WFCO 8700 SERIES 35 AMP POWER CENTER - DIY REPLACEMENT IN OUR JAYCO 185RB

The DC power converter in our Jayco 185RB was doing some strange things lately and we had a feeling it needed to be replaced.
▬ *AFFILIATE LINKS ▬
✅ WFCO WF-8735-P Brown 35 Amp Power Center
(note when we received it, it was black)
amzn.to/2UvADsI
▬ ABOUT US ▬
"We're young enough to still have a lot to learn, but old enough not to care!"
We are a middle aged, DIY couple building a debt-free earth sheltered house and a sustainable off-grid modern homestead in the Adirondack Park of New York State for our retirement in June 2021! Check out our 'about' page link above for more information!
Sincerely,
Rich & Kathie
#diyrv #adirondackpark #buildingahomesteadfromscratch #modernhomesteading #simpleliving #sustainableliving
*A Note About Affiliates: This video and description may contain affiliate links to various products. If you click through and make a purchase, we will receive a small commission. It does not affect the price you pay in any way and we thank you in advance for your support :-)

[@AdrianMartinez-lx4ic]

Buen video

[@davidstein606]

Good job

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thank you!

[@ericperry9590]

If you want to keep mice out of your battery box, fold up a dryer sheet and tuck it down on the side away from the battery terminals. They don't like the smell of dryer sheets. It works great when you store your camper in the winter.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Yes! Thanks. I’ve heard this before and will have to give it a try👍

[@garydalrymple7308]

Hi there, I realize this video is 2 yrs old now but it saved my life. I had 12v off and on flickering until all 12v lights etc died completely. I picked up a brand new converter about 2 hrs ago and decided to check KZbin for advice, hints etc and I found your video. EXACTLY the same problems as you had and the EXACT same charger. Mine didn’t come with the manual though, they’ve migrated everything online. Replaced my converter just as you did, remembering to mark AC lines with sharpie. I even had to remove the ground block as you did. Everything works now. No bangs, sparks or release of magic smoke. Your video was awesome and I thank you sincerely for taking the time to post this video, it made it much easier. Thanks again. I’ve also subscribed to your channel.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thanks so much. I had tried to find something when I had the problem and couldn’t so I’m glad I did it. Makes me feel good to know it helped 👍

[@danieleisenhart1124]

Thanks for the video. I’m going thru the same problem now

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Hope it works out for you 👍

[@my3sonsnh]

Without risk there is no reward. That’s the spirit. I have the same job waiting for me at the end of our current trip! A real DIY video complete with all the commentary. You also have a great assistant!

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thank you!

[@elcraigito]

I have to replace this very same unit and this is the only video I found that actually shows me how to do so. Thanks!!

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

That’s exactly why we made it! Let me know how it works out 👍

[@elcraigito]

@@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid about to go give it a shot now!! What tools did you use besides the volt meter?

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

I’d honestly have to rewatch the video to remember all, but offhand I know I used a wire cutter, wire stripper, and a screw driver. Also some wire nuts…

[@angelrvbajacenter5047]

Good job,thank you for sharing I learn about it

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thanks for watching and commenting 👍

[@the-minhtu7448]

Excellent video !!! great questions from Kathie and good answers from Rich.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thank you!

[@ceesteven]

Nice job! Thanks for sharing. May God Bless.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thank you 👍

[@ghettovanadventures]

Nice job...I hate confined space wiring You are right, I bet you saved a fortune....

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thanks!

[@daves1646]

Thanks for the look at the guts of the electrical connections. Replacing my power converter with one that will charge lithium ion type batteries as well as regular flooded lead acid and AGM. Good to see where the ‘wrangling’ will likely be with the AC wire connections and the case grommets. So much of taking on a new job is knowing what the challenging steps are and you showed those excellently. Again, MANY THANKS!

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Hope it all works out for you!

[@daves1646]

@@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid All went well. Only surprise was that new lithium batt capable power station uses the two in one circuit breakers instead of the narrow one each breakers in my original power station. As soon as I get a harder to find combination breaker (15amp, 20 amp combo breaker), I’ll be done. Thank you again for the look inside. Many of the things you highlighted helped me anticipate the need and get it done smoothly!

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

@@daves1646 Good to know! Thanks :-) And glad to be of help

[@Patriot-pq1ku]

I'm doing a cargo trailer/ rv an bought the same converter thank you for the video it helped me a lot

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Glad it helped. Really appreciate the feedback. Let me know how it works out for you if you get a chance. Rich

[@billhackley3540]

bought a 2021 popup camper with solar and all wfco components inside, the inverter went out in two months. replacing it with another brand after contacting wfco and reading negative reviews. we only charged our phones using it not impressed with wfco

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

That is totally not cool. Sounds like a total lemon. Curious what brand you replaced it with because if mine goes again, I might upgrade to another as well. Thanks!

[@billhackley3540]

sungold 3000 watt inverter charger and 2 200 watt hour ampere time lithium's to replace lead acid. love the combo

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thank you! I will definitely check it out. The lithium batteries are really good upgrade too!

[@ebersalcido8810]

Is your main breaker a tandem 30/30 or 30/20?. Thanks

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Ours is just a 30 amp with a 20 and I think 3 15’s. Runs 3600 watts max

[@Dave-sq9xz]

Looks like a lose connection or the mouse ate some wires

[@bmoore3199]

Excellent video ! Thanks so much for sharing this. I feel confident now about swapping out my WFCO converter .

