Low Shore Voltage
Last week we ran into an issue where the campground shore power for our site was only coming in at 104 volts(30 amps). We have a Progressive surge protector and it would not let the power flow. Report...
Forum Discussion
solismaris wrote:Just because someone can get an AC unit to run "succesfully" on low voltage doesn't mean it's okay to do. Unfortunately, lots of folks do this without knowing the consequences.
I have used my microwave and AC (not together) even when the shore voltage is around the 100V mark. Successfully.
Low voltage causes the windings on motors in AC units to overheat and the insulation to degrade. The damage will not be apparent immediately and is cumulative over time. An AC unit can fail prematurely some day for no apparent reason because it was run under low voltage too often. Replacing an AC unit isn't inexpensive and having one fail can ruin a vacation.
Either turn an AC unit off, find a site or CG with better voltage or use an autoformer. While running our AC unit yesterday, our EMS shut us off when I turned the MW on due to low volts. Got the autoformer out and were able to carry on without issues. We don't use the autoformer often, but it has been a godsend when needed, esp. when it's been killer hot out.
