Appliances - How to switch between battery power and AC power?

We just picked up our new (to us) 2006 3124KS today. Can anything on the TM be powered by the on-board 12-volt battery without being hooked up to tow vehicle or 30 amp electric service with plug?
What does the on/off rocker switch to the right of the door (inside) control?

As you see, we did not have a good pre delivery/ walk thru demo.
Many more questions to come, I'm sure.
Thanks for your help,
Darienne

[Riwright]

The rocker switch to the right of the door controls the outside light.

You can run almost everything in the camper off of the battery (at least until it runs out of juice.) The electrical system has two sections, one for 12 volt (battery power) and the other for 110-120 volt (normal household electrical power AKA "shore power.")

The air conditioner will not run on the battery, it just draws too much power. There are regular household plugs in several places that will be dead when not connected to shore power.

But everything else will run. Lights, toilet, water pump, furnace fan, exhuast fan -- all run on 12 volts. The frig will run on shore power, 12 volts or propane. Run on shore power when you have it, use 12 volts when you are on the road and propane when you are parked and have no shore power.

There is an excellent write-up, "The 12 volt side of life" that explains things in great detail. It's a good primer if you want to know how it all works.

Good luck and welcome to Trailmanor ownership.

Thanks for the info. It's sitting in the driveway, so not hooked up to anything. How do you switch power sources between 12 volt and 120 so TM functions while not hooked up to shore power or tv?

[hillbillyhotel]

hello
if battery is charged, it will work auto, lights and such,

and welcome

So it will automatically switch on it's own or is there a "magic button" that needs to be pushed?

[Barb&Tim]

Originally Posted by David&Darienne

So it will automatically switch on it's own or is there a "magic button" that needs to be pushed?

It's not really switching anything. Without shore power(110v Ac) if your 12v battery is already charged then it will provide 12v power to everything that uses 12v. When you plug the TM into shore power (110v AC) the 110v will be available at the Ac receptacles and will be provided to the Air Conditioner unit(you must turn the Air conditioner on). It will also power up the built-in converter unit(no action on your part required) that will recharge your TM 12v battery.

Tim

If by "on its own" you mean switch automatically between 110v shore power and 12v battery power, the answer is yes, it will switch power sources automatically. A couple of things...the batteries don't last too long, depending on their storage capacity and amount of use between charges. Also, noting the age of your TM, the tires should be changed roughly every 4 years max, worn or not. If you do need new tires, it is a very good idea to switch from 14" to 15" wheels. There are horror stories regarding trailer tires, so be vigilant!

Welcome to the TM Owner's Pages and to your new life with a TM...questions welcome!

[hillbillyhotel]

well yours is somewhat newer than ours, like on our lights , one way on the ceiling lights , one side is battery, and other side is shore power, but the fans and such are auto, might look at breaker also,
randy

[hillbillyhotel]

tks scott
i knew someone could type faster than me,

[B_and_D]

Congrats on our new TM!

Be careful about letting your battery run too low, it's not good for it. What kind of a battery do you have on your TM? Some are more forgiving than others.

http://www.marxrv.com/12volt/12volt.htm

http://www.marxrv.com/12volt/12volta.htm