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Glad it was helpful!

[@mikegentile13]

How did you remove the breaker? Just the one screw?

[@caroleemoreno8086]

What is the black wire coming off the new converter that has the wire nut on it with the pigtail on it? Where did you connect that?

[@dasoracle]

A year later, thanks for the video. Was adding another switch panel to control some additional things on ours. This helped me understand how the system was hooked up and the confidence from that understanding made for great success.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Great to hear!

[@subicbay100]

I love your video its very informative. I have a prewired solar that is connected to the WFCO 8700 series. Do I need a a charge controller to be connected from my prewired solar into the power charge battery of the WFCO?

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

I'm not sure exactly what you are asking, but I use a 20 watt solar panel and have the charge controller connected to the 12 volt trailer battery. You can see what I did in this video at 7:20.

[@deathymckill9707]

Haha, electical work is definitely a great time for rain

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Yup! Lol

[@rejh]

Il y a une petite fuse dans le fond du convertisseur qui était peut être sautée.

[@edwardbabb6034]

There is a black wire that comes out inside to the AC wire connection area. Do you know where that connects to? All my other AC wires that connect to circuit breakers were marked, but never noticed that one until too late. Seems like it must be an AC supply to the converter circuitry itself. Any hint? That wire was made of two black wires spliced together, so it is pretty unique.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Yes that is there for an auxiliary AC circuit if you need it . I cut and capped mine because it was not needed in our system. Thanks for watching

[@oxford821]

Holy crap! That is happening to our truck camper right now. The exhaust fans and lights went dim then stopped working. I took the converter out, saw all the wires, then put it back in, haha. So many wires! I’m not sure if I’m ready for that project. You did a great job, I woulda been so miserable doing that.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Lol. I wasn’t looking forward to it but got it done. Ours was on the fritz for most of the summer before I got the nerve up to fix it!

[@Adirondack_Jo]

You have such cute creatures...they seem to love your place! lol Another great video, guys.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Lol. Thanks!

[@texasproud3332]

Great job rich I have done the same thing on my Jayco 23b quite an adventure but I have to admit being a master electrician did help Lol

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Master electrician! Wow thanks. I feel pretty proud of myself now👍 appreciate that very much .

[@BGNGAMES]

Great videos what tools were needed for model WF-8700 replacement? I'll have to diy attempt this as well. 🙏🏾

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thanks. I needed some wire nuts, a wire stripper, wire cutter, phililps head screw driver and a whole lot of patience. Very worth it though and still working!

[@BGNGAMES]

@@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid awesome...I managed to get the shore power and 2 of my 3 outlets working with the new panel. Today I'll try to figure out how to get it to trickle charge my batteries via inverter if possible

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

@@BGNGAMES The trickle charge works great and its not hard to do

[@BGNGAMES]

@@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid just got to Sebago Lake and will check it out. Do you have Telegram or something if I have questions?

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

@@BGNGAMES you can email at [e-mail] :-) Sebago lake sounds familiar - is that in NY?

[@MB-ph5lz]

There's a much easier way to replace this. You could have just replaced the printed circuit board, which supplies your 12VDC power to the fuses. You'll have to remove the fan to access this pc board. 3 wires coming from the breakers (white, green & black) are all that need to be unhooked on the AC side. Then on the circuit board with the row of 6 fuses, tie in your DC supply wires. Hopefully, you won't have to do this again though but great job on making this video.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Appreciate that very much. Good info. But really hope I don’t ever need to do it again!

[@MB-ph5lz]

@@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid haha. I don't blame you. I have to replace one soon for someone so hopefully it's gonna be easier! Lol

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

@@MB-ph5lz hopefully!

[@ralphc750]

Are you saying the circuit board is the bad converter?

[@MB-ph5lz]

@@ralphc750 Well if you measure AC going into the board, coming from the breakers, you should have DC coming out. If you don't measure DC going to your fuses then most likely, your circuit board is the problem.

[@lkrobbins1]

Ermergerd! I hope I never have to replace my converter, but this really helped me to understand how my electrical system works in my Rpod. Great explanations.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

We didn’t want to have to do it either but we are super glad we figured it out! Thanks for watching and commenting 👍

[@TheCanadianBubba]

Lucky like 13 ! Looked more organized when you were done with it Rich great work ! Kathie with the impressive question at the 3:00 mark... smart cookie her ! Way to go you two !

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thank you!!!!

[@SeniorHiker77]

Thanks goodness for a trouble shooting schematic. I would run girl come back later. Lol

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Lol. Thanks for watching 👍

[@RCAFpolarexpress]

Great electrical maintenance and fixe video Sir 👌 and great camera works Miss 😊 Did you install your ground rods beside your generator ? 🤔🤣 Have a great week to both of you Cheers👌😊

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thanks. Everything is closed up for the winter so groundrods will be done in spring. 👍

[@RCAFpolarexpress]

@@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid 👌😊

[@tonybells131]

Good job of trouble shooting and repair ! Labeling replacement wires , yes sir. Thanks for posting.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Thanks!

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

We are young enough to still have a lot to learn, old enough not to care! ~ Rich & Kathie

[@Viper6-MotoVlogger]

I had to laugh when that mouse jumped out of the battery case. Electrical issues can be a pain in the butt.

[@CreatingASimplerLifeOffGrid]

Lol. We had to laugh too because it’s a losing battle!!!