I was wondering if it is necessary to get a surge protector for our RV. Our inverter caught on fire. WE were there, so my husband was able to disconnect the inverter before it damaged anything. We replaced it with a lot larger one. I just didn't know if we need a surge protector.

Thanks,
Karen

It is important to understand what most people call a surge protector. While that is important in our RV's, my experience in RV parks is the inconsistency in the delivered power, most importantly the voltage. The power protection unit we have installed continuously monitors the voltage of both 50A legs coming into the coach, and shuts the power off if the voltage gets too high or low. This protects the electrical devices inside from damage caused by voltage out of normal range.

Here is a link to what I installed in our Redwood

http://www.progressiveindustries.net/ems-hw-hardwires

thanks so much. This info definitely helps to know what I need to look for.

Agree with Jim. We installed a 50 amp hard wired Surge Guard system. It protects against high & low voltages, which unfortunately are all too common at many campgrounds.

Ours has already paid for itself by shutting off the power to save the electronics, on at least a couple of occasions.

http://www.trci.net/products/surge-guard-rv/hardwires-portables

Yes, a surge protector is something that's important to use. Ours has protected us on numerous occasions, three that I can recall are low voltage in a national park, a pedestal with only one 50 amp leg operating in a state park (multiple toggling of the breaker brought the other leg on and saved me trying to diagnose a non-problem with the RW!) and high voltage while in Mexico.

My portable surge guard got it's plug burned up by a bad socket on a pedestal, I'm going with a hard wired unit in future.

However, an inverter catching on fire is not normal and may not have anything to do with surge or incoming voltage. There are many happy inverters out there with no surge protection.

I would contact the manufacturer of the inverter and tell them that you had a fire and see if they would be interested in investigating it. Typically they pay to have it shipped back to the factory.

We have the portable Progressive Industries Electrical Protector and it has tripped off numerous times from power problems in rv parks.

Met a chap in Chula Vista in January who a newer 5th wheel and forget to use his surge protector in the city owned modern rv resort. He told me that an electrical surge occurred on one side of the 50 ciruit and fried his electronic accessories including microwave, washer, drier,etc. He was getting them all replaced at the cost of $6000 (covered by his insurance). He said it was a power company problem and not a park problem. The power company is exempt from paying damages.

Get one and don't forget to use it 😉

Thank you for all your suggestions! I'll start shopping.

The inverter was covered by Redwood. IT was our first time out.

Thanks everyone!

Karen and Ben Hicks

The short answer, YOU BETCHA & don't leave home without it!!!

It should be a mandatory item. They are available in the hard-wired and portable units. Since they are (and we don't trust all campers), we opted for the hard-wired. It takes about 2 hours to install.

If you have ever wondered why you might need electrical protection, here is an interesting article:

http://rvtravel.com/campsite-power-pedestal-safety-open-ground-danger/