Tripping Pro Power breaker with 120v welder

[GrokTime]

It said overload (or something to that effect). When I push the power button it tries to start but then cuts off. Every time.

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[Maquis]

It said overload (or something to that effect). When I push the power button it tries to start but then cuts off. Every time.

That sounds like the welder has too much inrush current at startup for PP to handle.

 

[GrokTime]

That sounds like the welder has too much inrush current at startup for PP to handle.

Yes, but someone suggested to use the 30 amp outlet with an adapter. I am not sure how that would work. I am looking to understand this aspect better.

 

[hturnerfamily]

I'm not sure that this is actually anything to do with 'tripping' because of high amperage, and it may be more about the GFCI aspect of the Lightning's electrical design - it is VERY sensitive, even though it may 'work' at times, for some amount of time, and sometimes not at all...

for instance: I use the ProPower from the bed, on my 9.6kw set of outlets, which, actually, have been tested to be 30amps of power, each set, since they are powered by the SAME wires that power the 30amp 240v twist-lock outlet... so....

it's not the 'power' that's any issue - my camper won't be drawing anything NEAR 30amps, probably nothing more than 2-3 while we are traveling down the road. And, I also dropped the ground from the extension cord between the truck and the camper, to prevent the normal 'GFCI' issues...

and, under 'normal' conditions, it works just fine..... well, at least until you ask for the microwave, or the roof air conditioner... the GFCI immediately has an issue, and FAULTS off.

what???

No, it's not about the 'amperage' you are drawing, but there IS something to be said about the combination of AMPERAGE and the GFCI Sensitivity issue from the truck. Again, without the microwave or air conditioner, it works just fine for everything else.

Interestingly, I performed some tests, and found a realization of how to 'rectify' this GFCI issue:

-UNPLUG the camper's 7-pin trailer connector from the truck
-UNCOUPLE the camper from the truck's ball

now... everything, including microwave AND the roof air conditioner, work perfectly, AT THE SAME TIME, while still connected to the truck's ProPower.....

I took time to make another TEST: I plugged the camper into the house's external GFCI outlet. The outlet immediately faulted.
I then plugged the camper into the house's external REGULAR outlet, and the camper worked PERFECTLY, with no issues, even if using the high-amperage appliances, all at the same time.
Go figure.


so, yes, there are very sensitive issues with the truck's GFCI ... bonded Neutral... unbonded Neutral... or whatever you want to call it... but, there are generally ways around it.


I will say that MY issue, providing power to my camper, is partly to do with the design of the camper, as well - meaning that the manufacturer's wiring scheme on the camper's main panel is suspect: there is something within this wiring/electronics that does not work well with the grounding of the camper to the truck, or when the camper's trailer cord is plugged into the truck's 7-pin trailer outlet.

As for the issue of the OP's WELDER, I suspect that the internals of the WELDER is part of the issue. ProPower 'sees' proper connection, and may power the WELDER, until, at some point, the wiring does NOT stay in line with ProPower's expectations. But, who knows why. You might try another WELDER and have no issues at all.

 

[GrokTime]

I tried my small log splitter again in both the frunk and the bed. The attached picture shows the result. This does not look like a GFCI issue does it? I was thinking of trying the 240 volt outlet with an adapter, but I have read in other threads that the 120v outlets can actually provide up to 30 amps, so I am not sure this would make a difference.

I am very disappointed that the Pro Power on board cannot run this simple device. It runs fine on a home 15 amp outlet.

 

[hturnerfamily]

I think it's hard to understand and figure out these issues, but it's also fair to assume that the ProPower is very sensitive to over-amperage, since it is electronically driven, and not 'heat' sensitive, like your home's regular outlet. Your home outlet some built-in leeway to not trip immediately because of a spike in amperage, etc., but only due to CONSISTENT over-amperage.

Try some other smaller devices or appliances from your ProPower outlet. You may find that they work just fine.

 

[Maquis]

Yes, but someone suggested to use the 30 amp outlet with an adapter. I am not sure how that would work. I am looking to understand this aspect better.

It won’t make any difference, IMO. All of the outlets have the same level of protection. There is a thread on here where a 30A measured load ran successfully on one of the 120V receptacles. I’ll see if I can find the thread.

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