Surge protectors

[FBJcreation]

Seems Surge protectors come in two kinds, hardwired vs plug and play. Opinions? Plug and Play subject to theft/lost but replaceable but one less thing to hardwire. Hardwire, pain to replace but always there. With the limited space in a teardrop, a plug and play seems reasonable. What experiences have you had?

[Bill n Robi]

We use the plug and play. I use it on the generator and AC service in campgrounds, Not that a hardwired wouldn't work but protectors have a life-cycle - they protect for x number of surges/spikes. Easier to replace the pigtail unit. To put a hardwire in our's would be a 'hidden' area and I would not see the LED display as readily and we have seen bad grounds and bad neutrals in older CGs. They usually have covers that allow you to lock and it is very difficult to steal one.

I'd be more worried about the 50 amp cord myself.

[working on it]

Seems Surge protectors come in two kinds, hardwired vs plug and play. Opinions? Plug and Play subject to theft/lost but replaceable but one less thing to hardwire. Hardwire, pain to replace but always there. With the limited space in a teardrop, a plug and play seems reasonable. What experiences have you had?

* I opted for plug & play. For under $15, I bought a four-outlet 115vac surge protector (Leviton 5100-GP) from a clearance sale at Fruit Ridge tools back in '14, and it has worked in my trailer since then. I was concerned about power spikes to my ac-powered devices, since I didn't use circuit breakers or fuses on that part of my grid (12vdc is protected by both, though). I rely on GFCI plugs/cords for wet safety (it always rains when I camp), but I'm not sure if a transient voltage spike would trip them or not, so I bought this as extra protection.

5100-GP.jpg (106 KiB) Viewed 1963 times

* I run an extension cord to a splitter block in my trailer (mounted up on the rear sidewall, protected behind a waterproof, in-use cover), then I have two GFCI plug-in adapters feeding everything from that point on: #1 thru the surge protector to the inside cabin, where the A/C, inverter, stereo, lighting, fan, and heater are, and #2 to power any galley needs/external lights/etc. that I may need. The system has worked so far, protecting my gear from spikes (one at camp last week), and all I have to do is reset the GFCI (the 5100-GP resets itself). I'm currently modifying my electrical outlets to include an external GFCI quad outlet (under yet another waterproof, in-use cover), so I don't have to open my hatch to use the new porch light, or plug in my electric skillet.\
* For more info on this surge protector (which seems to be discontinued), and how/why I use it, here's a link to an old thread about it & my trailer (as it was in 2014, and much the same today): http://www.tnttt.com/viewtopic.php?f=30&t=60587#p1088735

[Shadow Catcher]

We have a Progressive Industries, hard wired. Progressive Industries guaranteed for life (hard to argue with), yes shoehorning it in was a trick, but worth it. The digital read out, amps , volt , Hz.