Like you, I was worried about loosing (another) portable protector. (I did loose one, somewhere between home and the campground). So when I went to get a replacement, I decided I STILL did not want a hard wired one, for exactly the same reason you've mentioned... if it goes bad, you have no alternative but to sit with no power until you can either rig something else up or get a replacement.
I wanted to keep the "portability" and the convenience of a hard wired. Fortunately, the space where my 35 foot cord shoves inside my camper, it's a nice cavity. And it's also the junction box where the black cord connects to the camper wiring. So I decided to cut the original black cord and attach a new plug, now on the shortened wire. Then I could simply plug in my portable protector and just shove the other end of the protector plug out the original hole. This way, if the protector dies, I can very simply unplug, and still be able to plug in my original cord.... which I also attached a new plug to also, for the end that was cut.
So, no I have the best of both worlds, portability and security inside the camper.
Because the "cavity" where the cord originally got stuffed into was pretty easy access, I went ahead and hinged the panel and put a handle on it so it can open very easy if I need access quick.
And because this is all behind an exterior cabinet door too, it's 100% completely hidden!
I really do have the best of both ... portable and permanent now!
