# Reversed Polarity adaptors - Will i need one ?



## nukeadmin (Oct 10, 2003)

On my old mh i had a hookup cable adaptor which was cross wired for use abroad and a small gadget that you plugged into one of your mh 240v sockets that indicated whether the hookup was reversed wired or not, however from what i have read and been told, i may not need one with my new MH as it is from a German Manufacturer and less than a year old ? is that correct ?


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## Anonymous (Nov 10, 2000)

Crikey Charlie, I wanted to know exactly the same thing and can't believe there hasn't been a single post on the Forums for almost four HOURS!

Sorry to break the silence with this useless post but at least I share your curiosity, eh?!

:wink:


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## Boff (May 10, 2005)

... and here comes the guy from the continent :wink: 

Well, on both sides of the Channel 230 V is provided as Alternating Current (AC), so there is no such thing as polarity. The only thing the adaptor can change is the position of the Live wire (so called although it may be deadly to touch it 8O ) and the Neutral wire (harmless)

Continental plugs (as used in Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Sweden etc.) can be plugged in two ways into continental sockets. So all wiring and all devices used on the continent must be designed for "normal" and "reversed" connection. 

This is also valid for your new motorhome, nukeadmin. 

UK sockets and plugs allow only one sense, so that there is a well-defined position of Live and Neutral.

As nearly all electrical appliances today are designed for the world market, there should not be any problem with connecting a British device reversed.

With one exception: The built-in fuse in UK 3-pin-plugs. This should always be in the Live wire. Otherwise it would not cut off Live when blown. 

So for the motorhome itsself and all installed appliances it makes no difference.

Hope that helps a bit.

Best Regards,
Gerhard


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## 88838 (May 9, 2005)

a dumb question perhaps, but has the supplier given you a cable, and if so, what sort - blue 3-pin or 'old' 2-pin.
it seems likely that you may still need an adaptor for French sites 'cos they aren't reversible, unlike the German etc ones.
Otherwise, go with boff, because, once again it seems to me, UK systems are out of synch with the rest of Europe.

[actually, we have an awful lot in common with the French, if you see what I mean - not that we do things the same, so much as we are both awkward -  :wink: ]

8)


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## Anonymous (Nov 10, 2000)

Umm, so what simple precautions do you take when you're motorhoming on the continent different to if you're staying in the UK?

Does it make any difference if you're in a normal van or an import van?

And do I need a polarity tester? If I find the polarity is reversed, what do I need to do to connect the van to the mains?

:?


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## 88838 (May 9, 2005)

yes get a polarity tester, unless your van already has one, [I suppose for the purist a separate one covers more options - you would not believe the amount of type that has been created on this one topic across all the camping forums]

If polarity is reversed, get the lead that you have prepared earlier by the simple method of unscrewing the plug and swopping the wires, and use that instead.

Most modern 'vans have RCD [or is it RCB - or are they the same] and there isn't a problem. :roll:

'course, I think electricity is magic, like Gandalf style! and touch wood, haven't managed to blow myself or anything else up yet.  
8) 
what . . . first time for everything did you say? :wink:


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## Boff (May 10, 2005)

twooks said:


> it seems likely that you may still need an adaptor for French sites 'cos they aren't reversible, unlike the German etc ones.


Your motorhome will have a "CEE" type plug (3-pin blue and round). You will need a connector cable with such a CEE plug for most German and Dutch sites.

For Scandinavia you need the standard "2-pin-with-metal-clip-inbetween" continental plug. When buying one you should check for the hole in the metal bar just above the two pins. If it has that hole, you can also use it in France (and Italy, I think).

What I have, and that has so far been sufficient:
- a 25 metres cable reel with "continental" male plug (with the "French hole") and 4 continental sockets
- a 1.5 metres cable with female CEE and male continental to connect the mh to the reel
- a 1.5 metres cable with female continental and male CEE to connect the reel cable to a CEE site socket (not used when site has continental or French sockets)



twooks said:


> Otherwise, go with boff, because, once again it seems to me, UK systems are out of synch with the rest of Europe.


Talking about that :lol: , what are you having on your camp sites in UK. CEE, "classical UK" (3 rectangular pins) or what else?
Background: Is my setup described above sufficient for UK, or do I have to tinker an adaptor for my Easter tour?

Best Regards,
Gerhard


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## Anonymous (Nov 10, 2000)

TOO complicated!

I'm not up to tying my own shoelaces so I think I'll leave swapping bits of cables around to modest professionals!

Been reading a similar thread to this at uk.rec.caravans and the overall verdict is - you'll be fine whatever, as long as you don't stick your fingers in appliances when they're plugged in.

That's the natural law I'll be following, elsewise it's just another thing to be concerned about. Just get on with it and enjoy the damn thing, that's what I say!


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## 88838 (May 9, 2005)

not normally known for either modesty  or professionalism :roll: ,

but to boff, all UK sites that I've ever used have the blue 3-pin variety of plug; [except for one site in the middle of nowhere when he ran an extension socket from his house - ie domestic 3 pin - fortunately we had forgotten to unattach our adaptor when we left home so we were ok.] 
Would be very surprised if that was repeated anywhere!

enjoy your Easter trip, hope the weather holds and the campsites aren't TOO full

8)


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## 89425 (May 23, 2005)

At the end of the day, so long as you have got a modern RCD (residual current breaker) as opposed to a ELCB (earth leakage circuit breaker) you shouldn't have any worries.

