Surge protector

rbpru wrote:
I still have yet to have anyone tell me how they know their surge protector worked or is still working.

I know some of the high dollar units will tell you, about high and low voltage but do they kick out when a surge occurs or what?

Whether a simple surge protector or "high dollar" EMS any surge exceeding the rating of the unit will destroy the MOVs (Metal Oxide Varistors) used to direct excessive current flow to ground. Progressive units will indicate if surge failure has occurred and no voltage will be outputted. Clearly, if the unit still is outputting correct voltage then it's still working. :R If the unit has failed all it takes is a call to Progressive to request repair under the unit's lifetime warranty - in the case of a hard wire unit which is field serviceable Progressive will mail the parts to you.

This is an inside view of my own Progressive EMS-HW30C ...



It contains two circuit boards - at the top left is the surge protection circuit board containing MOVs ... in any case where these may have sustained a damaging hit it's simply a matter of removing the damaged board and replacing it with another that Progressive will mail to me at no cost under the lifetime warranty.

At the top right is the EMS circuit board that monitors for any line errors and should any be detected causes the contactor in the centre of the pic to open and thereby disconnect power to it's output and therefore the trailer. This circuit board also is field replaceable, again at no cost under the Progressive lifetime warranty.

I've not opened a Progressive portable EMS-PT30C as it's sealed and considered by the manufacturer to not be field serviceable so if damaged it must be returned to Progressive for repair. That said, it functions electrically the same as the hard wire version so there's little reason for the interior parts to be any different.

A simple surge protector such as that mentioned by the OP contains only a surge protection circuit board with MOVs - no EMS circuit detection, no contactor. The reason an EMS costs so much more should therefore be obvious. ;)

rbpru wrote:
I still have yet to have anyone tell me how they know their surge protector worked or is still working.

I know some of the high dollar units will tell you, about high and low voltage but do they kick out when a surge occurs or what?

you previously stated that you have moved when your SP gave a message of a problem. I would guess then that yours worked.
now, none of them (I guess) will stop a direct lightning strike, but I do know that years back at a campground in Austin lightning hit awfully close and rattled the dishes and after that when I looked around and I was about the only RV that had lights on. But to prove a negative, very difficult.
bumpy

rbpru wrote:
or is still working.

Installed in 2004 and now in my second MH.

rbpru wrote:
I still have yet to have anyone tell me how they know their surge protector worked or is still working.

The HW50C displays 11 different PREVIOUS errors PLUS current error if any.

I know some of the high dollar units will tell you, about high and low voltage but do they kick out when a surge occurs or what?

How can they provide protection if they don't disconnect power?

My Power Protector is NOT just a "surge" protector - you've been schooled.

I still have yet to have anyone tell me how they know their surge protector worked or is still working.

I know some of the high dollar units will tell you, about high and low voltage but do they kick out when a surge occurs or what?

crazyro wrote:
Thank you for all the info folks. Sounds like I should buy this type of surge protector only to be used as a testing device before actually plugging in the TT into the post and not actually using it. Or maybe leaving it plugged in after all checks out. We don't camp a lot (we're still new to this whole thing, have done one trip and have three more scheduled but will still only camp a handful of times every year) so price is unfortunately a big consideration.

I assume your RV doesn't have an Air Conditioner, TV, microwave, any electronic equipment? then yeah, go cheap.
bumpy

rbpru wrote:
What is the protector protecting? The Microwave and TV are the only items that would have sensitive electronics on the 120 volt line.

Converter will fry in an instant, along with any other 120 vac device that may be plugged in and powered at the time. Several years ago, before I learned about the value of protecting our rig with an EMS, we lost the Dometic MW in our KZ Spree, I suspect because of either a surge / spike or a high voltage event. :M Local dealer has also replaced several electric fireplaces. Last year he had a brand new Coachmen returned for "warranty" service days after being delivered ... turns out the new owner had a "qualified" electrician install a 30 amp drop at his house for the new rig. You guessed it - electrician wired it for 240 vac so when the owner plugged in $2000 in damage was the result. :E Why Coachmen covered this under warranty when this failure was clearly owner induced is a mystery :h ... dealer repaired the damage but warned the owner to not return with the same problem again. :R An EMS would have prevented ALL of this.

Mike Sokol's articles talk a lot about HOT SKIN, the result of an open ground. For whatever reason I notice that when my EMS disconnects it often sees an open ground when power is initially restored and as a result will refuse to reconnect it to the trailer until that open ground is cleared. Hot skin I can do without and for that alone an EMS is unquestionably worth the cost. :B

For anyone that is not sure of the difference between a SmartSurgeProtector(SSP) and an ElectricalManagementSystem(EMS), here is a chart of ProgressiveIndustries models with their capabilities.
The EMS will interrupt power on low/high voltage, and when other various faults happen.
The SSP will provide surge protection, but will not interrupt power on the various faults. Only detect them. You know, like the security monitor in the tv commercial.

four22 wrote:
Here's an option from progressive.

Hopefully its a decent one because that is the one I bought... :) 4.8/5 stars with 600+ reviews is decent though

Protector

As long as you know that one only protects against surges and only indicates if you have an open ground, open neutral, reverse polarity or mis-wired pedestal condition. If you are going to use it, at least plug it into a pedestal by itself to check the lights for a problem before plugging the TT into it. (Note that you should not plug your TT in while the power is live, so shut the breaker off first, then back on.)

An open ground or neutral can still happen any time after you are plugged into a pedestal so don't assume you are 100 percent safe. We had an intermittent open ground at a CG once so it can happen.

Still better than nothing as mentioned somewhere above, but for the extra $150-200, I would have sprung for the top of the line PI EMS.

Here's an option from progressive.

Hopefully its a decent one because that is the one I bought... :) 4.8/5 stars with 600+ reviews is decent though

Protector