This is why I asked for comments. I’m just trying to ascertain general knowledge about electricity, not specifically RV electricity. I’m also thinking about college level courses such as 101, 201, etc… where you’re not accepted into a higher level class until you demonstrate proficiency at the previous technical level. And finally I worry about having complete novices work around live electricity. RV technicians and EE’s should know the dangers associated with working around electrical systems and be aware of safety precautions. An EE should be able to discuss topics such as power factor, but may have no experience with 12-volt DC systems. Licensed electricians may understand NEC code very well, but RVs are built to RVIA code which they might not be familiar with. There’s a lot to know about RV electrical systems.
I'm an EE but unlike your background that seems to be in industrial cases I'm an FPGA designer so to me 3.3V DC is "high voltage" these days. 12V dc is way back when I started for things like serial communication and some analog stuff. At one time I could accurately tell you what power factor meant.
Having re-wired two of my houses from the meter base onwards gives me more practical experience than many I work with. But yeah, we all have a decent understanding that electricity is dangerous.
Mike, I need a course like this. You are absolutely correct. Techs need more skills on electricity. Please let me know if you have a class set up that I can take. I am signed up for the Tuesday class at Rv show in september but would like to take another before that.
What Marty Said and I will add. It looks like you tried to put the answers in order from no knowledge to Engineer. I found it funny that you thought "RV Tech" was right below Engineer. While a few might be great, the ones I have experienced were a #1
That’s interesting. I would have thought “RV Tech” had a requirement of training and testing / certification. I was trained and worked as an industrial electrician and was previously a trained fleet vehicle mechanic troubleshooting electrical. But I have no certification to be an RV Tech.
I do the electrical on my RV because many local techs are less skilled than I, and their workmanship is almost always second rate.
AC: I do all the electrical on my real property (taught by my electrical contractor uncle). Even had to gripe at the local utility to get them to fix their loose neutral on the pole after a windstorm! (Long story, they were very much in the wrong.)
DC: I do the electrical on my aircraft (masters-level aircraft electrical system design/repair classes/workshops). I have removed hundreds of pounds of “N/A” in clipped off electrical wires-to-nowhere left from prior “professional” people’s shoddy workmanship.
The only time I “hire-out” is when the work requires very heavy lifting or extremely rare and expensive specialized tools. Even then, I’m “Trust, but verify”!
Beyond understanding electrical and electronic principals or how electricity works, there is understanding how to correctly and best make the all the boxes, conduits, wire and cable runs, conductor sizing, connections, securements, and protections to make certain the electrons stay in their intended paths and do not leak out from abrasion, vibration, heat, and possibly the unknown. And all that is a lot to know to be safe.
Each person's situation can be different and there's too many scenarios to be a standard classification since there's no official requirements, there's only some assumed best practices, such as certifications, but just like the computer industry - not always either. RV Technician certification might be starting to be more prevalent throughout the industry, but it hasn't been a hard requirement so far. I myself kind of slip through the cracks, but I realize even my particulars are unique to my own situation where I learned mechanics on our own dairy farm of decades past, I earned two associate degree's, one as an electronic technician, and the other as a computer electronic technician, and in more recent years because I had decades of repairing and upgrading my own and neighbors/relatives RV's, I hire myself out as an independent contractor for someone who owned a local RV dealership and repair/upgrade facility and was under his mentorship with the projects he hired me for. The volume wasn't there to justify the expense of my traveling and getting certified as an RV technician, but since I was already using a pretty vast history of my own experience from working with a wide variety of mechanical repairs, single & three phase repairs, electronic and computerized repairs which almost all RV's have incorporated into their various systems, accessories, power systems (generators, solar, battery technologies, etc), and appliances - I did purchase and study all the materials from one of the popular RV technician certification courses so that I would have the additional knowledge to add in with my background experience. That doesn't necessarily make me any better or worse than other technicians, each of us has our own strengths based on our own combination of merits. ;)
Hello Mike, I enjoy all your articles. I am not a licensed electrician but I am familiar with AC and DC electricity. I worked in the standby generator business in residential and industrial systems for 45 years. Working with gaseous fueled engines and diesel engines which are controlled by DC monitoring systems. Also having worked with 120 volt to 480 volt AC generators and automatic transfer switches and some work with automatic paralleling systems.
I am retired now but enjoy reading about anything electrical.
To clarify my poll answer. I do SOME wire and troubleshoot on my home and RV trailer. If I think I may be in over my head or require someone to look over my idea I get an electrician friend to check me.
I am gonna assume that Mike knew the questions he wanted to ask for what information he was trying to collect. But here we have critiques of the questions, that is SO internet....
This is why I asked for comments. I’m just trying to ascertain general knowledge about electricity, not specifically RV electricity. I’m also thinking about college level courses such as 101, 201, etc… where you’re not accepted into a higher level class until you demonstrate proficiency at the previous technical level. And finally I worry about having complete novices work around live electricity. RV technicians and EE’s should know the dangers associated with working around electrical systems and be aware of safety precautions. An EE should be able to discuss topics such as power factor, but may have no experience with 12-volt DC systems. Licensed electricians may understand NEC code very well, but RVs are built to RVIA code which they might not be familiar with. There’s a lot to know about RV electrical systems.
