complaints when using a hughes autoformer

Ralph Cramden wrote:
What it takes is for two RVs to be plugged into the common pedestal at the end of the circuit, and 4 or 5 RVs pulling high loads between said pedestal and the MDP in the middle of the circuit. They were unable to find what causes it, or correct it. It's not like they devoted a lot of time to it either. The voltage at the MDP read a constant 116 volts.

That doesn't quite make sense and without being there is hard to speculate. Yes, perhaps a bad/loose neutral connection. Occam's razor = simplest explanation is usually the correct one (I watch too much Dr. Phil). I sure wouldn't rely on a CG to understand electrical stuff.

In some cases a poco can have high voltage lines that are very long before getting to an area/neighborhood of concentrated loads like in a rural setting for ex. They may set the fixed taps on the local transformer higher at +2.5% (123V) or +5% (126V) to prop up the voltage drop for when demand gets high. Private property owners with their own onsite high voltage step-down transformers can sometimes set the fixed taps higher to compensate for large fluctuating demand loads. Commercial CGs (unless quite small) typically have a bunch of pad-mounted transformers spread around a property and it's possible sometimes taps are intentionally set above 120 volts because there are very large swings in demand from winter to summer peaks. I've yet to see over 120 volts. Choosing a site closer to a transformer can sometimes reduce voltage drop. I've seen voltage go up and down like a yo-yo from overnight to dinner time but only once have had the EMS cut us off but now use an autoformer if I know voltage is low when we first hook up. We mostly stay in older CGs (Thousand Trails) and low voltage is common in them and always a possibility. Best have been casinos with a spare-no-expense electrical system.

I once designed a major expansion of a dairy plant on Vancouver Island before they got natural gas. At the time, milk in pouches was in vogue and they had a new machine that sealed them with an electric element which was voltage sensitive to get the req'd temp. After they started up the new plant the machine was spilling milk everywhere on the floor and they wanted to blame me. Turned out the poco had a very long high voltage line to the dairy's new substation and everyone in the city was dragging down the voltage at dinner time from electric stoves and electric heating - they had to do a major transmission line upgrade pdq. I hate low voltage!