Which WFCO to buy?

[225]

Which is the best WFCO breaker box to buy? I need a 35 amp AC/DC one.

Which ones are you guys using? And do they hold up good?

Thanks!

[GuitarPhotog]

I use a WFCO 8725 (25-amp) in my trailer and had to send it in for warranty repair after about 13 months of use. If I were starting over, I'd pick a Progressive Dynamics converter instead. They are bigger (smallest unit is 40A) and have more circuits (overkill for my 4 X 10 ft teardrop), but are American made and seem to have fewer complaints about failures.

<Chas>

[225]

Thanks. Can you give me a model #?

James

[GuitarPhotog]

Check out the 4045 here http://www.progressivedyn.com/all_in_one_pd4000.html

<Chas>

[Shadow Catcher]

I will second GP, Google WFCO complaints and you will see why the recommendation for Progressive Dynamics. PD is made in the US and from first hand experience quick to respond if there is a problem. I encountered this Youtube video on the way to something else http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKZ9KSX1rno

[bdosborn]

x3 on the PD.

Bruce

[225]

I ordered one today.

Thanks!

[mustangcats]

I have the WFCO 8945 and so far, so good. It seems though that there are a lot of people online who report problems with their WFCO converters, but I have not seen any reports of what caused the failure and if anyone fixed them themselves. I'm guessing that possibly some simple component failed (such as a capacitor) and could be fixed for next to nothing. Has anybody here repaired one themselves, and if so, what was the faulty part or parts? What about a schematic or service manual...are they available? It seems as though a soldering iron and some new components would be an easy fix. Other than some small online pictures, I have not gotten a close look at what the main board consists of. This spring I plan to open mine up to see what parts are on the board.

[GuitarPhotog]

The folks at Cheng International (the distributors) told me there was no service manual or schematic available for my 8725, and that I had to send it to Indiana for service.

While I'm handy with a soldering iron, I'm not so good with modern surface mount components and wouldn't want to do additional damage trying to replace some blown component, even if I could identify it. I don't think service is feasible without specialized tools for de-soldering/re-soldering SMT components.

<Chas>

[Shadow Catcher]

I have heard of folks making repairs but they were very knowledgeable. When you look at the guts they appear to be direct mounted to the PC board.

[mustangcats]

Now that I see a larger picture, it looks more complicated and not user repairable If mine does fail on me, I will at least take a look and check for anything obvious. I would check all the solder joints and make sure none were loose. If they weren't done carefully at the factory they could work loose from all the vibrations while travelling down the road.