I'm an EE but unlike your background that seems to be in industrial cases I'm an FPGA designer so to me 3.3V DC is "high voltage" these days. 12V dc is way back when I started for things like serial communication and some analog stuff. At one time I could accurately tell you what power factor meant.
Having re-wired two of my houses from the meter base onwards gives me more practical experience than many I work with. But yeah, we all have a decent understanding that electricity is dangerous.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reddy_Kilowatt
Mike, I need a course like this. You are absolutely correct. Techs need more skills on electricity. Please let me know if you have a class set up that I can take. I am signed up for the Tuesday class at Rv show in september but would like to take another before that.
I'm a 2 doing 3 work. I think that identifies a bunch of us.
I fall into this category.
What Marty Said and I will add. It looks like you tried to put the answers in order from no knowledge to Engineer. I found it funny that you thought "RV Tech" was right below Engineer. While a few might be great, the ones I have experienced were a #1
That’s interesting. I would have thought “RV Tech” had a requirement of training and testing / certification. I was trained and worked as an industrial electrician and was previously a trained fleet vehicle mechanic troubleshooting electrical. But I have no certification to be an RV Tech.
I’ll bet you have a broader working knowledge than the “freshly licensed” RV techs!
I would not let The majority of the “certified” rv techs touch the low or high voltage in my RV…
That doesn’t speak well for the certification process, which I know nothing about.
I do the electrical on my RV because many local techs are less skilled than I, and their workmanship is almost always second rate.
AC: I do all the electrical on my real property (taught by my electrical contractor uncle). Even had to gripe at the local utility to get them to fix their loose neutral on the pole after a windstorm! (Long story, they were very much in the wrong.)
DC: I do the electrical on my aircraft (masters-level aircraft electrical system design/repair classes/workshops). I have removed hundreds of pounds of “N/A” in clipped off electrical wires-to-nowhere left from prior “professional” people’s shoddy workmanship.
The only time I “hire-out” is when the work requires very heavy lifting or extremely rare and expensive specialized tools. Even then, I’m “Trust, but verify”!
There is no entry for things like "I have a great deal of electrical knowledge and/or esxperience" or "I am a Licensed Electrician".
Beyond understanding electrical and electronic principals or how electricity works, there is understanding how to correctly and best make the all the boxes, conduits, wire and cable runs, conductor sizing, connections, securements, and protections to make certain the electrons stay in their intended paths and do not leak out from abrasion, vibration, heat, and possibly the unknown. And all that is a lot to know to be safe.
Good at most basic electrical problems and fixes but usually Smart enough to stop at limits of knowledge and either do research or get pro advise.
Each person's situation can be different and there's too many scenarios to be a standard classification since there's no official requirements, there's only some assumed best practices, such as certifications, but just like the computer industry - not always either. RV Technician certification might be starting to be more prevalent throughout the industry, but it hasn't been a hard requirement so far. I myself kind of slip through the cracks, but I realize even my particulars are unique to my own situation where I learned mechanics on our own dairy farm of decades past, I earned two associate degree's, one as an electronic technician, and the other as a computer electronic technician, and in more recent years because I had decades of repairing and upgrading my own and neighbors/relatives RV's, I hire myself out as an independent contractor for someone who owned a local RV dealership and repair/upgrade facility and was under his mentorship with the projects he hired me for. The volume wasn't there to justify the expense of my traveling and getting certified as an RV technician, but since I was already using a pretty vast history of my own experience from working with a wide variety of mechanical repairs, single & three phase repairs, electronic and computerized repairs which almost all RV's have incorporated into their various systems, accessories, power systems (generators, solar, battery technologies, etc), and appliances - I did purchase and study all the materials from one of the popular RV technician certification courses so that I would have the additional knowledge to add in with my background experience. That doesn't necessarily make me any better or worse than other technicians, each of us has our own strengths based on our own combination of merits. ;)
Hello Mike, I enjoy all your articles. I am not a licensed electrician but I am familiar with AC and DC electricity. I worked in the standby generator business in residential and industrial systems for 45 years. Working with gaseous fueled engines and diesel engines which are controlled by DC monitoring systems. Also having worked with 120 volt to 480 volt AC generators and automatic transfer switches and some work with automatic paralleling systems.
I am retired now but enjoy reading about anything electrical.
Keep up the good work.
Thank you.
Ruben
I'd check a box if it was for electrical trade
To clarify my poll answer. I do SOME wire and troubleshoot on my home and RV trailer. If I think I may be in over my head or require someone to look over my idea I get an electrician friend to check me.
And here we have a critique of the critique. That is so.. anal.
I am gonna assume that Mike knew the questions he wanted to ask for what information he was trying to collect. But here we have critiques of the questions, that is SO internet....