I am having quite an issue.....We have a residential fridge in the new 5'er we bought...I know, YAY!!!....except that we haven't got a clue about how to work the inverter for when we aren't hooked up to power and don't want all of the contents in said fridge to spoil We tried to work it when we made our move from our last campground to the current one and had no luck..(luckily only 3hr drive and not much in fridge to spoil). Now we are looking at making a 17hr move for our next job assignment, and it would be really nice for the thing to work for at least some of that trip I have asked all around and no one seems to know much about them since the residential fridge thing is fairly newer.....I can say that it seems to not have a stitch of power to it at all no matter what we do. No indicator lights come one...no read out on the display......and not sure if this makes a difference but there is a "combiner" next to it on the bulkhead and it is always lit up as being "disconnected". The battery disconnect switch is turned to on.....we have had power outages before and the typical things worked that would normally work off of battery for the little time it was out. However, the fridge will not because the inverter seems to be dead...for lack of a better word. I'm hoping that is not the issue....so I am coming to you guys to hopefully help me figure out other things to look at before ruling it DOA!
WestWardHo said
06:12 PM Jun 29, 2014
Sounds like you have a new unit which may still be under warranty. Can you call Open Range Customer Service first thing on Monday and get answers specific to your unit?
Good luck.
Sherry
DenJen12 said
06:17 PM Jun 29, 2014
I never seem to get through to anyone at the company....and the people at the dealership weren't all that helpful as they really would rather us bring it in for them to diagnose...your know, more $$$ that way But I will have to be pushing for something if I can't figure it out with help from someone on one of the forums I am part of....I put the question out to the members of the Open Range Owners forum as well....between this and that one, hopefully I will have an idea what I'm looking at at least.
NorCal Dan said
06:26 PM Jun 29, 2014
The items that worked normally during the power outage, were they all 12VDC items like lights? It sounds like your inverter, for whatever reason, is not producing 120VAC. Do you have the manuals for the inverter and combiner? If not, get the model numbers off of them and do some google searching for them online. Here's some info I found on the Magnum inverter-combiner: http://magnumenergy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/SBC_smartbatterycombiner_data_sheet_revb.pdf
DenJen12 said
06:31 PM Jun 29, 2014
Yes, everything that worked were 12VDC items during power outages. I do have the manuals but they don't have much info in them at all! Basically how to turn them on, but nothing for when they don't turn on. Ours is a Pure Sine Wave inverter not too sure about the combiner. I'm doing research now as well as crossing my fingers for a little snip of help on the forums to at least push me in the right direction
NorCal Dan said
06:41 PM Jun 29, 2014
Post the make and model so we can research them. There is bound to be info on the internet...
Lonney Wade said
07:12 PM Jun 29, 2014
You did not say what the volt readings were on the batteries and how many batteries you had, this will help!
Lonney
Glenn West said
08:45 AM Jul 18, 2014
I don't have and open range but will try to help. Most inverters has an on/off switch since there are times you don't want it running. It draws power also. Check to see if it is off. Most units, and all should be, has a sub panel for the inverter. That panel feeds your fridge and other legs hooked to it. I have seen units with an inverter and a residential fridge that the fridge was not wired to the sub panel. I just removed wire from main panel and pulled it to sub and all was good. Let us know what you find out.
Terry and Jo said
12:16 PM Jul 18, 2014
Dennis and Jennee,
I know your dealership as we have bought three different RV's from Lewis RV over the years. Your Open Range should still be in warranty and thus it shouldn't cost you anything but the cost of traveling to the dealership. Be sure and set an appointment so that they can get it in the day you arrive.
We have a Xantrex 3000 watt inverter that is also the converter. For me to use it as an inverter, I do have to turn the inverter portion on at a control box in the "coat closet" by the entry door.
Good luck with the problem and the drive up north. We have a residential fridge in our trailer and we had no problems with no power for our moving from Oklahoma to Colorado. However, in our moving, the longest move we made in one day was 200 miles. I've heard folks say that a fridge should be good without power for something like 6 to 8 hours, as long as the doors are kept closed.
Terry
Glenn West said
03:29 PM Jul 18, 2014
Actually your inverter is also a charger. You likely have a separate converter also. You should. When you park your camper and plug it into 110 at house you need to turn off inverter and plug in/turn on converter. they come in very handy used like this. We are full time so our converter is never used.
bjoyce said
03:30 PM Jul 18, 2014
My residential fridge cannot go 6 to 8 hours. I know, because I have a wireless thermometer - http://www.amazon.com/ACU_RITE-Refrigerator-Wireless-Thermometer-00986/dp/B004QJVU78. The freezer was up to 25 degrees after 4 hours. Fridge models vary on how long they can go without power, both in models and installation. To be sure, you need to know the temperatures. The wireless thermometer and batteries are cheaper than spoiled food, or getting sick on food you didn't know was spoiled. The freezer thermometer does need AA lithium batteries, freezer temps are too cold for alkaline.
Glenn West said
03:35 PM Jul 18, 2014
Ours won't either. It is 11 years old though. Might not be insulated as good as newer ones.
Barbaraok said
04:51 PM Jul 18, 2014
Glenn,
Why would you need a converter if one already has an inverter/converter? When hooked up we just turn the invert portion off and let it float charge for the batteries.
Barb
bjoyce said
10:12 PM Jul 18, 2014
A good converter with a 3-stage charger still has its uses. I know multiple people who remove the shore power wiring and put in a plug for an extension cord in theirs. When on low amp power, like a 15 amp driveway camping cord or a small Honda generator, they plug it into the converter to keep the batteries up. Then everything on the big inverter/charger is available, microwave, etc.
