Reverse Polarity

[pgsup]

Will buy a spare Euro lead and convert if for reverse polarity.Have learned so much from this forum.
Hope I can input something usefull one day.
Thanks
pgsup

 

[sidepod]

Pgsup,

Every day is a school day

S.

 

[teeboy]

I have been following this closely as I am off to France soon (and we were in France last year blissfully unaware of this).

I think in summary we are saying:

If you plug into a site which is wired in reverse then:

- Everything will still work OK
- But if you turn off a switch then then as UK switches only switch off the live side, then the neutral side will be live (cos we are wired on reverse)

Now the fun bit - our 3 pin socket does not have a switch on it, so if you are plugged in then there is no way to turn the socket off - so in the UK or France it would be dangerous to shove things into the plug. So if you want to make sure an appliance is isolated in a Cali then the only way to make sure it is not powered is to unplug it - in the UK or France.

The two pin plug, the low power one, is not relevant to this discussion as this can be used either way round and is fed from the batteries via an inverter any way.

I think the only way to get 230V in the cali is via the 3 pin or 2 pin sockets, and everything else high voltage is hidden away, and if I am playing in the hidden bits I will unplug and/or switch the circuit breaker.

If all my assumptions are true I will be carrying on with a standard lead and not worrying about it.

Have I made any duff assumptions?

Tony

 

[Billy]

if the site is on reverse polarity you will need to change over the wires on your hook up lead, however if you do not wish to use any 240v devices whilst at the campsite you should be OK but i personally would change the wires over to be on the safe side. As mentioned above there is a very handy guide here http://vwcaliforniaclub.com/downloads/R ... larity.pdf which is worth keeping in the van with you

 

[sidepod]

Switching appliances off is not really an issue.

Even in the uk when an appliance is switched off you still have a live supply inside it on the supply side of the switch. In other words, it's never truly isolated via the on off switch.

If you choose to start opening up electrical equipment whilst plugged in then that's your lookout.

Bear in mind 99% of electrical items are sold across Europe. Just because you bought it it Blighty doesn't make it unique. In other words, you'd be hard pressed to find a bit of kit that would object to reversed polarity.

Stop worrying and crack on.

S.

 

[Retiredron]

I think reverse polarity is over rated, have been camping in France, Germany and Italy since the early 80s and never had a problem ! have I been just lucky
Ron.

 

[Trotters]

Im glad im not the one telling people to ignore reverse polarity, especially if someone gets electrocuted or their Mac goes up in smoke

There must be a reason all the guides say to carry a polarity tester if going overseas?

 

[sidepod]

:lol:

Best not believe anything you read on the internet

S.

 

[briwy]

Interesting article here explains it well, does the Cali have a double pole isolator? I guess it probably does due to it's continental heritage.

http://www.venture-caravans.com/pdf/gui ... -Guide.pdf

A mate encountered this at Le Mans a while ago. :crazy

 

[AlanC]

Yes, the Cali SE does have a double pole RCD fitted as standard. It is located in the rear cupboard just above the removable bottom shelf.

Alan