Roadtrekking in our 210P via Lily Pads

This is our Trek in our Roadtrek 210P. Hint: Scroll to a list of "Topics and Destinations" on the right. Our RT is a portal to a much larger world and we have established "lily pads" from which we travel and we'll post about those, too. Life is a Journey of discovery in our Motorized Alpaca, a "tiny cabins on wheels". It has been said that "Life Begins at the end of our Comfort Zone." Content and photos are original unless noted. Click photos to enlarge. Copyright and disclaimers apply.

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Progressive Energy Management System

It's been an unusual year, and my trek plans were interrupted. More on that on coming posts. With treks delayed I spent what available time I had planning and installing improvements. One of those was a Progressive Industries Energy Management System "EMS-HW30C." This post includes a video of the unit which I installed.

I chose this unit for these reasons, in no particular order:

Ability to mount "inside" and protected from the weather.
Remote indicator with ON-OFF (bypass) control. This I have mounted inside the rear coach of the RT where it can be readily observed day and night.
The indicator displays line voltage, current (amperes) and frequency (Hertz).
The indicator displays error codes, which provide indication of power conditions and also the internal condition of the EMS.
Multi-mode surge protection and easy replacement of MOVs.
Automatic power shutdown via contactor if AC voltage falls below 104 volts or rises above 132 volts, or if the RT is accidentally connected to 240 Volts.
15 second time delay on compressor start (adjustable). This avoids false trips.
Ability to bypass (disable) all energy management via a switch on the remote indicator. Surge protection via Metal Oxide Varistors (MOVs) is always enabled.
Lifetime warranty.
Proudly manufactured in the U.S.A.

I reviewed a number of possible locations including under the RT, inside an internal compartment, inside an external compartment, etc.

I also considered wiring the EMS before the generator or after. However, I decided for simplicity to install it in the main 120V power cable.

I decided to install in an outside storage compartment. That compartment is the location of the 30 ampere power cable. I also decided to install the EMS with twist-lock 30 ampere connectors. This allows easy removal when cleaning the RV, when the RV is stored for the winter, or if service od the EMS is necessary.

Here's a photo of the power cable modified with the twist-lock connectors. This is without the EMS in the compartment: