Open Neutral and failed transfer switch

There's no reason for an open neutral to fry the wires (have the dealer explain how this can happen).
The dealer is jerking you around and is making stuff up so he doesn't have to do the work. If it's a warranty issue then I would contact the manufacturer directly because the dealer doesn't know what he's talking about.

Side step dealer......he has no incentive to HELP

Contact MFG. directly....not customer service...but a Factory Rep.
Get them involved.

Also get a statement from Progressive Dynamics.

I suspect that the TV, Vac & microwave are all feed from same bus bar in your AC panel.
Open neutral and 50A can put full 220V thru one hot leg.

The transfer switch can have an open-neutral for a tiny fraction of a second if it is not designed to switch the neutral BEFORE switching the power.
Also, the transfer switch using relays can also result in a long time open-neutral if it fails to connect the neutral due to dirty contacts, weak springs, etc.
No burnt wiring etc.....just faulty transfer switching

But, an open neutral could sure take out appliances!

An OPEN or LOOSE Neutral.
1. AT the supply pole at the CG--- CG fault
2. AT the Transfer box----OEM installer fault
3. The 50 amp Power Cord---whoever supplied the Cord (usually OEM)
4. AT the Neutral coonection at the RV inside Breaker Box--OEM fault
ANY of these will NOT show burn marks unless it was a LOOSE connection. If OPEN (not connected) there will be NO indication other than 220 introduced to the RV and various appliances burnt out. You CAN have a lightning strike on a clear day and only affect YOUR post. I have had a few customers over the years that have had that experiance and the only reason they knew what caused the power burn out was RV'ers next to them saw and heard while they were away from the RV and told them what happened. Doug

wolfe10 wrote:
But, an open neutral could sure take out appliances!

OH YA! A bit off topic, but related. I DJ in my spare time, and have my DJ setup in a 2-part rack (mixer, CD players, EQ for mic, etc). One unit I have installed is a Furman Power Conditioner with LED voltmeter.

I was DJ'ing a wedding a couple weeks ago on the beach at a local resort. I plugged the rack in and powered it up so the CD players could clean any condensation of the laser lenses while I was finishing setup. A minute later I come back to find the entire rack off, and only the power switch, Protection OK, and Extreme Voltage lights on the Furman illuminated.:h

Figuring that I'm at the end of a LONG power cable and housekeepers in the resort were doing synchronized vacuuming (causing massive voltage) drops, I reset the Furman. Minute later I hear it click - again, everything off.

Get a hold of the maintenance guy, and he comes down. He thinks it's the power bar I'm plugged into (so the tent lights could run as well). But then, as we're talking I see the voltmeter light right up for about a second prior to the CLICK and the rack shuts down (all but the top red LEDs were already on). Hmmm, so the Extreme Voltage indication is for over-voltage! That's odd.

Turns out I'm on a 220VAC feed from the nearby cabin, and am drawing using just 1 leg. WE switch legs (another outlet), and the voltmeter is now down to the first top yellow LED. Better, but the voltage proved to still be a problem during the show. Can we saying EMBARRASSING when the bride/groom song cuts out 30 seconds in due to the Furman doing its job?!?!?!:E

Moral of this? I suspect there was a flaky neutral somewhere between the pole mounted transformer and the box I was plugged into (and I told the guy this too). The maintenance guy told me the power company had been fooling around on the poles recently so I suspect they inadvertently screwed up the neutral wire coming off the transformer. Of course, being right on the beach, salt-air corrosion might have played a role too.

SO yeah, an open neutral can and will send 220VAC to your 110VAC gear if you're not careful.

