Surge Protector

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by Moereece

What area is this located in your AI?

I installed the Progressive EMS unit next to the Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS) in rear driver side corner of my 2013 Interstate Lounge EXT model. Here are a couple of photos I took during the installation.

[Moereece]

Originally Posted by Boxster1971

I installed the Progressive EMS unit next to the Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS) in rear driver side corner of my 2013 Interstate Lounge EXT model. Here are a couple of photos I took during the installation.

Nice job.

[Moereece]

Nice job

[Moereece]

Good morning and Happy Father's Day. I just installed the 30 amp Surge Guard in my 2016 AI and it fit perfectly in the back corner. Here are a few pics.

[Daquenzer]

Camping world has the portable EMS for sale for about 310. Not progressive. Don’t know how it compares. I know when I bought my Progressive EMS (portable) that I found one on sale. Don’t pay full price. Shop around.

I know that I wouldn’t go camping without it. My brother (who camps more than I do) had his RV saved from 2 instances of bad wiring at the site. He highly recommended an EMS system. A simple surge protector wouldn’t do that. I think one could run across bad wiring more frequently at state parks etc. That’s where I would be the most leery.

I bought the portable simply because I could move it around. Plus if I ever bought a different AS I could take it with me. It’s really quite easy to hook up and a 30 amp adapter is cheap.

[graysailor]

Just be aware that most generators will not work when using the Surge Protector.

[GCinSC2]

Originally Posted by graysailor

Just be aware that most generators will not work when using the Surge Protector.

Research a neutral bonding plug adaptor. That satisfies “fools” the surge protector.

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by graysailor

Just be aware that most generators will not work when using the Surge Protector.

Mine is wired in before the transfer switch so it only monitors external shore power. That is what Progressive recommended in their installation manual.

[PharmGeek]

I vacillated about hard wired vs. portable years back when I got my 50 amp PI portable unit...I did not go into as much detail as this thread at the time...this is a useful discussion...seems like a recall (although cannot explicitly remember) that I indeed could not use mine with my generator...ill need to confirm that.

Never thought about the question of a warranty....boy, I can tell you that if you feel a need to ask that question, then the answer very well may be "yes, it could void the warranty" in some scenario....but if a certified person installed?

I probably if I did it again would have gone with hard wired, but at the time, I was even more shy about such things and that seemed more "plug and play"

I do not even lock mine...hmmmmm....man if it was stolen that would suck. I think I am going to go about RV'ing pretending theft is a very very low risk event until it happens....lol....

good luck on a tough choice.

[rmkrum]

Generator problem was probably "floating neutral" or "Open Neutral" error code issued with the generator vs the Surge Protector situation

Easy fix is a "Neutral bonding adapter", which is actually a 120 volt duplex plug with the neutral prong (white lead, silver screw) and the ground (safety earth) (green wire, green screw) prongs tied together. When this is plugged into a generator outlet, this convinces the surge protector all is well when on generator.

The reason is that the neutral (power return lead) and the green ground (safety earth) leads in the trailer are required by code to be connected ONLY at the power panel or connection where the AS plugs in to get power. Ground and Neutral are tied together at that panel, also as is required by code.

Generators don't do that, typically, so a jumper plug is needed to make the surge protector think all is well. You can just buy a Neutral bonding adapter, or make one, if you know what you are doing with electrical wiring.

[Moereece]

Yeah I just connected it at the transfer switch , so that it is just going straight from shore power.

[Moereece]

Originally Posted by Moereece

Yeah I just connected it at the transfer switch , so that it is just going straight from shore power.

This is the final result. And it works great.

[amirm]

I bought a progressive PT30C. I opened it and it is cheaply made with respect to surge protection. The MOVs are not fused meaning when they eventually die and short out, they will explode or smoke in there. The start-up delay is quite annoying. What on earth is it good for? After messing with it once, I put it aside and no longer use it.

The problem with a remote surge protection device is that it lacks a good ground to shunt the surges. Such a protector needs to be at the mains breaker where the grounding rod is. Having it way the heck away inside the RV does nothing. And having it at the plug terminal, not much better.

These also do no voltage regulation or boost here so there is no help for brownouts other than protective shut down and delay.

The only good thing is the diagnostics with respect to voltage and polarity being sound. For that, a quick check plug would be faster, cheaper and more convenient.

