Surge protector need.

[Sgt B]

Originally Posted by TeachTexas

If you get the portable one, two things to consider.
1) Do you lock it up? Add a cable and lock to secure to pedestal. Depending on your level of security needs.

2) Did you remember to take it with you? Add a new task to breaking camp, insure you put it in the RV before leaving.

I like the Hughes Bulldog

What? Forget to take it with you? Come one; you have to unplug, and one will find it is easier to unplug from the pedestal, then unplug your cord. LOL GEEZ. In fact when I did use it I never unplugged it from the cord, that way I would always remember to use it.
Mine has an eye on it that you can lock it to the pedestal, albeit I have never done that in the many years I used it and no one thought to steal it. If he had tried, I better not have been awake and realized I lost power. I pack and a really good shot. LOL So, bring it on thief.

[pasdad1]

Originally Posted by Sgt B

What? Forget to take it with you? Come on; you have to unplug, and one will find it is easier to unplug from the pedestal, then unplug your cord. LOL GEEZ. In fact when I did use it I never unplugged it from the cord, that way I would always remember to use it.

I have a powered cord reel, so can’t leave it attached. The cord has to be reeled up first, then the protector stowed in the compartment. In a hurry to leave, I actually did leave it behind once, so that is very possible!

[THenne1713]

I have the cheap 30a one for my 2000 to test polarity & ground, tension before plugging in; may/ may not use, depending on location. Most are NOT waterproof

[JFXG]

Originally Posted by MrMark52

…….Low voltage or miswired pedestals, especially pedestals that have been used, are probably a more rare occurrence than a common occurrence…….

More rare than common? Ok, but it depends a lot on the age of the park, season of the year, and number of large motorhomes parked.
Fact is, low voltage is probably the most likely electrical problem you’re going to run into. Far more common than an actual power surge. Set up in an older park in summer with a lot of motorhomes and I guarantee there are lots of people running two a/c units on 107-108 volts. They don’t know it unless they have an EMS readout, because the EMS won’t cut off until it gets down to 105v, but they’re taking a lot of time off the lifespan of any motor trying to do its job on 107v. When I run into this, I run my generator. 0.6 gph of diesel is cheaper than a new a/c roof unit, even at today’s faux prices!

[MrMark52]

Originally Posted by JFXG

More rare than common? Ok, but it depends a lot on the age of the park, season of the year, and number of large motorhomes parked.
Fact is, low voltage is probably the most likely electrical problem you’re going to run into. Far more common than an actual power surge. Set up in an older park in summer with a lot of motorhomes and I guarantee there are lots of people running two a/c units on 107-108 volts. They don’t know it unless they have an EMS readout, because the EMS won’t cut off until it gets down to 105v, but they’re taking a lot of time off the lifespan of any motor trying to do its job on 107v. When I run into this, I run my generator. 0.6 gph of diesel is cheaper than a new a/c roof unit, even at today’s faux prices!

I think you missed my point - in our short 3 years of glamping and easily over 30 campsites - We’ve yet to encounter an improperly wired pedestal. Doesn’t mean it won’t happen - but an EMS is a good insurance policy for when it does.

Same for low or over voltage.

And if your concerned about the EMS’s 105vac cut-out, you might look to see if that can be adjusted up, or find an EMS that better meets your more stringent operating parameters.

[AlanTerry]

My rig has the built in surge guard protection. Out of curiosity I called the company and asked if I would require anything else such as a hughes transformer. The Tech told me to purchase a cheap surge guard to plug into the pedestal. He said that it would be cheaper to replace than the hardwired one and if the surge took the cheap one out the hardwired one would be last line of defence. Made sense to me. $50.00 on Amazon.

[RVnAggie]

I’d say a good Surge protector with EMS is just as important as a spare tire with plenty of air. You don’t need it until you do, then it’s very important.

Never had a hard-wired one, but I like the fact I can plug my portable unit in to the pedestal to check voltage, polarity, open ground, etc. before I plug in my shore power cord.

I’ve used Progressive in the past, but after it did it’s job a few times, it was time to replace. I currently have a Hughes Watchdog which I really like. It’s a SMART unit that talks to my phone plus creates a nice bulldog face for a night light if I need to go to the utility side of the trailer for anything after dark.

Safe Travels,

[RVingNow]

I just submitted a warranty claim to Progressive Industries to replace my 50A plug in surge protector. I happened to walk by the RV receptacle at the house and noticed that one of the green LEDs was no longer illuminated. As far as I can tell everything is working on the RV but I've had issues in the house. Summers here in FL see a lot of lightening. In the house, I've lost lights and yesterday the A/C guy was here to fix a blown run capacitor. Coincidence? Anyway now I'm in the process of installing a whole house surge protector system.

If I had to diagnose and repair the RV converter system or BIM, I would not be a happy camper. It's cheap insurance.

[KenZ71]

I put a hardwired Hughes Autoformers PWD50-EPO-H in my King Aire. Install took me a couple hours, would have been half or better if the cord wheel was not in the way.

It runs an 5 to 10 second check when plugging in. If issues power don't flow. Also seen it boost low park pedestal voltage.

