Get the EMS and play it safe. My neighbor has a very nice Montana fithwheel and experienced a power surge during a storm, well all of his electronics were fried. Washer/Drier combo, microwave, tv etc. Unit was only a year old, warranty would not cover the damage but his insurance did. I believe in being precautionary not reactionary.
2004 F350 6.0L 4x4 Powerstroke King Ranch Diesel Dually (Have Hitch Will Tow)
2010 31ft Forest River Flagstaff 831FLSS
2001 20ft Starcraft Aurora 2009 Fish-n-Ski Deck Boat w/ 200hp Mercury
Hi, I bought an inline 30 Amp surge guard from Camping World and have only used it a few times and that was when I knew there was going to be thunder storms. I prefer the inline type because a friend of mine has a hard wired one in his motorhome and the entire guts were fried. (like black and melted) I don't want a melted surge protector inside of my trailer. (fire hazard)
Bob
2005 Airstream Safari 25-B
2000 Lincoln Navigator
Equal-i-zer
Yamaha 2400
In 2009, I didn't own a Surge Guard.
My buddy was a victim of a brown out and surge, that got his
air conditioner blower. I thought about it and bought a Surge Guard.
Last September I was camping during a storm, and the campground had a brown out, then a surge, followed by 12 hours of no power. My trailer was protected.
I use my Surge Guard with 3' of chain to lock it to the post.
PS: I've never had a theft, but I will make it easier for a thief to target someone else.
(I lock my truck too)
A surge suppressor is a lot like a fire insurance policy. The chances are overwhelming that you will never need it, but if you absolutely can't afford to replace the equipment, then maybe you should buy it.
Most RV owners don't have one and have never lost anything due to bad power. I have not needed one in 35 years of camping, though I am pretty careful to check the voltage and polarity before plugging in. If the scary stories you read here and elsewhere create too much anxiety, by all means buy and use one anyway. Peace of mind is worth a lot of money.
Add up what it would cost to replace your electronics. In my case, it would be an air conditioner, a microwave, an LCD TV and a converter. It might affect the 12Vdc electronic but I doubt it since 12V is isolated from 120V. That is less than $1800 for all. It does not seem like a good investment to me to spend $100 to protect $1800 of equipment on the 1 in 10,000 or smaller chance that some power anomaly will damage all of it.
The probability that a voltage surge will take out your RV electronics is not much worse than the probability that a surge will take out your much more costly home electronics. How many people use a whole house surge suppressor?
The biggest risk in RV power in my opinion is not surges but rather voltage sags (brownouts). I have seen this in old campgrounds on several occasions, especially if the campground is full. I have chosen to just use the RV batteries and not plug in. It is easy enough to monitor voltage sags with a $10 voltmeter that has other uses as well.
I don't buy lottery tickets either, even if the payoff is half a billion dollars.
Consider this.....people are willing to spend 10's of thousands up to 100's of thousands of dollars on an RV, yet making a small investment into some version of "surge" protection and/or over/under voltage is so foreign to so many. Bottom line is, "do ya feel lucky"? I have a portable 50 amp model that I use 99% of the time, I also have a 50 amp auto-former that I use about 30%(go figure).
96 Vogue Prima Vista 37' CAT 3176B
Our Babies: Mollie, Rubie, Cassie and Maggie, all rescued Cavalier King Charles Spaniels
Rainbow Bridge: Laddie, Scoutie, Katie, Cooper, Kodie
Rally's and get togethers.....Lots
if things go bad while plugged in, can you really do anything about it?
I have never thought about one, never knew they existed.... ironically... never needed one. Till this thread.
thanks
Thanks!
If you mean by "things" being power outage, low or high voltage, voltage spikes/surges.... then the answer is NO. That is, unless you have a hi/lo voltage - surge protector. Otherwise you're at the mercy of whatever electronic/electrical components in your rv can withstand without failure.
The odds are in the favor of "things" not happening...but, if they do...
The electronics in your rv can cost a LOT more to replace than a well equipped surge protector will cost. It's your decision.
Ron
Ron & Sandie
'08 Safari Simba SBD35 CAT C7
Toad: 2011 GMC Terrain SLT2
Tow Bar: Sterling AT
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TPMS: Pressure Pro
Member of: GS, FMCA, Safari Intl, CAT
Acampingwewillgo wrote: Bottom line is, "do ya feel lucky"?
I felt "lucky" for the last 35 years. Why should I expect my luck to change now? The overall cost of the RV is irrelevant. If your camper were hit with a voltage surge, chances are it would only do a few hundred dollars of damage. Are you feeling really unlucky?
* This post was
edited 04/04/12 04:53pm by Cedarhill *
Acampingwewillgo wrote: Bottom line is, "do ya feel lucky"?
I felt "lucky" for the last 35 years. Why should I expect my luck to change now? The overall cost of the RV is irrelevant. If your camper were hit with a voltage surge, chances are it would only do a few hundred dollars of damage. Are you feeling really unlucky?
Dont know or care how much you spent on your RV....but if 3-4 hundred gives me piece of mind for my investment, so be it......hey, maybe you've heard the term, "penny wise-pound foolish". A few hundred in damage? guess you dont have much for electronics. I say its worth the investment...others say its not! Gee....disagreement on RV.Net, what a novelty!!!
PS
"are you feeling lucky"/"are you feeling lucky punk" was a joke, as in "Dirty Harry" type humor, geezzzz
First, one poster said it saved him from reverse polarity at campgrounds. Yes, it will do that, but many of us use a $20 gadget from Radio Shack to do the same thing. Just test campground pedistal BEFORE plugging in.
We use an AUTOFORMER to correct the low voltage found in many campgrounds. A gadget that just turns off my wifes A/C when the voltage is low would NOT be looked on favorably by said wife.
In over 200,000 miles, and I forget how many years, we've not needed a surge guard. No plan to get one., It is your choice. IMHO it is a fairly safe gamble.
Chuck
Wonderful Wife
Australian Shepherd
2010 Ford Expedition TV
2010 Outback 230RS Toybox, 5390# UVW, 6800# Loaded Not yet camped in Hawaii, 2 Canada Provinces, & 2 Territories I can't be lost because I don't care where this lovely road is going
Acampingwewillgo wrote: Consider this.....people are willing to spend 10's of thousands up to 100's of thousands of dollars on an RV, yet making a small investment into some version of "surge" protection and/or over/under voltage is so foreign to so many. Bottom line is, "do ya feel lucky"? I have a portable 50 amp model that I use 99% of the time, I also have a 50 amp auto-former that I use about 30%(go figure).
Amen to that.
I have noticed over and over of people who spend lots of money on their rigs but then turn into Scrooge on everything else, including things to protect said investment. Makes no sense.
I have the 30A Surge Guard unit myself and am happy in the knowledge that I have taken reasonable steps to protect my RV. To the OP - is your call on whether the risk is worth it. Like extended warranties ....
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Hi, I bought an inline 30 Amp surge guard from Camping World and have only used it a few times and that was when I knew there was going to be thunder storms. I prefer the inline type because a friend of mine has a hard wired one in his motorhome and the entire guts were fried. (like black and melted) I don't want a melted surge protector inside of my trailer. (fire hazard)
