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Old 06-18-2014, 09:38 PM   #81
Mini-Skoolie
 
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Re: RV Electrical Safety

FYI: My first eBook - No~Shock~Zone RV Electrical Safety - has just published on Amazon/Kindle. I think that every RV owner, technician and campground owner should read this book. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00L2DWBD8

Mike Sokol

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Old 06-22-2014, 03:39 PM   #82
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Re: RV Electrical Safety

Thanks to everyone who watched my webinar about RV Electricity on RVtravel.com yesterday. They've now asked me to come back again in a few weeks, so stay tuned for lots more content. Send any question that you want answered during the webinar to mike@noshockzone.org

Mike Sokol
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http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00L2DWBD8
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Old 07-06-2014, 11:37 AM   #83
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Re: RV Electrical Safety

Sadly, a 3-year old boy was electrocuted by an RV hot-skin just last Monday in Amboy, IL.

Here's a video I just posted on the apparent cause of the electrocution.

And here's a link to the newspaper story about it. http://wqad.com/2014/07/02/wiring-blame ... -year-old/

Hopefully all of you already know to never accept feeling a shock from any RV, bus or appliance. And all unknown outlets should be tested for proper polarity and ground BEFORE plugging in your shore power line. I think that a basic NCVT (Non Contact Voltage Tester) such as a Fluke VoltAlert or Klein NCVT-1 is a very cheap investment since it's so easily used to check for hot-skin conditions.

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Old 07-07-2014, 07:23 PM   #84
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Re: RV Electrical Safety

Mike, I finally got a chance to listen to your webcast with Chuck Woodbury. I must say you're a brave man to get in front of a camera and answer live questions from people. Some of them were so terse that I found myself having to think several seconds just trying to figure out what they're asking! You did great.

I finally bought myself a Klein NCVT-2. I took it out in the shop and immediately started playing with it, but it never alarmed on anything: not on an extension cord, not when poked into the blades of a receptacle, not even when touched directly to the lugs on the shop's breaker sub-panel. It turned out I had received a defective unit; the retailer happily replaced it with one that works as expected.

Based on that experience I'd humbly suggest adding/clarifying a step in your NCVT test drill, which it turns out is echoed in the instructions for the testers: test a known-live circuit every use to verify that the tester itself is working. Sometimes you advise (as in the post above) to test the outlets before plugging in and I think that's really a key step to mention every time. It verifies that the tester is functional. As you know, but I mention for other readers, most of the circuitry inside these testers is tiny surface-mount stuff and is very resistant to shock (vibration) damage -- but the internal antenna piece is a relatively long heavy ribbon of stamped metal. If the tester is kept someplace with a lot of vibration (or dropped) the antenna or its solder connection could fatigue and finally fail, resulting in a tester that beeps and flashes when turned on but which doesn't actually detect electrically live surfaces.

Keep up the good work!
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Old 07-07-2014, 09:54 PM   #85
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Re: RV Electrical Safety

Pretty sad when you stop to think that for lack of a little knowledge and a $20 or so tester, a boy's life could have been saved.

The simple testers that check for mis-wired electrical are fairly inexpensive even for someone as frugal (or cheap :lol) as I am. I am so happy that Mike Sokol continues to post on this forum. I believe that this thread, so full of his great information, has prevented potential heartache simply by educating those of us who either know nothing about mobile electrical wiring to those of us who are a bit fuzzy on some of the finer points of mobile electric. Not to mention how great he has been about answering all our questions. I think this is one of the most important threads on the forum (even if I did start it! Excuse me while I pat myself on the back ). I have read far too many posts on various RV sites where they mention getting a "little tingle" in damp weather. It scares me. I have often wondered about the folks who have died from a hot skinned RV. How long did they have "just a little tingle" before they got a shock big enough to kill them? I once heard that it really doesn't take that big of a jolt to disrupt the rhythm and stop a human heart.

In case I haven't remembered to do it before... THANK YOU MIKE SOKOL!!!
And THANK YOU fellow skoolies for reading, learning and putting what you have learned into practice. We are all carrying precious, irreplaceable cargo in our buses, our loved ones.
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Old 07-07-2014, 10:22 PM   #86
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Re: RV Electrical Safety

Quote:
Originally Posted by lornaschinske
Pretty sad when you stop to think that for lack of a little knowledge and a $20 or so tester, a boy's life could have been saved.

In case I haven't remembered to do it before... THANK YOU MIKE SOKOL!!!
And THANK YOU fellow skoolies for reading, learning and putting what you have learned into practice. We are all carrying precious, irreplaceable cargo in our buses, our loved ones.
You're most welcome. And thanks very much for your kind words. I get really sad every time I read about the death of yet another child from electrocution. That's one of the reasons I work so hard to develop simple testing methods and spread the word about electrical safety. It only takes 20 mA of 60 Hz current to paralyze your hands so you can't let go of an energized object, and 30 mA for a few seconds can stop your heart.

So please pass on the links to my website and book to everyone you know with an RV or bus conversion. You could be saving their lives and the lives of their children and pets. Let's stay safe out there...

Mike Sokol
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Old 11-17-2014, 08:44 PM   #87
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Re: RV Electrical Safety

FYI: I've just posted a video showing how to test a pedestal outlet for proper voltage, polarity and grounding before plugging in your RV. See and please let me know if you have additional questions on electrical safety.

