First circuit analyzer incident

[Rich_in_Tampa]

I'm up camping in the Smokies (Campfire Lodgings near Asheville) and plugged in my EMS PT50-C surge protector and circit analyzer upon arrival. Unlike previous reassuring "E-0" readings, I got an E-6 this time: low voltage on line 2 in the 50 amp source. I switched over to the 30 amp source and all was well.

Not being very technically knowledgeable I did some searching here and elsewhere and am led to believe that this condition is bad for motors. I reported it to the manager and to my surprise and delight, she arranged for an electrician tomorrow morning, and even offered to try to swap my site for another where the camper wanted only 30 amps (all sites are full).

Not sure if this is anything more than a nuisance, but am playing it safe. I'll post again if I learn anything from the electrician tomorrow.

[Ray,IN]

You are a wise man. I'll leave it to the sparkys to explain why you made a wise choice.

[RV Wizard]

Rich, you are correct in that a low voltage scenario will damage inductive loads.

[Rich_in_Tampa]

So, the electrician showed up right on time. Sticks his multimeter leads into the various holes and all readings were fine. Then attached my EMS and everything looked fine, too, including the famous E0 reading -- no errors.

Then he does a physical check. Let's out a pensive "hmmm..." and asks me if there were a lot of spider webs near the receptacle and I remember that there was a thick, white plug of web in 2 of the three holes. I sorta removed them with a twig before plugging in. He says that given the intermittent nature of the error, he might have cleaned out enough junk with his probes to re-establish a good connection.

He cleaned up the box and all is well. Impressive reponse by campground mgmt and I will make sure they get the compliment.

Does this spiderweb theory seem plausible?

[NeilV]

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa

So, the electrician showed up right on time. Sticks his multimeter leads into the various holes and all readings were fine. Then attached my EMS and everything looked fine, too, including the famous E0 reading -- no errors.

Then he does a physical check. Let's out a pensive "hmmm..." and asks me if there were a lot of spider webs near the receptacle and I remember that there was a thick, white plug of web in 2 of the three holes. I sorta removed them with a twig before plugging in. He says that given the intermittent nature of the error, he might have cleaned out enough junk with his probes to re-establish a good connection.

He cleaned up the box and all is well. Impressive reponse by campground mgmt and I will make sure they get the compliment.

Does this spiderweb theory seem plausible?

Yep it is plausible.

I usually plug and unplug a few times when the recepticle looks like it has not been used for a while to rub off any undesirable matter to get a better connection.

I always use a Hughs Autoformer along with a SurgeGuard to correct and protect and have had very few electrical things go bad. Before the Autoformer I was replacing start capacitors/starters on AC blowers and compressors regularly. I have not had to replace any since I got the Autoformer.

[Gary RVRoamer]

Surge Guard now has a product that combines voltage regulation with power monitoring.

Voltage Regulator | Technology Research Corporation

[Ray,IN]

Originally Posted by RV Roamer [Gary]

Surge Guard now has a product that combines voltage regulation with power monitoring.

Voltage Regulator | Technology Research Corporation

Gary, if I've read the http://www.campingworld.com/shopping...egulator/42293
description correctly it does not handle power protection, one must buy a surge guard to accompany the regulator.

[wa8yxm]

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa

So, the electrician showed up right on time. Sticks his multimeter leads into the various holes and all readings were fine.

Is his theory plausable: Yes

Here is another: If there were a lot of other rigs in the park it may be that there was a lot of load on L-2 (line 2) and it was thus running anemic. And during the time between your first plugging in and his arrival, folks moved on.

But in this case. I like his theory better

[Gary RVRoamer]

Gary, if I've read the http://www.campingworld.com/shopping...egulator/42293
description correctly it does not handle power protection, one must buy a surge guard to accompany the regulator.

Ray,
If you want to know what it really does, read what it says on the Surge Guard site rather than Camping World. The Voltage Regulator does voltage boosting and monitors for:

• Open Neutral
• Under Voltage
• Over Voltage
• Phase Reversal

What it does NOT do is surge protection - you would need an extra box for that.

[REWahoo]

Originally Posted by Rich_in_Tampa

Does this spiderweb theory seem plausible?

Yep. Just like bugs in your computer program, you can get bugs in your electrical system...

[faye]

Originally Posted by NeilV

Yep it is plausible.

I usually plug and unplug a few times when the recepticle looks like it has not been used for a while to rub off any undesirable matter to get a better connection.

I always use a Hughs Autoformer along with a SurgeGuard to correct and protect and have had very few electrical things go bad. Before the Autoformer I was replacing start capacitors/starters on AC blowers and compressors regularly. I have not had to replace any since I got the Autoformer.

where do you get this autoformer and what does it do and cost for it, also same questions for the surgeguard? thanks

[H. Miller]

Originally Posted by faye

where do you get this autoformer and what does it do and cost for it, also same questions for the surgeguard? thanks

One of the iRV2 sponsors has a great selection at very good prices.
Try RV Upgrades. We shopped around and spent 300+ with them this past friday.

[randco]

You can get a combination of voltage boost and surge supression using a Powermaster voltage controller. PowerMaster Products

You can compare the Hughes product and the Powermaster product at the following site. http://www.powermasterrv.com/images/VCcomparison.pdf

I'm not saying that the Hughes is a bad product, but my preference is the Powermaster.

[faye]

where can you buy this surge guard that you had link to?