Cheers!

tammyinwv wrote:
we purchased a 201203 cyclone 3110 last Fall.This summer while at the beach, we came back to find our electric off and bedroom tv, central vac, and microwave fried. Before telling the campground what was wrong, anticipating and immediate cover up, we just told them our electric was flickering. They checked the pole, nothing was tripped. The used a tester on it and everything was still showing OK, then we told them what we found. No one else had problems, no storms, nothing. We found out after talking to a tech that it was the transfer switch. We also found out from a retired electrical engineer that an "open neutral" can occur and cause a power surge frying the 110 appliances. Now the dealer, is telling me first that the progressive dynamics switch can not get open neutral. so I contact PD and find out it can. Now the dealer tells me that if it was open neutral I would definitely have some burnt wires in the switch, witch we did not have. I just have a feeling I am being jerked around. We purchased a cheap surge protector that mounts on the pole for shore power to protect the switch, but we also bought a wired in surge protector for around $400 to wire in AFTER the switch to also protect our appliances if the switch fails again. The dealer says our swith just failed but did not cause damage to the appliances. it had to have been something else. Does anyone have any thoughts on this issue? I would appreciate info from someone other than the dealer.
Tammy

UPDATE:
receive email confirmation form progressive dynamic any transfer switch can get open neutral and not have burn wires just a series of blown appliance. this was forward to heartland but the dealer said it could not happend but said they would replace tv and vac but not the microwave. now we installed two surge protector one at pole and a hard wire after the transfer switch. when we got to the campground we hook up the one at the pole to make sure it was ok which it check good, next we plug the trailer in then we went inside the bedroom tv and vac which they said they replace are burnt up again we did not replace the microwave ye . the outlets seem to be all right, the surge protector is showing normal voltage. dealer said it is are responsibility. what is causing this we dont want to keep buying appliance.could it be a short in the breaker box in the rv.

Your dealer is incompetent and a crock.

You have two surge devices.......one at pedestal and another hardwired.
Both show good voltage and no open neutral yet the NEW TV and Vac burnt up again?

Then you still have an open neutral....either in transfer switch or main AC panel.

Did this top notch dealer even check the wiring connections inside your rig?

Until you find and correct the open neutral you will continue to burn up TV, Vac and microwave.........bet they are all feed from same bus bar in AC panel.
50A--110V and open neutral will cause 220V on one leg of 50A service.

Once again I suggest you contact MFG. directly and get a factory rep involved. There is a serious issue with the wiring and it is a factory problem.

I recommend the PD53 transfer switch as a replacement.
http://www.bestconverter.com/100-Amp-Transfer-Switch_c_195.html

refresher: blown central vac, bedroom tv, and microwave while at beach. Dealer says transfer switch faulty but denies cause of blown appliances. He replaced tv and vac out of so called "good faith" and replaced switch under warranty.

Picked up camper on Friday, installed wired in energy management system AFTER the transfer switch, and loaded in a pedestal surge protector. No time to plug in or check on anything. had 2 days to do the wiring and pack camper.

Arrived in TN, plugged in surge protector to pedestal, lights indicated OK, then plugged in camper. Lights OK on EMS, went inside and smelled burning in the bedroom. Bedroom tv and vac again blown. Microwave would have too if it had been replaced.

Heartland, after much complaining agreed to pay for tech to check it out and we had to pay service call. After 3 hrs the tech,owner of Rickys RV, said he only found loose wires in junction box under the slide out. When he opened the box the ground fell out. But he said it could cause the problem but he didnt think so. He checked the pedestal, checked out our surge protectors, checked cable that plugs into unit, opened up breaker box, checked evrything in there, pulled around on some wires while he had a meter plugged into the blown microwaves outlet. He couldnt find anything else, but said if it was up to him ir would need to be picked up from campground and brought into center to look further, possibly even open some walls. He felt that since 3 appliances blown before, and same ones after bringing camper out again, that it was not a coincidence. he feels there is something INSIDE the camper somewhere.

Anthony, at Heartland, says since the tech didnt find anything, he was done. I explained the situation further, that Ricky thought it needed closer inspection in a center. Anthony denied finding the reason for the burning appliances or the wiring problem. Not concerned with our family and children sleeping in their. Our 2013 unit was bought last Fall, and all this under manufacturer warranty. I expalined, tech proved it wasnt our fault, proved it wasnt campground surge fault, that it has to be inside camper, and asked if at least our appliances would be covered. Again he refused coverage. So if we buy a new microwave etc, and it blows again, we know what his answer will be again. So much for Heartland warranties. Now I need to make some important calls