US van in UK/Europe Campsites

Really?

Mine still works.

I still control the fridge on/off via the panel.

 

What on 230v

 

Yes, the Westy panel above the fridge is only a distribution board for 12VDC. It is used to switch the charger on, switch the fridge on, divert the fridge power from the leisure battery to the 12v charger, time how long the charger is on for and measure the voltage of the leisure battery.

The mains electrics are contained in the box under the bed on the right hand side, next to the US 110Ac to 12vDC transformer. There are US plug sockets on the front and a mains fuse inside. This will need to be changed to comply with European electrical standards, as will the external hook-up point. US Westys use solid single strand wire for the AC. This is not acceptable and must be changed to multistrand. The plugs and sockets are not rated for European amps.

 

No matty, it's only a DC panel above the fridge

 

That's alright then I read the post that he was putting 230v in the panel

"Will the original Westfalia controler panel (for the fridge, leisure battery voltage, etc) work connected to a 240 electrics?"

 

The confusing bit is the switch on the panel that says "city power" or something. All that does is switch dc between the battery & charger/power supply, the charger/power supply being 'hooked-up' and therefore considered by the marketing men as being 'city electrics'.

You're right to point it out. Lots of folk think that panel controls AC & DC.

edit: & that's why all he needs to do is take out the US transformer & put in a caravan power supply exactly the same as the one I linked to, and change the US AC stuff to an RCD, multistrand cable and the correct hook-up inlet.

 

Well, the fridge was always 12v.

But the on/off switch for the fridge still works.

 

see above

 

Thanks it all makes more sense now and looks easier than I thought

 

Dah :-( I just found a 20m US to UK cable on eBay, thought I was onto a winner. I knew the internal wiring/AC kit needed to change but thought the external hookup socket itself would be fine. Oh well at least I know now.

This.. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/141859007129?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

 

Boo
It'll work, & TBH I did run ours (after changing the internals) through the US van-side socket for as while. We had a US lead from our overseas travels so I just cut the plug off....
BUT it could go wrong! The insulation in the socket is old & you'll see when you get in there the method of fixing the cable is not ideal, requiring ring terminals for proper security.
Lots of bods have replaced the OG US van-side socket with the blue CEE plugs & used the OG socket flap. @pkrboo has done it I recall.
When H&S finally niggled me sufficiently I then stuck a blue inlet under the bus, bypassing the side flap.
The latest sees the side flap back in use but with a US sourced socket rated to 250v and 16 amps (they do use higher voltage on some insustrial applications so a bit of searching will find the correct stuff)
However, & this becomes a personal choice, any US stuff is still not compatible to Euro regs. The obvious path is to fit the van to the Euro spec as that's where we live!

 

Just seen your link @gazcbm . If you look closely the yellow plug is only rated to 125v! Bad seller misleading peeps

 

Well spotted @theBusmonkey . In fairness this thread has given me a bit more confidence that actually its not that hard to swap the lot out