Glenn West said
08:15 AM Jul 19, 2014
Like Bill said, if we were not full time and stored our camper and wanted to have power on it, we would turn off inverter and plug in converter. It uses less current and will keep batteries up. Even when on shore power we could turn inverter off and use converter to save energy. I suspect the op has their inverter turned off. Sounds as if they were not informed in the use of it from dealer. It's possible that they didn't know themselves.
DenJen12 said
10:11 AM Jul 19, 2014
Thanks for all the replies. I haven't been on in a couple days as we had our move date pushed up and we have been on the road. We had the guy that transported our trailer look at the inverter (he has quite a bit of knowledge on them as that is all he does) and he believes it just not wired correctly. The inverter itself seems to be completely dead. No buttons you push make any difference. We are now in the Indoor RV park in North Dakota and there are some people around that I can have come look at it for us. We just emptied the fridge and freezer for this trip and hauled it all in coolers to my mothers house in Nebraska.....and left it all there...LOL. It was a two day trip and by the time the trailer got here, the fridge was reading 66 degrees. It will definitely be nice to get that inverter fixed for the next time....however I believe we have about a year and a half to figure it out. Thanks again everyone!
Glenn West said
10:17 AM Jul 19, 2014
The on/off switch on mine is behind a panel. Have you looked?
bjoyce said
11:44 AM Jul 19, 2014
Don't forget to do any testing, learning or planning during that year and a half.
DenJen12 said
01:05 PM Jul 19, 2014
Glenn, our on/off switch is on the front near the read out screen.
dewwood said
07:52 AM Jul 20, 2014
I am not saying this is your problem, but I do know that several people that have the residential refers are finding the inverter to be too small to operate the refer. They have been working with the manufacturers to resolve the issue. You may want to check with your manufacturer to see if they can help you.
DenJen12 said
12:47 PM Jul 25, 2014
Ours isn't a problem of size. Ours just flat won't come on at all. No lights, no read out. The inverter itself seems dead. I just got a card of a mobile rv repair service up here and will be giving them a call to try and get this figured out. I have been told that it may be wired wrong or it is just like i said, dead.
I am having quite an issue.....We have a residential fridge in the new 5'er we bought...I know, YAY!!!....except that we haven't got a clue about how to work the inverter for when we aren't hooked up to power and don't want all of the contents in said fridge to spoil
We tried to work it when we made our move from our last campground to the current one and had no luck..(luckily only 3hr drive and not much in fridge to spoil). Now we are looking at making a 17hr move for our next job assignment, and it would be really nice for the thing to work for at least some of that trip 
I have asked all around and no one seems to know much about them since the residential fridge thing is fairly newer.....I can say that it seems to not have a stitch of power to it at all no matter what we do. No indicator lights come one...no read out on the display......and not sure if this makes a difference but there is a "combiner" next to it on the bulkhead and it is always lit up as being "disconnected". The battery disconnect switch is turned to on.....we have had power outages before and the typical things worked that would normally work off of battery for the little time it was out. However, the fridge will not because the inverter seems to be dead...for lack of a better word. I'm hoping that is not the issue....so I am coming to you guys to hopefully help me figure out other things to look at before ruling it DOA!
Good luck.
Sherry
The items that worked normally during the power outage, were they all 12VDC items like lights? It sounds like your inverter, for whatever reason, is not producing 120VAC. Do you have the manuals for the inverter and combiner? If not, get the model numbers off of them and do some google searching for them online. Here's some info I found on the Magnum inverter-combiner: http://magnumenergy.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/SBC_smartbatterycombiner_data_sheet_revb.pdf
You did not say what the volt readings were on the batteries and how many batteries you had, this will help!
Lonney
Dennis and Jennee,
I know your dealership as we have bought three different RV's from Lewis RV over the years. Your Open Range should still be in warranty and thus it shouldn't cost you anything but the cost of traveling to the dealership. Be sure and set an appointment so that they can get it in the day you arrive.
We have a Xantrex 3000 watt inverter that is also the converter. For me to use it as an inverter, I do have to turn the inverter portion on at a control box in the "coat closet" by the entry door.
Good luck with the problem and the drive up north. We have a residential fridge in our trailer and we had no problems with no power for our moving from Oklahoma to Colorado. However, in our moving, the longest move we made in one day was 200 miles. I've heard folks say that a fridge should be good without power for something like 6 to 8 hours, as long as the doors are kept closed.
Terry
My residential fridge cannot go 6 to 8 hours. I know, because I have a wireless thermometer - http://www.amazon.com/ACU_RITE-Refrigerator-Wireless-Thermometer-00986/dp/B004QJVU78. The freezer was up to 25 degrees after 4 hours. Fridge models vary on how long they can go without power, both in models and installation. To be sure, you need to know the temperatures. The wireless thermometer and batteries are cheaper than spoiled food, or getting sick on food you didn't know was spoiled. The freezer thermometer does need AA lithium batteries, freezer temps are too cold for alkaline.
Why would you need a converter if one already has an inverter/converter? When hooked up we just turn the invert portion off and let it float charge for the batteries.
Barb
I am not saying this is your problem, but I do know that several people that have the residential refers are finding the inverter to be too small to operate the refer. They have been working with the manufacturers to resolve the issue. You may want to check with your manufacturer to see if they can help you.