Why? Modern RCD's monitor the current through the LIVE and NEUTRAL cables (supply phases) and not the earth. When the device detects an imbalance in either of the two phase cables (as little as 30mA) and isolated (disconnects) the supply.

To cause an imbalance in the phases, an alternative route needs to be applied to either of the phases, like your finger, moisture etc. RCD's are so efficient these day's and depending on the moisture of your skin, they can operate before you know what's happened, thus limiting the electrical shock that you 'may' feel.!

Polarity, what this all about? Basically the UK is one of the rare countries which clearly differentiate the polarity as far down the electrical supply line as the consumer outlet point on the wall. The UK is again one of the rare countries which have fuses in the plugs of portable appliances. Many countries don't even have switches on their socket outlets for portable appliances. The consequences of having fuses in plugs and switches on socket outlets is that with incorrect polarity, its possible to switch the appliance off, but the appliance is still live. But with the use of a RCD, if contact is made with a live cable, the power will be disconnected.

Why is the one conductor called LIVE and the other called NEUTRAL? Its all about 'potential difference'. PD is voltage. So the LIVE is defined as LIVE in comparison to the earth cable which has a direct connection to the ground (soil, concrete) we walk on. Therefore the NEUTRAL which too is also connected to the 'ground' connection back at the electrical supply station (and elsewhere depending on the type of supply your property is fed with) has a PD of zero, hence NEUTRAL.

There's lots of other issues connected with the supply and PD's, but I have described enough information above to satisfy most 'domestic' electrical users.

Any further questions, please mail me off list 

____________________________________________________
*Steve 
aka A very wild....wild camper*
.
Click here for my van website!
.









_I do like a bit of feed back to my posts please_
____________________________________________________


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## Boff (May 10, 2005)

*Lots of explanations*

Hi Steve,

being a physicist I know all that. :wink:

I was just kidding a little bit about LIV(F)E and DEATH.

And my dictionary did not want to provide the English word for "Fehlerstromschutzschalter". Now you have done it, thanks:

A Residual Current Breaker is however not (yet) mandatory in German motorhomes. What is mandatory is a two-way fuse which breaks both lines if the current gets too high on one of them.

But quite some manufacturers fit their motorhomes with an RCD meanwhile.

Best Regards,
Gerhard


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## 88838 (May 9, 2005)

:hal so, how's your 'van n its electrics then?
have you got a "Fehlerstromschutzschalter"? :wink: 

8)


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

All this talk about reverse polarity and fehlerstromschutzschater, i cant see what all the fuss is about, heres a hook up point at a site in greece we stayed at










Didnt test the polarity 'cos we didnt plug in!

Nice view though.

pete


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## 89425 (May 23, 2005)

Woosies 

I expect it worked, 

Nuffin ta worry bout guv. :roll:

Seriously though, as long as your down stream equipment is properly protected with earth leakage and overload protection you'll be fine. Just don't touch their metalwork whilst trying to ease in your plastic cased plug

____________________________________________________
*Steve 
aka A very wild....wild camper*
.
Click here for my van website!
.









_I do like a bit of feed back to my posts please_
____________________________________________________


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## Anonymous (Nov 10, 2000)

Being a camper I'm not exactly versed here, but has anyone heard of anyone who's been injured or even worse, deaded as a result of not heeding this whole reverse polarity stuff?

I asked my folks who are long-standing van owners and they hadn't. To be quite honest even though they've been abroad loads of times in their van, they weren't even sure what reverse polarity was all about!!!


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## Anonymous (Nov 10, 2000)

Hello,
I spent some time working as an electrical engineer in Germany back in the '70s.
The new german systems at that time were fitted with RCCD's as standard, while back in England we were experimenting with voltage trips.
Even though the sockets didn't have switches on them, all apparatus to be plugged in (from toasters to cement mixers) were fitted with double pole switches.

Out of interest the other big difference they had to us was in the fact that the Germans could have 3phase systems in their houses. This meant that washing machine motors and such like were smaller and more efficient.
Cookers could be split over the phases to allow more balance in supplies.
Even unswitched sockets in bathrooms were allowable provided the RCCD was 30mA.

So what this means to us is: 
If the switches are double pole, the device will be disconnected and it doesn't matter which way round the plug is inserted, leaving only the flexible cable vunerable.

Hope this helps
George :lol:


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## Anonymous (Nov 10, 2000)

Fone some strange reason I woke this morning to a minor, but nagging realisation that there's no such thing as polarity with mains electricity - so why would you need a polarity tester?

A little further thought tells you that reverse polarity will NOT damage any of your equipment, but MAY well kill you!

There are two reasons for this...

1) The two wires are not equivalent as one is safe to touch and the other isn't. Having said that anyone confident (stupid?) enough to touch live mains wires will know this, or be naturally selected out of the population!

2) The fuse on UK mains appliances is on the live wire so that if it blows, the applicance is not left live and dangerous.

Just my 'two cents' as the yanks would say!


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