Surge protectors?

[KTM251ss]

Originally Posted by SHO Continen

I just added a Progressive EMS-HW30C to my old Flair 22D. I think it's a more elegant solution than having to plug in a separate EMS (that might walk off) at the pedestal.

I do run computers, tv, bluray, tv, a bunch of different battery chargers for various cameras and electronics, phones/ipad. I treat it just like the S&B and run them all through separate surge protectors. That's enough peace of mind though.

Instead of plugging the surge protector in at the pole, plug it into your power cord inside your bay and then take your 30A/50A extension cord and plug that into the surge guard and then plug that into the pole. You can keep your bay door locked and not get the Surge protector ripped off. Won't help if you need to use both power cords for a long reach though.

[wa8yxm]

YOu say your class A has an Internal Surge Protector.. Do you know the make and model?

now some,, Well a Progressive Industries HW-50C (or 30c) are "internal" and TRC also makes one (40250 I think) which is also the transfer switch.

But I will give you the standard I use:
Does it have a LED or LCD display that shows Voltage, and optional Current on each leg, and which shows ERROR CODES which are either plain english or which are Explained in the owner's manual

IE: E-12 ______
or E-1 ________
(Fill in the blanks with the meaning)

or "Open Ground" or High Voltage L-2

IF so, then this is likely a good surge guard.

NOW: I have a box, with 2 LED's. it is called a "Surge Protector" but in fact is a spike suppressor Nothing more

What is the difference?

Spikes are short duration (less than 1/60 Second normally) where as a Surge can last several seconds.

Also if you plug into say a dryer or welder outlet using an adapter.. The Spike Supressor will either do nothing or make like Independence Day Fire Works (BANG.. Trust me on this. Been there when it happened.. NOT my fault though, Power company contractor mis-wired and doubled the voltage ... at least.. Took out a computer power supply, a blower motor (Furnace) and a whole bunch of Metal oxcide Varisistors (Spike Suppressors)

A true Surge guard. if you plug into a Welder outlet (240 volts) using a 20 amp adapter will display an error code or text along the lines of

240 volts. DO NOT BYPASS

or in plainer english... IDIOT that's not an RV outlet....

Either way you just saved many times the cost of the Protector and a lot of grief as they are designed to survive that unlike many of the devices in your RV which may suffer a loss of magic smoke if you do that.

And yes.. I mentioned the spike suppressor... I also have a Surge guard just to be safe.. It also suppresses spikes but too much spike supression is.. Well.. not likely to happen.

Another of a true Surge guard is a "power on delay" mine is 17X seconds (Not sure of the last digit) Though power here in the RV park where I'm stranded for the next month or 2 (no longer) is the best of any RV park I have ever visited, In fact each site has a dedicated line back to the master distribution box (with one exception) no other sites on that line, unlike most parks where you can have up to 10 sites on a single breaker... We do have the occasional "Blink" This is a power company side issue where power goes out for like one second.. Now if it's summer and the A/C's are Cing the A... This is very very very hard on the compressors.. Not to mention that even with an ideal set up like this park has electrically.. It's gonna play havoc with the voltages when all 20+ RV's try to re-start their Air Conditoner compressors with a full head of pressure already... So mine just sits there for almost 3 minutes.. lets' things settle down both internally (pressure bleed off on the A/C so it's a normal re-start not a "hot start") and externally (voltage roller coaster pulls into the 120 volt station and stops there) and then... CLUNK, my power returns.. Nice and sweet.

That's why I have the Surge protector.

Why the Spike supressor as well...
To be honest.. Got it at a "Fire Sale" as it were, Never got around to hooking it to the house power system.. put it in the RV instead. So it was just a piece of Surplus hardware at the time. Useful.. But not as good as the Big Box.

[dons2346]

"However, if you rely on the built-in surge protector installed by the manufacturer of the MH, you need to know that they are only good for spikes in power, and do NOT handle low power situations which can do just as much harm to your coach."

Well, here is a picture of my manufacturer installed protector. I do believe it does everything needed to protect the coach. There are two major brands of surge protectors and both handle all functions, open ground, high voltage, low voltage, spikes, etc.

[geocacher924]

Surge guard plus model 40350RVC. Automatic transfer switch with RV power protection.

Next question, since this model has an automatic transfer switch, which the manual states will kick over to the generator after a predetermined time frame, if I use an external protector, will that feature still work?

I'm guessing it will because the built in protector will now have no power.

[Pigman1]

Originally Posted by DWRichard

Not quite accurate. If you have a built it Progressive (or other third-party surge protectors) that might have been installed by a previous owner, you're probably good to go. However, if you rely on the built-in surge protector installed by the manufacturer of the MH, you need to know that they are only good for spikes in power, and do NOT handle low power situations which can do just as much harm to your coach.

With shore power being iffy at many older RV parks, installing or carrying one of the Progressive surge protectors is cheap insurance.

DW has it right. If you don't believe it, get the exact specs on what your coach protector is covering. Then go to the Progressive for their specs and compare. When we bought our 2013 Allegro Bus, Tiffin was reluctant to give me the exact specs on the factory furnished equipment, but when I insisted, they finally came through. A quick comparison and the Progressive unit went in. No contest. My Progressive unit even picked up a failure in my home power company's power transformer. Once I called them, they came right out and did a major transformer replacement for a number of customers on the power line leg.

[tdelisle]

I mean no disrespect but how can you believe the importance of a product from the manufacturer of said product? I have been searching for fact that these are necessary and I can't find it. All I can find is a lot of people that have installed them because they were told they needed it.

[Caswelld]

Originally Posted by tdelisle

I mean no disrespect but how can you believe the importance of a product from the manufacturer of said product?

I understand your comment regarding what manufacturers will say. But with an electrical monitoring system (EMS) you never worry about dirty power from the park. It's not just surges that can cause significant problems, but low voltage, no ground & other things electrical can ruin your day. New MHs have so much electronics in them that we decided to add this to the coach. You can read about other folks experience with electrical problems when they plugged into a bad RV park electrical outlet. It’s exciting to read. Yikes!

Many recommend the Progressive EMS, you can see it here:

Progressive Industries RV Surge and Electrical Protection industry lea

I paid a RV Tech $50 to wire it in, you might be able to do it yourself.

An EMS is kind of like insurance, 'ya don't need it until ya do'

After a steering damper, this is the first upgrade I would recommend.

Happy camping.

Dave

[Pigman1]

You don't have to believe the manufacturer. Get all the technical specifications from the manufacturers, and compare them yourself. If you don't know what one item is, Google it and learn. Then consider testimonials from people who have one, and learn some more. One comment might make me suspicious. Many comments from many people, and that might be something to seriously consider. With the Internet and Internet search engines today ignorance = lazy. Don't be there, be smart.

[Dark Sky]

Any comments on the Hughes Autoformer? (before I admit that I just bought one?)

I never had any protection in my old 5er but just bought a 'new to me' bus and decided to splurge. I have a friend who suffered damage to his coach at an older state park a few years ago. Another friend's meter was showing very low voltage dips.

[Long Island Mac]

I also have a Holiday Rambler. At a 419HR rally, I spoke with the HR service technician, at the Progressive booth. The installed unit did not adequately protect the system. I bought and installed a hard wired progressive in front of the installed transfer switch/surge protector. did some really good research and am happy with what I did.

[-Gramps-]

I have the PI EMS HW-50C installed in the power bay, but I still use the SSP-50 surge protector at the PED primarily to get an immediate indication if there are any wiring problems before I plug in my shore power cord.