Re: Williamsburg, VA

On Wed, 24 Jun 2009 23:39:32 -0500, Janet Wilder
<kelliepoodle@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

nothermark wrote:

The one Janet used is the one in her second message:


http://tinyurl.com/mggw3d

or

http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/product/portable-surge-guard/2279

This is an in line device between the pedestal and your power cord.
Because it is in the line it can interrupt the power if there is a
problem. Assuming that is what you want done. OTOH it does not warn
you inside the MH. Basically it's protection for Dummies - not bad
but you need to understand it to really be an effective user. Unless
I was messing about with really bad power I would go to the first
choice.

If I was in a place with bad power problems then I would consider
adding the in line unit.

We spent a lot of time at Thousand Trails campgrounds. They had the
worst power problems. Low voltage, bad wiring. The TRC Surge Guard saved
our bacon more than once.

The way I would use the items would be to plug the monitor into the
pedestal to check for ground and polarity problems. Then plug in the
power cord and put the monitor in a convenient outlet in the camper to
watch for brown outs as everybody turns on their air conditioner or
heater.


We plugged the monitor into the power pedestal than ran the cord into
the monitor. The bad electricity never got into the rig. We also hav a
voltage meter inside and we watched that. If there was low voltage (but
not low enough for the monitor to shut us down) we'd watch our power
useage. Many times we would switch the fridge onto gas and shut off the
AC. That's why we also had two Fantastic Vents.

Essentially what I recommended except the monitor has an audible alarm
so you do not have to watch it.


If I was really paranoid or in a place with bad lightning problems I
would be inclined to just pull the plug during a storm.

It's not just for storms. There are RV parks with crappy electric
service. We had a power surge that fried our monitor (it was still under
warranty so we got it replaced) while sitting in an RV park on a lovely
day. Three other rigs were on the same line and they all had significant
damage to appliances and electrical systems. We didn't.

I am not challenging you on this. From what I read there are places
with power problems from bad wiring. FWIW I have heard more from the
folks out west than in the northeast where I think inspections may be
more rigorous.

It would be interesting to know what caused a surge of that magnitude.
Mostly it is lightning hits, very big motors, or something like a
blown transformer feeding back down the line before other protection
trips. Motors that big are usually put in correctly. Transformers
are pretty reliable devices unless hit by an outside force like
lightning or ice storms. That leaves thunderstorms that are usually
noticeable and led to my comment. Pulling the plug beats any isolator
made.

The other option for the damage you describe is a prolonged low line
voltage or "brown out". Your line monitor should have caught that.
Audible alarms help there.

Thinking this through a bit more I it occurs to me that if I was
seeing any brown out alarms I would also pull the plug if I was
heading out in the toad. Even at today's prices I can run the refer a
long time on $300 worth of propane. ;-)


You can't always be watching a voltage meter. Low voltage is as
insidious as a surge. It can ruin TVs and other electronics.

That is why you want an audible alarm on your line monitor.



Our power line monitor was part of our electric monitoring kit. The
other two parts were a voltage meter for inside the rig and a circuit
tester.

That is a fine upper end kit. Some folks here can blithely go that
way and some of us need to watch our pennies. Most are somewhere in
between so I wrote this to help folks calbrate their needs vs their
wants. If I say anything too dumb I expect to be corrected. ;-) I
also understand that what I need as a part timer is not what I might
think I need as a full timer.
.

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