So I say save your money and put it toward something else.

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Startup delay is pretty simple:

1) It makes *sure* you have the plugs all in before current flows. That way no burn to the contacts or "one to few wires connected" issues.

2) It makes sure that the power source *is* stable inside the high and low limits. Maybe not a big deal *most* of the time .... indeed a big deal with unstable power.

Bob

[wachuko]

Originally Posted by amirm

I bought a progressive PT30C. I opened it and it is cheaply made with respect to surge protection. The MOVs are not fused meaning when they eventually die and short out, they will explode or smoke in there. The start-up delay is quite annoying. What on earth is it good for? After messing with it once, I put it aside and no longer use it.

The problem with a remote surge protection device is that it lacks a good ground to shunt the surges. Such a protector needs to be at the mains breaker where the grounding rod is. Having it way the heck away inside the RV does nothing. And having it at the plug terminal, not much better.

These also do no voltage regulation or boost here so there is no help for brownouts other than protective shut down and delay.

The only good thing is the diagnostics with respect to voltage and polarity being sound. For that, a quick check plug would be faster, cheaper and more convenient.

So I say save your money and put it toward something else.

That might be the case, but mine (EMS-PT30X) saved me from a very stupid (and what could have been very costly) mistake... in just that instance it paid for itself...and avoided me having to do a lot of explaining to Lucy... or was it Lucy, that had some 'splainin' to do! I get those mixed up...

[BoscoMN]

I remember one individual's installation was done where the internally installed surge suppressor could be bypassed in the event it failed. I believe that he did it with plugs (had a lot of room).

I went with the Hughes Autotransformer. I cover it with a collapsible bucket to protect it from the rain (run the cables through the carry handles to keep it in place. I lock it to the pedestal.


Plus side is that if it fails I can easily bypass it. Negative is that it is heavy, one more thing to lug around and connect and it can be stolen.

[Alex AVI]

Even though I did not initiate this thread, gained lots of info here and thank you to everyone for their inputs. This thread helped me decide which way to go.

This decision was not as easy as one may think, only because in my case I have just had an issue with my Magnum inverter burning up inside my 3-mo. old 2018. So, that plays a part into my decision. Knowing the already SEVERELY limited space & airflow in my electrical compartment as compared to older units or different layouts, I do not want to risk exacerbating that any more than it's current state and also taking an overly cautious approach to electrical mods that may give AS the slightest reason to void my warranty.

Besides, I don't want any more electrical boxes with potential to explode under my bed. Bad enough as it is. It will also give me more time to study alternate locations and enclosure modifications I can do to house both this & inverter that would make me feel more comfortable (will tackle after my warranty is over). For now, it is PT30X portable post mount. At approx. $70/year until my warranty is up, I can live with that. And it will have other use in garage even when I go hardwired.

[Mansderm161]

I encountered a problem with my progressive portable surge after less than 6 months. I tried to plug in home as I do every weekend and it read reverse polarity and would not let me have power. I was getting ready to go camping, so I called an electrician who came out and checked my home and the surge protector. My home did not have reverse polarity and the unit was reading incorrectly. I went to the campground and plugged into 3 sites and all read reverse polarity like at home. So I could not use it and went without for that stay. Came home and called progressive and they were great. Filled out warranty claim on line and they are sending new unit. If it were installed and this issue happened, not sure how to get power without uninstalling it at campground.

[accordionman]

If it were installed and this issue happened, not sure how to get power without uninstalling it at campground.

Makes me feel better about not having known about the hard wired version before buying my plug in ! LOL!

[wachuko]

Mansderm161, interesting... During this trip, second campsite, I got an E10 error... which asks for the EMS to be serviced... I sent an email to them asking for the surge suppressor board (reading further into the error and what I could google)... got a quick response from them asking to fill out the warranty claim, upload some photos, proof of purchase, and they are sending me a new unit as well... Customer service was great. I just want the reliability to be even better. Hopefully it was just a one-time issue...

This was after following their troubleshooting steps and plugging it in several sites. I even opened it to check if it was a simple issue, but could not see any loose cables or components with a visual damage.

I too feel good about sticking with the bulky portable unit... I was thinking of going hard-wired... not anymore...