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missy avatar image
missy asked

Why is the breaker tripping on Orion tr smart?

Edited to add: I checked the orion, all breakers in my electrical box are untripped and all wires etc look OK. I flipped the breaker near the battery back on, the Orion powered up and appeared in the app. Then the breaker tripped again even though the engine was not running.

Next step is looking in the battery compartment in daylight!


  • I have fitted an Orion tr smart 12/12-30 in my campervan. I have run 16mm2 cable from the starter battery to the orion with the positive going though a 50a breaker - all as advised.

I drove for an hour just after fitting it and was able to see it working via the app.

A week later, I'm driving to the Eurotunnel and the breaker has tripped. I reset it, and after 10 seconds or so it trips again (engine running all the while)

I haven't had a chance to look at the Orion yet, it's in the back of the van, but I thought I'd ask in case anyone can think of an obvious reason for the breaker to be tripping!


Cheers

Missy



Orion DC-DC Converters not smart
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3 Answers
Justin Cook avatar image
Justin Cook answered ·

@missy, if you can provide some photos of the install, particularly the connections between the batteries and the breaker(s) and the Orion, that would be helpful.

What brand breaker is it that's tripping? There are a lot of knockoff-brand breakers out on Amazon and such places that are known for either tripping well below their rated current or well above, so basically if it isn't a Bussman breaker, that's very likely your problem. The other possibility, of course, is that there's a short somewhere in the wiring, like maybe a loose POS strand that's shorting out on the chassis and popping the breaker (as it should in that case).

Yet another possibility is that if your connections aren't tight or there's a bad crimp somewhere along the line, the wire would be heating up and since many DC breakers are thermal-trip, the heat in the line could be causing the breaker to trip... or, for that matter, even your underhood temperatures depending on where you have the breaker mounted... thus why, if you can, I ask that you update this post with as many photos of the actual installation as possible, as that will be a great help in diagnosing the condition :)

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missy avatar image missy commented ·

Thank you for a detailed response!

The breaker is unbranded from amazon, I tried replacing it with an identical one, but that one also tripped, while the engine was off, after about 10 seconds.

I looked in the starter battery compartment and everything looked OK. I tugged on the cables attached to the battery and they were solid, as are all the nuts holding them on.

I'll post some pictures later as soon as I have decent signal!


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Justin Cook avatar image Justin Cook ♦♦ missy commented ·

@missy, yes I would start by throwing those breakers right out, as they're known for having bad internal connections which cause overheating as well as blowing either way below their ratings or never blowing at all. Toss those out and replace them with a good brand-name like Bussman; I typically recommend the Bussman Series 187F breaker for an installation like this, rated to 40 or 50A for the 12-12/30.

Also: why do you have a black cable attached to your POS battery terminal? It looks like the bottom (on the terminal) cable in the middle photo, looks to be a decent gauge like maybe 2/0 or thereabouts. Asking just because of course black is typically the color of a NEG connection, so it being attached to your POS battery post is deeply concerning.

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missy avatar image missy Justin Cook ♦♦ commented ·

OK, good advice, thanks. I'll have to see if I can get them in Spain somewhere.

The black cable was on the battery when we bought the van, it goes into the engine so I assume it's all OK and probably just ought to be red!


The Orion does run if I turn the breaker back on, sometimes it doesn't pop for a couple of hours. Today I have something new - on the app, it's showing "charge is disabled due to input voltage lock-out" and shows the input voltage as being 7-9V, occasionally going up to 12V.



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Justin Cook avatar image Justin Cook ♦♦ missy commented ·

@missy ahhh interesting; this is indicative of a poor connection on the input side. Again, possibly the breaker, but also very possibly a loose crimp or loose connection either at the Orion's terminals or at the battery itself.

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missy avatar image missy Justin Cook ♦♦ commented ·

Ah OK, thanks very much. I think I'll get an electrician to check it all then. Now I'm back on the road I wouldn't be able to crimp ends on for the new breakers either, so hopefully I can find someone to do it here in Spain.


Thanks for all your help!

Missy x

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nebulight avatar image
nebulight answered ·

What type of breaker do you have? A lot of cheap DC breakers will trip well before the rated capacity. Is the breaker installed near or at the starter battery?

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missy avatar image missy commented ·

Its a non branded one from amazon, perhaps that's the problem. It is very near the starter battery, I'll post pics when I have better signal!

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missy avatar image
missy answered ·

Location of the breaker.


The red cable nearest the bottom is the Orion one. It runs to the breaker then yo the Orion.


The top black cable runs from the starter to the Orion.


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