So we moved to another site this morning. And then we moved to another... Sure not easy without a morning coffee yet. :(
Second site had what *seemed* like decent open circuit voltage, but with a little load the voltage dropped outa sight and gthe EMS tripped. Third site is a 50 amper and is just fine. This section apparently got totally rewired. Now it's all fine (have a happy wife again - 'nuf said).
Fridge is definitely on propane. We only have one battery which doesn't help. The EMS was showing a 10 amp draw when the power was back on. Didn't take long to go down and assume it was from the battery charging up. But the load didn't drop quickly enough to prevent the EMS from tripping again on low volts. They must have some pretty skinny wiring to the pedestal. I'm guessing they have panelboards spread around the property with a "star" configuration to pedestals rather than loop fed pedestals with heavy gauge wire (200+ amps} that are common today.
A generator may be a good solution and good if ever overnighting at a Walmart or rest area or if there is a power outage. Have been thinking about a gen. for our house for some time as we get a 1 or 2 day outage once or twice a year. Just had one and nearly lost everything in our fridge and freezer.
Spoke to a lady at the office today who admitted they have a big problem with the electrical system here. She said head office won't approve any money to repair or upgrade and suggested I send a letter to head office. I might write to the state chief electrical inspector and cc head office. The maintenance guy came by again this morning and didn't grasp the problem of low voltage and why it happens. He repeated several times he's already replaced the pedestal and thought that should have fixed it. Also did not appear to understand open grounds or the seriousness of it. When they did some upgrade work in one area (the 50 amp section I think), she said they direct buried all the wiring and that is why they have problems.
Low voltage is bad enough, but an open ground which they seem to want to address or understand is not good. Being an EE, maybe the authority having jurisdiction will take notice and look into it. The biggest problem is that when this CG was built, the NEC did not take into account all the heavy loads RVs have nowadays or all the 50 amp RVs that are around. The latest NEC has significantly upgraded the wiring requirements compared to 50 years ago and owners can't be forced to upgrade to new code requirments but safety issues are another matter.
If there's one thing I've just learned when camping at a TT CG is to pick a site close to the main incoming electrical service and/or a site with 50 amps (very short supply tho.) Have been to 4 other Thousand Trails all with low voltage, but nothing like this place.
