The FIX Is In

    

A few posts ago we talked about our problem with our Transfer Switch Relay Box.  Well, last Thursday we got it fixed at McColloch's RV Repair & Storage located at 2420 Harvard St, Sacramento, CA.  The owner, Kerry McColloch.  Kerry came highly recommended by my brother-in-law Arny, who himself was in the “repair” business with a Corvette Body Shop for years.  Kerry has a smaller shop, can be very busy at times, but the quality of work and service he gives is real good.  He has been in business for over 30 years, and online reviews speak very highly for his service too.

  

Here is our “electrical brains” under the bed.  The box to the far right is the new transfer relay box.

    

Above is a close up of the new Generator Transfer Relay, showing the inside of the lid on the right.  This relay is of much better quality than the previous one.  A transfer relay automatically senses generator power and prevents two power sources from entering the AC Distribution Panel at the same time.  This includes a time delay feature ensures generator voltage is at a stable level before transfer occurs.  When I first started up the generator, it ran for about 20 seconds before the transfer relay allowed the power to go through to the circuit breakers.  Our other one allowed the power to go through nearly immediately, so this will be much better for the motorhome.

One of the RV blogs I have followed for years now is RV-Dreams.com.  I have had a few communications with Howard and Linda before, and decided that I would share my Transfer Relay Switch problems with Howard so that he could “get the word out” about keeping the connections tight on all of these electrical items.  In their blog today, Howard mentioned our situation, and he had contacted his “technical mentor”, Jack of Living The Full-time RV Lifestyle, and included a good quote from Jack regarding these electrical issues.  I quote Howard’s blog below pertaining to what Jack told him:

"This is typical of the results of a loose electrical connection. ALL electrical connections - solar panel boxes, transfer switches, the main loadcenter and the subpanel - should be checked EVERY year for screws that work loose.
 
The screws work loose even in a residential environment due to heat/cool cycles. In an RV environment this is amplified by vibration so it is more common. Use of solid core wire by the RV industry, instead of stranded wire that is called for in Marine environments, also contributes to the issue. But solid core wire is not the entire root cause. It is a combination of factors."
 
If you “R.V.”, as they say, either full-time, part-time or just on rare occasions, you need to read and follow sites like RV-Dreams for the vast amount of information they provide.  As for me, I also enjoy the humor, the insight, and openness of what Howard includes in his blogs.  I know they have helped many people make decisions pertaining to RVing and especially Full-Time RVing.  Definitely a valuable resource for me, that’s for sure.