# Is it cheeky to request that you only use so many volts ?



## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

I recently stayed at a very good camp site in the lakes. It shall remain nameless as i don't wish to damage there trade as that is not the intention of this article.

When i booked into the site, i was told not to use electric heating as this would run the risk of blowing the fuse of the site. I said no probs. Then wondered how can this be. The site was off season and more or less empty, With loads of hook ups that were not being used.

I then took a look at the tariff. £17 per night off season and a belting £27 during peak. Thats the most expensive i have ever seen.

My point is, if you are paying X amount of pounds wherever you go, surely they should have the resources to cope with the loads that may be put on them. And if you are paying £27 or more, surely that is definatley the case.

Just curious...

Freddiebooks


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## asprn (Feb 10, 2006)

*Re: Is it cheeky to request that you only use so many volts*

Without being pedantic, I think you mean Amps. Load = current = Amps.

Dougie.


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## Rapide561 (Oct 1, 2005)

*EHU*

Hi

Yes it is cheeky of the site owner in my opinion.

You have paid for the rental of the pitch including hook up.

Russell


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## b16duv (Feb 14, 2006)

This is something that winds me up a lot.

If they are supplying power via a 16amp connector, is it not reasonable to assume that you will get 16 amps?

For anyone to say 'please don't use electric heating' is beyond the pale. Why pay for a hook-up, then have to use the gas to heat the van. Let's face it, the rest of the appliances are fairly low power consumption.

Personally, I like the continental system where you feed coins into the pole - that way you only pay for what you use and it helps focus the mind about needless consumption.

If i have 'paid' for electricity as part of a pitch fee, I tend to want my money's worth. It's human nature.

David


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## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

Cheers Dougie,

I do struggle with the electric side of things.

I still haven't a clue how they get sound off lp's via a needle.


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## gaspode (May 9, 2005)

Hi Freddiebooks

Can you please enter that site into out campsite database, just so any other members intending to visit are forewarned?

If it's already in there, just submit a site review.

Thanks


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## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

all done gaspode


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## safariboy (May 1, 2005)

I agree that when the site is not very full there should be no problem but in fact all electricity installations are designed on the assumption that everyone does not take a full load at the same time. If it was not for that the cost would be unreasonable.
If you took 16A for 24 Hours you would use about £10 worth of electricity so there is obviously an issue there. It would be illegal for him to charge without a meter.
(16Ax240V = 3.84 kW 3.84 x 24 = 92.16 kWHr At £0.10 per kWhr this is £9.2)

16A is more a designation of the plug type and size that an indication of the current that you can expect.


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## gaspode (May 9, 2005)

Freddiebooks said:


> all done gaspode


Thanks for that review, 6 campsite reviews approved in the last hour, that must be a record - keep em coming folk. :wink:


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## DiscoDave (Aug 25, 2008)

been there and avoided that! i couldn't believe the cheek of a place that told us what we could and couldn't plug in, on the occasion we did not have a hook up, and rarely do, but as russell says if you've got it you use it, otherwise what's the point?

a sign telling hook up users not to use electric heating, kettles, toasters or microwave is in my book well out of order, that is why i am paying the extra for a hook up! :evil:


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## 117332 (Oct 10, 2008)

Silly question but how do I get to the site reviews, cant seen to find the site in question, any help would be great.

Thanks

Tom


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## b16duv (Feb 14, 2006)

safariboy said:


> I agree that when the site is not very full there should be no problem but in fact all electricity installations are designed on the assumption that everyone does not take a full load at the same time. If it was not for that the cost would be unreasonable.
> If you took 16A for 24 Hours you would use about £10 worth of electricity so there is obviously an issue there. It would be illegal for him to charge without a meter.
> (16Ax240V = 3.84 kW 3.84 x 24 = 92.16 kWHr At £0.10 per kWhr this is £9.2)
> 
> 16A is more a designation of the plug type and size that an indication of the current that you can expect.


I don't use £9.20 worth of electricity in my house on a daily basis, but there are times when the full capacity of the hook up could be used for short periods - like boiling a kettle when the heating is on.

Many sites have a current limit lower than 16amp, so it then becomes the responsibility of the motorhome user to determine what is an acceptable load. This is relatively easy to do for 1 specific peak current, but having to recalculate for every site is a joke.

Yes, we could all carry a chart showing different combinations of load and peak current, but why should we? The infrastructure should be capable of delivering to its rating for short periods of time - that is what they are charging us for.


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## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

RollerTom said:


> Silly question but how do I get to the site reviews, cant seen to find the site in question, any help would be great.


Top of this page,the yellow tab REVIEWS.
Click on that and select SEARCH CAMPSITE REVIEWS

Select the option for User name added by - and then type in the username of the member who added the review ( in this case Freddiebooks)

G

Freddiebooks's name doesn't appear on the list of those who have added campsite reviews at the moment. I guess his review is still being approved.


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

The same thing happened to me at St David's Caravan Club site in Pembrokeshire. 16A supply, but clearly the installation had assumed an average total consumption that was regularly surpassed. Urging conservation seemed fair enough as a temporary measure until they upgraded the installation. Better than the site supply tripping out just when most people needed it.

Dave


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## 117332 (Oct 10, 2008)

Thanks Grizzly.

Tom


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## gaspode (May 9, 2005)

Grizzly said:


> Freddiebooks's name doesn't appear on the list of those who have added campsite reviews at the moment. I guess his review is still being approved.


Hi G

That's because Freddiebooks added a review to an existing site - ie. the site will not appear under his name. As he stated that he did not wish to identify the site in his first post it would be not be ethical for me to reveal its identity, although I have to say I can't see any reason why it should be concealed personally. Perhaps Freddiebooks will reconsider in due course.


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## 117306 (Oct 9, 2008)

I'm going to ask a very silly question ..... but what is the name of the site?


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## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

No Probs...

The Quiet Site in Cumbria.

Hope that makes life easier.


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## 117306 (Oct 9, 2008)

Freddiebooks said:


> No Probs...
> 
> The Quiet Site in Cumbria.
> 
> Hope that makes life easier.


Sorry buddy, I must be a bit thick. It doesn't mean anything to me.


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

If it were me I would go to the link Grizzly mentions, then click on the interactive map and have a look at the entries for Cumbria with reviews :roll:

Late edit - now freddies ok with it.....

http://www.motorhomefacts.com/modules.php?name=Campsites&op=display_results&csid=1151

Pete


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## 117306 (Oct 9, 2008)

peejay said:


> If it were me I would go to the link Grizzly mentions, then click on the interactive map and have a look at the entries for Cumbria with reviews :roll:
> 
> edit now freddies ok with it..
> 
> ...


I can do :roll: too!


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## 117332 (Oct 10, 2008)

I think its blooming cheek asking you not to use the electric heating, I was at Troutbeck CC site last night and it was - 5, I thinks I will give the site a miss in the future. No complaints about Troutbeck.


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## 117306 (Oct 9, 2008)

I've dealt with disabled people's vehicles camping with hook up for years and never asked them to keep the power down. You have hook up and you use it! Simple!

I think this site just want to keep their electric bill down!! :roll:


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## Freddiebooks (Aug 9, 2008)

Hi Roller Tom,

i would recommend the site. At the end of the day, you don't have to do what they ask.

The site is in a great location and the 8 mile walk they give you maps for on your arrival is what i would say one of the best walks in the lakes with breath taking scenery.

I only used this site as an example and i'm sure they are not the only ones to do this.

So give it a go, i'm sure you'll like it.

Freddiebooks


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## motorhomer2 (May 9, 2005)

Hello


We found the same request on a ccc cs site in East Yorkshire last month. The rating on the post was higher than what the notices were saying. Site not full and again it was freezing. As we are still having problems with the diesel heating we had specifically asked about hook up when we phoned ahead but no mention then of request to use no heating. Fraid we had to but we were careful not to have other things on at the same time. I wasnt going to freeze.

Motorhomer


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## RichardnGill (Aug 31, 2006)

Its a bit like offering free drinks in a pub and then limiting everyone to a half.


Looks a nice site though and I would still visit it, but I would still be using my electric heating and remoska if I had hookup.


The only problem I have with electric wast on sites is when people run heaters in there awnings and the sit in the van  

Richard...


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## darach (Dec 15, 2006)

Stayed there at the weekend used camping cheque so only twelve pounds. Seemed very friendly people and nice location although very narrow to get into. The way I read it was no kettles or heaters so I used my electric heating, only one thing I would say against the site, the toilet block was meant to be central heated which it was but wasnt on but definitely a nice place to go.
Derek
free wifi and it worked


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## DABurleigh (May 9, 2005)

motorhomer2 said:


> Hello
> 
> We found the same request on a ccc cs site in East Yorkshire last month. The rating on the post was higher than what the notices were saying. Site not full and again it was freezing. As we are still having problems with the diesel heating we had specifically asked about hook up when we phoned ahead but no mention then of request to use no heating. Fraid we had to but we were careful not to have other things on at the same time. I wasnt going to freeze.
> 
> Motorhomer


Elizabeth,

You mean you had mains electric heating with you as well? Diesel heating doesn't use much mains electricity 

Dave


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## sallytrafic (Jan 17, 2006)

I don't condone overcharging for electricity but site designers have to face two electrical problems

Diversity and Discrimination.

A diversity factor is what you design into any installation be it a town supply a caravan site a house or just a cooker. It allows you to factor in that everybody doesn't want max power at the same time, this enables the designer to save money on the capital cost of the project. Now when some sites were installed hardly anyone needed/used 16A. These sites may require rewiring and re-equiping now to allow for the fact that more people use near the max of the electricity point more often.

Discrimination is what you do to ensure that the right circuit breaker pops when the supply is overloaded. Ideally you want the mcb in the van to go but as a designer of the site installation you cannot control that. So the next thing is you want only the one supply socket to trip or at the very least the one bollard. These requirements are often difficult to meet with the result that a few users may trip half the site. 


Now that electricity supply companies pass on the total costs of reengineering any supply system, requiring more power also involves a heavy capital cost. (they used to offset the cost of installation by a factor for their increased profit on supply.) 


If the site owner can persuade people to voluntarily draw less current it puts off the day when he has to spend money that will never directly result in a payback.


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## motorhomer2 (May 9, 2005)

DABurleigh said:


> motorhomer2 said:
> 
> 
> > Hello
> ...


Hello Dave

We carry a small electric heater for use when on hook up. Why not we pay enough for it. We use the diesel heater when not on hook up but until we manage to find what the problem is it doesnt work for more than 12 hours when it shuts down & leaves us freezing so we have to rely on the little electric heater. There isnnt always a kind soul around to lend us their genny

Elizabeth


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## Rapide561 (Oct 1, 2005)

*Electric*

Hi

Using my motorhome as an example.....

Electric blown air heating on 24/7 = 1800 watts
Fridge on 24/7
Battery charger on 24/7

Microwave as and when - 800 watts
Kettle as and when - 2200 watts

Interestingly, even on the site in Obernai last week, the heating and kettle together were no problem.

Russell


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## Patchworkqueen (Dec 7, 2007)

Hi 
I think that this is becoming an increasing problem. 
I have visited a number of sites this year where there have been notices asking not to use more than 6amp even though the site advertises 16amp.
Chris


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