ideas? Our system is three 230ah 24v batteries and a 3500/7000w generic inverter. Everything is fused and none of the fuses or circuit breakers popped.

Why would the positive busbar (750amps) be so hot?

Thanks for the input.

So two days ago we decided to test running the air conditioner (12,000btu, 120v) on battery. The van (Ford Transit, extended length) was in direct, Desert Southwest sunlight all day. We also had normal electricity usage (microwave, kettle, freezer, fridge and hairdryer for defrosting the fridge).

We started at 1820 with full batteries at 96° ambient temp outside. We ran with the a/c thermostat at 80°. After 12 hours, we were down to 84% capacity, 114ah in the red. At 1545@ 100° outside, we were at 83%, 123ah in the red. At 24 hours (98° outside), we were at 70%, 212ah in the red. We switched back to shore power at 2200 as wedidn't want to run it for the second night as today is cloudy. After 28 hours, we were at 86° outside, 58% capacity and 291ah in the hole.

We built the system to hopefully be able to keep the a/c on in Phoenix in the summer with temps in the 110s. With these results, it looks like we can run it for 12 hours or so, just enough to come into town for doc visits for a day. Otherwise we will have to find hookups.

If you're curious, our system is 24v with 1300w solar and 16.6kwh battery. We also have 1"-4" insulation everywhere except the windows. We did not cordon off the front because the dogs like to hang out there. If we were in Phoenix, we would close the insulated curtain between the cabin and the cockpit.

Installed in past couple days with numerous poop deposits.

I have an extremely sensitive nose and was ambivalent about a compost toilet, but for full timing a cassette or bucket toilet won't work.

No smell. Emptying the pee jug is a little hassle which will get better with practice.