Mike Sokol
mike@noshockzone.org
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Old 12-24-2014, 06:25 PM   #88
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Some great info in this thread, glad to see so many people are downloading the pdf's too. Bottom line is if you're not sure with your electrical, ask for help. And always check any strange outlet with a multimeter or plug tester as described above before you plug your stuff into it. I make a habit of doing this at job sites before I plug my battery chargers in because sometimes you get some monkey-rigged temp power.
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Old 03-23-2015, 08:32 AM   #89
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Thank you for all this great information in layman's terms!

Back in the 80's I was the first tenent in a new apartment complex that had wired 220 into a bedroom outlet. Thankfully no one was ever hurt, but a few items were fried before it was determined.

I currently have a couple outlets in my older rental I will be checking with your methods. I too, have been lulled by the two yellow lights I fear.

Thank you jmsokol for taking the time to share your knowledge. You truly are a lifesaver.
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Old 05-05-2015, 07:11 AM   #90
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Originally Posted by SassyLass View Post
Thank you for all this great information in layman's terms!

Thank you jmsokol for taking the time to share your knowledge. You truly are a lifesaver.
I've been seeing a lot of my article downloads from this forum over the last few days, so that means that Spring has sprung and you're all getting your skoolies ready for adventure. Be sure to double-check all ground bonding and always measure for hot-skin voltage when plugging into any pedestal or home power outlets. Let's play safe...
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Old 05-23-2015, 12:13 PM   #91
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Post Electrical safety and resources, hot skin testing, bad ground

Shameless bump to share the best electrical safety and wiring information in the forums (IMHO) - for all the newbies that haven't seen it before, and for ease of finding it for others.

It's that time of year again for electrical safety. Jmsokol is extremely well qualified to be offering up all these information sheets, videos, and suggestions. The "hot skin" demo and testing info can save a life. IMO all his info should be required reading for all DIY converters.

Thank you Lorna for listing so many of these items all in one place.

(I receive no compensation for my endorsement btw.)
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Old 05-24-2015, 07:10 AM   #92
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SassyLass View Post
Shameless bump to share the best electrical safety and wiring information in the forums (IMHO) - for all the newbies that haven't seen it before, and for ease of finding it for others.

It's that time of year again for electrical safety. Jmsokol is extremely well qualified to be offering up all these information sheets, videos, and suggestions. The "hot skin" demo and testing info can save a life. IMO all his info should be required reading for all DIY converters.

Thank you Lorna for listing so many of these items all in one place.

(I receive no compensation for my endorsement btw.)
Thanks for bumping my No~Shock~Zone articles up to remind everyone about electrical safety. One thing to be aware of is that I'm now getting a lot of emails about electricians installing new TT-30 outlets and mis-wiring them with 240-volts instead of 120-volts. Of course, plugging your RV's 120-volt shore power line into one will fry all your on-board electronics in a few seconds. So be especially careful to measure any 30-amp RV outlet installed at a residence BEFORE you plug in. See my article at Mis-wiring a 120-volt RV outlet with 240-volts | No~Shock~Zone

Mike Sokol
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Old 06-27-2015, 02:55 PM   #93
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Golly.... this single forum thread download my No~Shock~Zone articles 174 times in a single day this week. You all must be studying really hard.

Mike Sokol
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Old 08-28-2015, 03:37 PM   #94
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I just shot a video on how to test a portable generator for a floating neutral and an easy way to add a neutral-ground bond for use with an EMS Surge Protector. See

Mike Sokol
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No Shock Zone
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Old 08-28-2015, 05:35 PM   #95
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Golly.... this single forum thread download my No~Shock~Zone articles 174 times in a single day this week. You all must be studying really hard.

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Old 09-06-2015, 03:25 PM   #96
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Thank you so much for this info. I need all I can get my eyes on!
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Old 09-07-2015, 05:58 AM   #97
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Thank you so much for this info. I need all I can get my eyes on!
You're most welcome. I find that a lot of my college students learn better visually than simply reading, so videos really help. (Yes, I'm an adjunct professor at a major conservatory)

BTW I'm getting ready to produce a video on how to test vehicle chassis ground connections for their ability to shunt fault currents away. It uses simple tools and is perfectly safe for non-electricians to perform. I'll keep you posted.

Mike Sokol
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Old 09-07-2015, 06:37 AM   #98
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Originally Posted by jmsokol View Post
You're most welcome. I find that a lot of my college students learn better visually than simply reading, so videos really help. (Yes, I'm an adjunct professor at a major conservatory)

BTW I'm getting ready to produce a video on how to test vehicle chassis ground connections for their ability to shunt fault currents away. It uses simple tools and is perfectly safe for non-electricians to perform. I'll keep you posted.

Mike Sokol
Thanks a million, man.
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Old 09-07-2015, 09:06 AM   #99
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Your contributions are greatly appreciated. Personally, I need all the help, experience, savvy I can find when it comes to things electrical. And finding someone who can describe things simply and with minimal formulas involved, is a REAL blessing.

Many thanks!
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Old 09-07-2015, 09:33 AM   #100
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Your contributions are greatly appreciated. Personally, I need all the help, experience, savvy I can find when it comes to things electrical. And finding someone who can describe things simply and with minimal formulas involved, is a REAL blessing.

Many thanks!
Tango, I think most of us do. I've had some basic electrical safety through my time in both the Army and Air Guard as a radio guy, but nowhere near the level necessary to safely wire up a bus. When I *do* get to that point, I think I may put in a call to the Veterans support counselor at Stockton U, and see what her husband, an electrician, would charge on a consult.
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