PI EMS-PT30C paid off a couple of days ago.

Some short stories: Stayed at a moose lodge once and the Governor ask me if I'd tried plugging into the 60 amp outlet (Believe it or not it was a TT-30) I said "No, what is it 240 volt?" he admitted it was (i found said outlet later.. I had noticed that in teh circuit breaker box there were only 4 60 amp breakers, two pair of ganged. so I already knew it was a 240 out outlet for a fryer)

One (not Thousand Trailes) CG I was at the 50 amp breaker pair on my site was bad, and I mean B*A*D!! as little as 20 amps was tripping it.... The manager tried to tell me (Certified electronics tech, and trained in engineering) it was the fault of us 50 amp rigs trying to draw "Too much current" (most 50 amp RV's draw less than 30 amps per leg, unlike 30 amp Rv's which can draw more than 30 for brief preiods) The electrican who replaced it did a good job

I have seen cases where the ground wire was simply cut too short and did not reach the terminal

I have also watched (And very slightly assisted) the crew at one Thousand Trails fixing a wireing fault (cable fault) and these folks did a first class job.. That said. When I say "Slightly assisted" They put in a few new boxes.. I shoveled a bit of dirt and steadied the box while they finished the job, Nothing electrical (I am not licensed for that, so let them do it) but I am licensed to shovel dirt (no license required)

The fun part was a "neighbor" on a long term leased site, who was doing a bit of landscaping and drove a length of Rebar.... RIGHT THROUGH THE BRAND NEW CABLE.

Like most I too camped for years without using any form of electrical protection for our trailer, 'though early on I did at least start checking the campsite source voltage with a DVM before plugging in and later invested in a Kill-a-Watt meter I would leave plugged in so I could monitor the voltage throughout our stay. I also eventually added a polarity checker to my kit which proved useful a couple of times when I did find a miswired campsite power post. As time went on and I began reading more and more on the forums about surge protector / EMS units it one day suddenly occurred to me that perhaps the reason the microwave oven in our KZ Spree had failed wasn't because it simply self destructed but because it had suffered some sort of error in the campsite source supply. :M Not long after I had the opportunity to buy a used TRC Surge Guard from an older fellow who was retiring from camping ... and in just the next few months was surprised at how many times it detected an error and shut off power to our camper. :E That confirmed it so a year later I sold the TRC to a friend and invested in a hard wire Progressive Industries EMS-HW30C which since then has also disconnected our trailer from campsite source power, 3 times last season and once this season already. During the season I keep our trailer parked here at the house, plugged in, and my EMS disconnected power to the trailer at least twice since I've had it ... seems source power line errors are much more common than one would think. :E I'm sold, and wouldn't ever plug into power from any source without protecting the trailer with some version of surge protector / EMS unit that includes low/high voltage protection. Considering the cost of repairing / replacing electrical devices in our camper the cost of one of these EMS units is a small price to pay for the protection it offers. :B

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Did you let CG Staff know of the OPEN GROUND issue with that pedestal 30A receptacle???

Yes I let them know. Stared at me like a deer in headlights. Sorry no electrician on the weekend, would you like to move sites? :R

Later it dawned on me I had stayed in this site a couple years before with the same issue :S

Anyway like the OP I used my 50/30 adapter and just got on with my day.

Installed the hardwired PI 30a EMS to my new trailer this spring. I had one converter replaced in a previous trailer and don't plan on ever going through that again.

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Did you let CG Staff know of the OPEN GROUND issue with that pedestal 30A receptacle???


Love my PI.......it has caught several issues when we traveled FT

Has anyone ever accomplished anything by reporting pedestal problems to the CG?

We were at a Thousand Trails CG last year and our EMS shut down on low voltage AND open ground at the same time. Their general purpose handyman got his voltmeter out and insisted nothing was wrong. He said he had replaced the receptacle recently and it couldn't possibly be a problem. Here I am an EE (retired) trying to explain how and why it was a problem. I went to the office and the manager she said she saw some electrical work being done and saw them put bare wires in a trench. She said head office simply won't approve money to fix things.

CGs all too often don't have licensed electricians doing the work. The next time it happens, I might advise the local AHJ or state chief electrical inspector and see what happens.

Good to know that it's there's. I installed mine (hardwire) a couple months back.

I haven't hooked up without my SurgeGuard for the past 20+ years. It's prevented me from damages a number of times.

that's one reason I made a 50 amp male plug to dual 30 amp female pigtails so I could select the side with best voltage/amperage,etc.
bumpy

Always good to have a PLAN B when miles away from home base...

I have an adapter setup with a KILL-O-Watt meter and 120VAC Circuit Tester on it that I use alot testing the pedestal before plugging into it... Without it permanently installed however one does get relaxed sometimes and not test first...

Roy Ken

Did you let CG Staff know of the OPEN GROUND issue with that pedestal 30A receptacle???


Love my PI.......it has caught several issues when we traveled FT