Another Really Dangerous Pedestal!

All I can say is WOW! Watch out for poorly maintained campground pedestals...

Hey Mike,

Thought you'd enjoy this pedestal we ran into in MO in April. Last site available so checked the voltage and carefully plugged in with no problems! Sent photo to their management! - Thomas B.

Everyone…

That’s so incredibly dangerous, and not just for your RV electrical system. All those exposed wires are electrically hot, and at just the right height for a small child to make contact and be shocked or killed. Keep your children and pets away from any pedestal with a missing front panel. It can kill you!

Poor connections!

Plus the conductors that are visible in the picture are sloppily terminated. Notice that a few of the strands didn’t make it into the terminal block. This type of poor termination can easily allow the neutral to open up, sending high voltage into your RV and damaging its electrical system.

Corrosion causes overheating…

Finally, since this open pedestal is exposed to the weather, it’s highly likely that the contacts in the outlets are oxidized (corroded) and that can cause your expensive surge protector or shore power plug to meltdown. Once your plug is overheated and melted it needs to be replaced.

Don’t plug into a worn pedestal like this if possible!

I know you may have no choice, but if possible avoid plugging your RV into a pedestal in this condition. And if you do have to plug into a poorly maintained pedestal, then check its voltage first, and monitor your connectors for any signs of overheating. You could be shocked, set your shore power plug on fire or cause electrical damage to your RV.

And an advanced (EMS) surge protector is your friend, so get one if you don’t have one already! A quality EMS surge protector can shut down the power to your RV if the pedestal voltage or ground goes haywire after your initial test.

Let’s play safe out there… Mike