What does it mean, when I hear elec arcing at pedestal?

[stevek]

Pedestal at RV park. When I plug in I can hear snap, crackel, pop.
I have to jiggle the plug to get a good connection. Everything seems to work OK in BF.
Is plug just wore out?
Anything I should worry about? Thanks.

[whemme]

Steve,

First, the most important thing it means is that you are plugging into the pedestal without first shutting off the associated 30-amp circuit breaker in the pedestal. Turn the breaker off, then plug into the pedestal and then turn the breaker back on again. Doing this will prevent the arcing you are experiencing and also causing damage to the contacts in you cable and associated contacts in the pedestal plug. Also doing what you are doing can in some circumstances cause damage to some of your Born Free's electrical appliances.

As a result of you doing this, there maybe enough damage to the contacts in the plug end of your power cable that you should consider replacing it.

[stevek]

Bill, I did turn the 30 amp breaker off before plugging in. When I turned it on, I could hear the "noise".
And jiggled my plug to get power to my BF. At first there was NO power to my BF.
Everything seems to work OK in my BF.
I guess maybe I should move to another spot.
So what is it? Just a worn out and sloppy pedestal plug? Thanks Bill.

Another question I have. My refrigerator was completely turned off. After I was plugged in, I turned the refer on. Assuming it is running on 100% electrical, do I still need to worry about how LEVEL I have to be, like if it was propane powered on on the road?

[whemme]

Well, it could be either a worn out 30-amp pedestal jack or a worn out plug on the end of your shoreline power cable. If the arcing occurs on a different pedestal when wiggling the connection with the breaker turned on, I would replace your cable with new. I don't think there is much you can do to repair damaged contacts in your cable. Continued arcing will act like a welder's arc and burn damage the plug on your cable.

[tomzleapin]

If the arcing occurs on a different pedestal when wiggling the connection with the breaker turned on, I would replace your cable with new.

You could also just replace the plug. A lot cheaper than replacing the whole cord.

Assuming it is running on 100% electrical, do I still need to worry about how LEVEL I have to be, like if it was propane powered on on the road?

There is no difference running on propane or electric. It doesn't have to be absolutely level, but should be close.
From the Norcold manual:
CAUTION: The refrigerator is made to operate within 3° off level side-to-side and 6° off level
front-to-back (as looking at the front of the refrigerator). Operating it at more than these limits
can cause damage to the cooling system and create a risk of personal injury or property damage.
Make sure the vehicle is level before you operate the refrigerator.

[stevek]

Thanks Bill and Tom.
What about keeping an adaptor on the plug end?
Do they make a 30 amp to 30 amp, female to male adapter?

[whemme]

Well, such an adapter could eventually wear out just like your cable plug did. Something like attached below from Camping World maybe.

[LinandNancy]

It is a good idea to have a good surge protector on your coach. They come with a lock on them as the portable ones go directly on the pedestal and are pilferable.

[randallrae]

Surge isn't the main thing you need to have for protection. http://www.progressiveindustries.net/our-products If you have one of the Born Frees that is equipped with a 50 amp cord you absolutely need pedestal protection .

[stevek]

How can I tell if I have a 50 amp cord?
I assume my is 10ga....therefore 30 amp. So 50 amp is 8ga?

And yes,I have a Progressive surge protector. In my particular situation, should I have used it?
They are pricey too, if I burned it up. I don't use it much. Maybe I should. Just lazy.

If have thought of permanently connecting the surge protector to the end of my cord, using zip ties or something.
What do you think of that idea?

Regarding electric arcing, how would that effect my surge protector????

[Roger H]

Arcing can melt the plug, and will burn the contacts. I suspect it's not good for the electronics in the coach either.

A 30 amp plug and a 50 amp plug look very different and cannot be confused. The 30 amp is on the left; the 50 amp on the right:



A surge protector is a sacrificial device that will shunt surges to ground up to a certain voltage, and then will self-destruct to save the electrics in your coach. While they're certainly not IN-expensive, they're certainly less expensive than replacing all of the electronics in your coach!

[stevek]

Thanks. So 10 ga and 8 ga wire/ 30 amp vs 50 amp?
Heres my surge protector.

[Roger H]

Yes, the 50 amp has heavier wire, but it's the sockets that are important. That is a 30 amp surge protector.

[randallrae]

Surges account for a very few events that damage RV's . A good protector will turn power off to the RV if it see's low voltage(most common cause of damage) ,high voltage ( actually happened when using mine ) , high or low frequency (actually happened when using mine) ,reversed polarity , open neutral(very important if your RV has a 50 amp service) , and open ground (very important). I would recommend only devices that do all of the above.

[jlef123]

Here is a link to Mike Sokol's website where he discusses everything about electrical safety. There is a 12 part series on this site about electrical safety that is excellent. He also has a weekly column on rvtravel.com. I highly recommend it. http://noshockzone.org/category/rv-safety/ . You can not be too careful around electricity. I measured 34 volts of electricity from metal parts on my coach to earth while not plugged in to anything. Gave me a little tingle. Turns out I was parked under a high tension line that energized my entire coach. Per Mike Sokol as little as 30 volts can be deadly. He has a complete description in these articles on what you should do to keep yourself safe when plugging in to shore power. He is also trying, along with Chuck Woodbury, editor of rvtravel.com, to organize a group called "Stray Voltage Patrol" to report instances of campgrounds and campsites with bad electrical towers. Over the years I have found many instances of electrical towers that are unsafe and I am sure that many of you have found the same thing. I addition to having the proper equipment to protect the electrical components of our coaches we also must learn how to protect the most important equipment in our coaches, ourselves.