Crack Down on 50 Amp Rigs Using 30 Amp Sites

valhalla360 wrote:

pianotuna wrote:
Hi Chum lee,

I'm sure the technology is available to do remote reading. There are many parks that already do charge for power use.

In my case, power at the campground is nearly 20 cents per kwh. In mid winter I average 120 kwh per day. That's $24 out of the bottom line for the campground. Per week $168 for power. They charge $310 rent per week.

Sure the technology is available...at a Price $$$$$. Unless you are under construction, a retrofit is likely to cost far more than it ever returns.

But it's not just the time it takes for staff to go out and read the meter. You then get people arguing with you that they didn't use that much power (the meter must be wrong)...if it's a flat rate that covers the overall park electric bill, much simpler for the owner.

As far as 120kwh/day...that's basically impossible for a 30amp rig as it's about 42amps (assuming a steady draw) unless you start stringing extra cords thru windows and then the owner can probably track you down. That's even high for most 50 amp rigs (which typically come with a surcharge anyway)...plus most places do use a meter on monthly sites, so if you go crazy using a ton of electricity, you pay for it (and they often put a small surcharge on top of what they pay, so they make a little extra on you..

Pianotuna is the walking billboard for metering monthly and seasonal sites. I was shaking my head as well over the 120KWH a day. I don't see how that is even possible unless he stays near the Arctic Circle and heats exclusively with space heaters. Even then running three 1500 watt heaters continuously, you would still have plenty of power available for other things. That would be the rough heating equivalent of running your home furnace continously, which would indicate a serious need to either resize your heating system or put some insulation into your walls and attic. And you are right that such a load is impossible on a 30 amp circuit.
As for metering all sites, even if the park was already fully metered and had remote reading in place, it would be a customer service disaster. The vast majority of RVers have never paid a dime in separate metered electrical charges. You think KOA gets slammed as "Keep on Adding", imagine what the park that charged a one night guest an extra $4.19 for power would hear. Not a chance such a practice would be acceptable to the RVing public.