Two Surge Protectors?

luvlabs wrote:
Tiffin uses a transfer switch with some surge protection. It is a very basic system. It is recommended that you add a more comprehensive EMS (Electrical Management System) that also monitors ground state, high and low voltages, polarity, etc. The Progressive HW50c or PT50c are two units that will do the job. The HW is built in, the PT is portable.

I've had a HW50c combined with the Tiffin transfer switch on two different coaches and it has worked well. Best thing is that it has a lifetime warranty.

It just seems to me a better option would be to upgrade the onboard system with a Surge Guard 40350 for another $100 over the PT50c which does everything the PT50C does, but then you don't have to mess with a portable anymore or risk getting it stolen.

All I know is despite the fact the Entegra does have one..I have another one and I use it religiously...it has saved me from at least 3 bad posts with open neutral's or a bad ground....as well as two spikes...to me...priceless..

Tiffin uses a transfer switch with some surge protection. It is a very basic system. It is recommended that you add a more comprehensive EMS (Electrical Management System) that also monitors ground state, high and low voltages, polarity, etc. The Progressive HW50c or PT50c are two units that will do the job. The HW is built in, the PT is portable.

I've had a HW50c combined with the Tiffin transfer switch on two different coaches and it has worked well. Best thing is that it has a lifetime warranty.

Jim Norman wrote:
I have a Plug-In Surge Protector.
My new Coach has a built in Surge Protector.

Those are completely different devices for completely different anomalies (as a few have noted). A 'surge' addressed by a built in protector does not do and cannot protect from a type of surge that so plug-in protectors are suppose to protect from.

What does that plug-in protector do? It claims to 'absorb' how many joules? Hundreds or a thousand? That type of destructive surge can be hundreds of thousands of joules. So what happens when its near zero joules try to 'absorb' that energy? Those numbers should cause you pause.

If your built in protector was one that attaches at the pole, then it has a low impedance (ie less than 10 foot) connection to earth ground via that pole. If farther from earth ground, it does not effectively protect from that hundreds of thousands of joules. It only protects from those other anomalies.

An 'attach at the pole' built in protector would protect that power strip. Without a low impedance connection to earth, then that power strip remains at risk.

So what is the risk? A hundreds joule surge is routinely converted by electronics into rock stable, low DC voltages to safely power its semiconductors. What that power strip protector might do is already done better inside appliances. Sometimes, an adjacent plug-in protector can compromise better protection inside appliances.

In rare cases, a near zero protector (too few joules) can fail catastrophically (create fire). A cruise ship may confiscate it if found in luggage. Threat is rare but serious enough that many do not use plug-in protectors unless protected by that other 'connected low impedance to earth ground' protector.

Only answers tempered by numbers deserve attention. Read spec numbers for a built in protector to identify anomalies it addresses. Read spec numbers for that plug-in protector (especially joules) to identify the so little it really does. Take a $3 power strip. Add some ten cent protector parts. How much did you spend for that near zero protect function?

Bob & Ann wrote:
Jim
Yes you can use both. I checked with both the coach manufacturer and surge protector manufacturer. Typically your built in unit will not do all that you need it to. The second surge protector just makes for smart business. If there is a power problem that burns up your portable unit nothing in you coach is harmed. Just throw it away, buy a new one and continue on with your trip.

Or if it is a lifetime warranty product such as my PI EMS PT50C, you just send it in and they replace or repair it under the lifetime warranty. This happened to me this past September. My PT50C saved me from a surge caused by a lightning strike to a nearby tree. One leg of the PT50C would not operate. I always carry a spare PT50C so I put it in service and everything worked fine. Sent the dead one back to PI and received a replacement within a week. The original unit had been in full time service since 2011.

I prefer autoformers to surge devices.

Thank you all for the quick and well thought out responses. I believe until I can do a little more research on the built in unit I will use both. I have the 50amp Surge Guard portable. It has worked well so far. Again, Thank you all.

I travel with two but only use one at a time. I started out with a Progressive Industries simple surge protector {as that is all it does - about $100}. A couple of years later I upgraded to their EMS system that provides much more protection (about $300}.

With the EMS system I am protected against voltage falling too low or going to high vs simple surge protection. I use EMS as my primary device but keep the old simple surge suppressor for use as a back up in the event my EMS grows legs. I also have loaned the surge suppressor to a number of folks who had nothing and they were glad to have it.

Can't think of reason to part with the surge protector, nice to have a back up.

:C

Call it suspenders and a belt.

I've been doing this for years ( portable 50 amp progressive and buildt in one now). No problems. I have a problem that came up this year with it seems the onboard hard wired system. The portable Progressive is fine and reads what is going through the the transfer switch ( had it tested current coming into the transfer switch).

However for some reason the onboard is showing higher shore voltage than what is actually coming in. It shuts down power occasionally even though the portable one is still allowing current ( not indicating high voltage). If I disconnected the portable when this happened it still shuts power down connected straight to the post, even though there isn't a high power ( checked at post too). After a few attempts reconnecting power it works.

Funny thing is,if it shuts power down and I run the generator it's fine and reads voltage correctly. I'm have it looked at in January.

It must be something with my onboard surge protector as other MH's in the same row didn't have a power issue.

So in my situation it actually shown me (having two) I have a electrical problem with the onboard surge protector.