Magnum Inverter/Charger MMS1012

[bgartner]

I'm reaching out to see how often Redwood owners have had issues with their Magnum inverters. I recently pulled our 2016 38RE out of winter storage. The batteries were discharged. I plugged it in at home and after about 5 minutes a over current fault came on the remote display, for the inverter, and the fridge turned off. This happened around 4 times, I had to clear the fault each time, then it didn't happen again. I thought it was because the batteries were low. The next morning I noticed a burning smell in the storage compartment where the inverter is located. The inverter was off and would not turn on. I removed the inverter cover and found it burned up. We have a residential refrigerator so the power for it goes through the inverter. I plugged the fridge into another outlet so we could camp while waiting to get the inverter replaced. My question is, could a bad battery cause this? I had a problem with the inverter the first year we owned it which was caused by 2 bad batteries. The batteries were replaced in May of 2017. Do I really need the inverter? We don't travel more than 4-5 hours between plugging in the trailer so the fridge should stay cool. The batteries are charged by another charging unit when connected to power. Is the cost of replacing the inverter worth it? I don't know what else the inverter does besides providing power to the fridge when on the road. I'd like to get your opinion.
Thanks,
Bruce G

[wintertree]

Yes your fridge will stay cool for a while...If any doubt.....when you know your going to travel...the night before freeze up a milk jug or two with water and leave in your fridge during travels...turns your fridge into an ice box of sorts...to tide your perishables over till you reach shore power...
If there is no real need for 120v during travels....no need for an inverter...yes your coach already has a means of charging batteries (converter / charger)....so it may be viewed as an unnecessary expense if not needed....I take it while in storage you have access to power to keep your batteries charged....or a solar panel for that function ?....Inverters are quite reliable....but issues can occur...I have large magnums in our trawler and our RW....never had an issue....and really like the "smart" charging capabilities...Sounds like maybe you could save a buck and run without...Good luck !