I like it and recommend. Can be found on Amazon used for about $180

[pasdad1]

Originally Posted by KenZ71

I put a hardwired Hughes Autoformers PWD50-EPO-H in my King Aire. Install took me a couple hours, would have been half or better if the cord wheel was not in the way.

It runs an 5 to 10 second check when plugging in. If issues power don't flow. Also seen it boost low park pedestal voltage.

I like it and recommend. Can be found on Amazon used for about $180

Baffled by the “….Also seen it boost low park pedestal voltage.” comment. The PWD50-EPO-H doesn’t have a transformer, and doesn’t boost voltage. Did you also hardwire a $600 autoformer transformer into your bay as well?

[Crabby97439]

We were in a southern Oregon campground recently and our EMS indicated a hot neutral reversed in the 30 amp socket (mounted upside down). I notified the office, the lady said she would have it fixed. My wife and I left the campground for awhile. When we returned I noticed the the socket was now mounted right side up and was still hot neutral reversed. Whoever "fixed it" just turned the plug around. It's very hard to find good help these days...

Anyway, another vote for using a EMS.

[AllegroD]

Get the PI or Hughes EMS. With my PI, I was at a park where the power kept turning off. I went inside and checked my Kill-O-Watt and watched the volts quickly drop to 97 before my PI cut the power off. Ran the Gennie during the day, for AC, to cut the heat.

[lifguardct]

Originally Posted by RVnAggie

I’d say a good Surge protector with EMS is just as important as a spare tire with plenty of air. You don’t need it until you do, then it’s very important.

Never had a hard-wired one, but I like the fact I can plug my portable unit in to the pedestal to check voltage, polarity, open ground, etc. before I plug in my shore power cord.

I’ve used Progressive in the past, but after it did it’s job a few times, it was time to replace. I currently have a Hughes Watchdog which I really like. It’s a SMART unit that talks to my phone plus creates a nice bulldog face for a night light if I need to go to the utility side of the trailer for anything after dark.

Safe Travels,

I'm looking at the Hughes and EMS-PT50X. New to all of this, how do they compare 0ther than its a smart unit?

[SJ-Chris]

I agree that killing (turning off) the power if it is out of spec is a good thing, as is not plugging in in the first place if something isn't wired correctly at the pedestal. I have a simple tester that I use before plugging in that tells me whether or not the 30a pedestal plug is wired correctly, so that's an easy $10 component to use (everyone should have such a thing if you don't have an EMS). So for me the EMS would protect mainly against a surge, low voltage, and high voltage. I've been contemplating adding fixed EMS solutions ($200-400) to my RVs. I'm not 100% sold yet on the idea as my RVs are pretty basic and don't have a ton of expensive electrical equipment. (2015/2013 Class C basic units).


Can someone list what are the MOST COMMON events that actually happen that an EMS would protect against? I know what the feature list is on most EMS units, that's not what I'm asking. I'm asking: In practice (real RV'ing life), what events happen the most? Is it low Voltage? Ungrounded pedestal outlets? Actual surges seem unlikely, but I guess they could happen (especially in areas that get lightening storms).


It would be GREAT if people with EMS installed could give us examples of things their EMS actually protected them against while camping (if they know). Any great stories, for example, about the neighbor's RV getting hit but yours didn't because of your EMS? I see there were a couple examples in the above posts.



What are the most common things that get damaged/destroyed during these events? Insta-fried? Or is it another "this will reduce the life of your component" type of events usually?



I'm trying to do a risk vs reward assessment for my particular RVs. For example...Let's say that the most common thing that the EMS units protect against in practice are low Voltage problems. I *think* (please correct me if I am wrong) that on a basic RV the most at risk items to a low voltage issue would be the AC and the microwave (did I miss anything important?). Do converters get easily damaged?? Adding a new AC might cost ~$1500. A new microwave might cost ~$300.


Risk vs Reward: (....your feedback is welcome if my numbers below look off...)

Assume the cost for me to install a fixed EMS is $300.


Assume a reasonable worst case "bad electrical event" without an EMS would cost me $3000 to fix.


The odds of a "bad electrical event" happening would have to be more than 1 in 10 for this to be a good investment (if just looking at the numbers). Right?


Do 1 in 10 RVers out there have a "bad electrical event" that costs them $3000? I'm guessing "No". I'm guessing it is more like 1 in 25, or 1 in 50, or 1 in 100. What do you think?


If these assumptions above (...and there are plenty, feel free to correct/add/etc) are correct, then maybe I don't need an EMS for my particular RVs.

Don't get me wrong...I'm addicted to RV mods and projects. I still might add an EMS anyways "just because". But maybe this (above) is why most RVs (or at least most simple RVs) don't come with an EMS installed.



Side observation: Cruise America has ~5000 rental units in their US fleet. That must be 50,000+ rentals going out each year. None of these have an EMS installed. I can only assume this means that Cruise America (a 30+yr old company) has calculated that it isn't worth it (even though I'm sure they could have these installed in bulk for probably half the cost of you or I installing one). Or do they not care because they have insurance in the event of a "bad electrical event"? I'm not sure. Just thought it was an interesting observation.



Thoughts?
Chris