Are surge protectors needed?

[billcf7]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

Our surge protector has caught faulty campground wiring on a couple of occasions. We do not leave home without it.

I am planning on installing a permanent EMS in the future but that is about middle of the mod priority list right now.

The problem with installing permanent ems is you have to plug in rv to verify clean power. Portable you can check power pole before you park

[Scott]

Originally Posted by billcf7

The problem with installing permanent ems is you have to plug in rv to verify clean power. Portable you can check power pole before you park

Around here, parks are full most weekends, so you need reservations. No weekend camping on a whim. You simply cannot swap out sites if the power is bad. So what do you do then?

I do have a surge protector that I used on my old popup. I've thought about getting an EMS, but have not yet because I don't have an answer for my question above. No one from the campground is going to fix the power pole in my site on a Friday night.

[AKRUEBBE]

Originally Posted by Scott

Around here, parks are full most weekends, so you need reservations. No weekend camping on a whim. You simply cannot swap out sites if the power is bad. So what do you do then?

I do have a surge protector that I used on my old popup. I've thought about getting an EMS, but have not yet because I don't have an answer for my question above. No one from the campground is going to fix the power pole in my site on a Friday night.

I've had problems (low voltage) twice over the last 12 months and the CG sent someone out within a half hour. One was in a county park after the office was closed. They know the seriousness of electrical problems.

[Vicr]

Originally Posted by billcf7

The problem with installing permanent ems is you have to plug in rv to verify clean power. Portable you can check power pole before you park

So you stop in the campground road, get out your portable EMS walk to the pedestal, wait for the EMS to read the power, and if the power is good then you park. M
Meanwhile you are blocking other traffic wanting to go by. If there is an issue with the power at the pedestal do you just drive home?

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by Vicr

So you stop in the campground road, get out your portable EMS walk to the pedestal, wait for the EMS to read the power, and if the power is good then you park. M
Meanwhile you are blocking other traffic wanting to go by. If there is an issue with the power at the pedestal do you just drive home?

Of course, because that 15 seconds it take for the EMS to power up, backs up many other campers trying to get by.

And, no one has ever stopped in front of a campsite, gotten out and surveyed the site, before backing in?

Being an experienced electrician, you don't think it's a good idea to plug in a portable EMS and test the pedestal, before plugging the actual rig into it, and possibly frying something?

[LuckyDuck]

Originally Posted by Scott

Around here, parks are full most weekends, so you need reservations. No weekend camping on a whim. You simply cannot swap out sites if the power is bad. So what do you do then?

I do have a surge protector that I used on my old popup. I've thought about getting an EMS, but have not yet because I don't have an answer for my question above. No one from the campground is going to fix the power pole in my site on a Friday night.

Seems to me it’s better to find out there is a problem and go somewhere else or use batteries, than it is to not know and fry my rig.

[Vicr]

Originally Posted by RetiredOne

Of course, because that 15 seconds it take for the EMS to power up, backs up many other campers trying to get by.

And, no one has ever stopped in front of a campsite, gotten out and surveyed the site, before backing in?

Being an experienced electrician, you don't think it's a good idea to plug in a portable EMS and test the pedestal, before plugging the actual rig into it, and possibly frying something?

I have a hard wired EMS With remote display and it has a 120 second delay to evaluate power and then close the circuit. As an experienced back packer, camper and RV’er I don’t think it’s to polite to block the trail or road. There have been times I could have written a novel in the time it takes some RVers to get the hell out of the road.

[Vicr]

Originally Posted by LuckyDuck

Seems to me it’s better to find out there is a problem and go somewhere else or use batteries, than it is to not know and fry my rig.

There’s a thing called a multimeter you can use to check pedestal power before plugging in.

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by Vicr

I have a hard wired EMS With remote display and it has a 120 second delay to evaluate power and then close the circuit.

I have a Progressive portable EMS. Within seconds of flipping on the breaker, I get voltage, hertz, amps and error codes. Then, 124 seconds later, the relay closes to send current to whatever is plugged in.

There have been times I could have written a novel in the time it takes some RVers to get the hell out of the road.

So, that would be longer than 124 seconds?

Originally Posted by Vicr

There’s a thing called a multimeter you can use to check pedestal power before plugging in.

A multimeter will only give you a voltage readout. It's not going to give you frequency, amps, or any other data or error codes like this that a EMS provides:


You said you are an electrician and have a EMS. Doesn't your hardwired EMS do this, and provide this level of data?

[Vicr]

You like being confrontational don’t you? I don’t have the time or the inclination to debate you at this time. I actually have to get up at 4:30 in the morning and travel into Seattle where I’m a General Foreman working on a 44 story high rise. Good night and have a pleasant tomorrow.

[RAurand]

ABSOLUTELY, Not a surge protector BUT AN EMS!

Read these post and READ # 10.
https://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f...ing-48571.html

[RetiredOne]

Originally Posted by Vicr

You like being confrontational don’t you?

No, I like to be accurate and helpful to everyone reading here and looking for information, as much as possible.

For you, as an experienced electrician (that you've told us, over and over) to tell someone to use a multimeter to check the status of a pedestal, when it's known that a EMS provides so much more helpful data and information, is just really careless and inaccurate.

I'd hate to see your suggestions hurt someone, or even worse, kill them.

[Vicr]

Since when is using a multimeter dangerous? It’s not. And as far as information goes at a pedestal voltage is paramount, amperage doesn’t exist until a load is applied and frequency’s.. really American utilities all produce 60hz. Find another argument.

[JFlightRisk]

thread closed