Better safety
I am sure this letter (Oct 2021, p12) has been put into the magazine to provoke a reaction. Is someone so naive as to believe that their points are valid or practical?
I think you should set everyone’s mind at rest and explain that there are regulations governing the installation of wiring on campsites. I am not sure which edition of electrical regulations is in force now, but some form of safety cut-out using MCB or RCD (I am not an electrician so don’t know which is used on a campsite) is there so that if an instance like this happens then the power is cut in milliseconds, thus reducing the risk of death to the dog.
The safety feature is more likely there to preserve people and property (fire prevention) rather than dog bite, but I guess the same could apply to foxes, deer, badgers, beavers, squirrels, rabbits… the list is endless and I’m afraid they don’t read signs.
It would be more appropriate for Kenneth to ask for the test data for the electrical installation from the site operators so that he can sleep comfortably safe in the knowledge that, when the local
rat population chew through the insulation on his hook-up cable where he has dropped some frying oil by accident the previous morning, and then he steps out of his mobile palace with bare feet to enjoy the feel of the earth without an accompaniment of dogs barking in the background, he is not electrocuted by a sub-standard installation. That is due diligence.
Covering things up does not make them safe, particularly when wildlife is involved. Mice love plastic and often attack parts of vehicles. If you put a cable in a duct for a week it could make a lovely summer house for a dormouse and plastic cable sheath on site would be irresistible for his breakfast, to say nothing of the mouse poo that would need to be removed before winding up the cable.
If Kenneth does not want to share his holidays with doggies he can easily choose a site that does not allow them, there are hundreds and others restrict how many, sometimes seasonally. I work the other way as we have three, although two of them are only very small. I have to ask if we are allowed to bring all three before I can make
a booking. They usually charge extra for them, but we have a campervan so that we can take our best friends away with us.
They love going away in our motorhome, they are better behaved whilst away than at home. Just to make sure, we have screw-in spikes, a dog cage, an awning skirt, an awning and an inflatable windbreak. The Yorkie worked out how to push his way under a normal windbreak so we changed it and now it’s too heavy for a dog to lift up.
It takes a couple of hours to set up when we get to site, but we do everything we can to minimise any friction with fellow campers. One thing I don’t worry about is the hook-up cable.
Paul
I’m sure site owners will be rushing to comply with Mr Rotherham’s totally impractical suggestions to cater for an incident that he didn’t even see! Mr Rotherham is obviously not aware of other creatures that are far more likely to have caused the cable damage. The most likely culprits are those tree rats (grey squirrels) that knowledgeable people know not to feed around their ’vans, or hungry mice.
I have been a dog-owning motorhomer for over 20 years, using hundreds of all types of sites and have never heard of a dog chewing a hook-up cable.
Dave Attridge
I’ve just received the November issue and, in the letters page is a letter from Mr Kenneth Rotheram. This refers to the potential danger of a dog chewing or interfering with
EHU cables.
I’m not sure if the letter is intended to be ‘tongue in cheek’ or not; however, amongst other things it lists suggested modifications that the author believes a site owner should do to prevent accidental electrocution of a dog.
There is a cost to many, if not all, of the suggestions that would have to be met by the site owners. Surely the simplest answer is the correct control of dogs. There are far more responsible dog owners than irresponsible; however, I do grow weary of loose or out-of-control dogs on sites. Some using the pitch I’m on as a toilet, some jumping up at me when not being encouraged, etc. And, yes, I am a dog owner!
Roger Lathbury