b'BY BEN QUIGGLEElectrical equipment suppliers are staying busy as more developments and expansionsoccur in the campground sector. Photo credit: EatonElectrical Equipment Suppliers SeeingMore Owners Switch to Metered SitesAs park developments and expan- Croteau said that he has heard fromsions continue to spring up throughout plenty of owners about campers whotheoutdoorhospitalityindustry, leave their RVs air conditioner unitsproviders of electrical equipmentsuch running all day or leave their lights onas pedestals and meterstell Woodalls when no one is at the RV.Campground Management(WCM) that It really is a huge deal, he noted. business has been growing.Maggie Linnell, owner of Lake Orion,At Keego Harbor, Mich.-based B&B Mich.-based Your Electrical SolutionsElectrical owner (YES), tells her cus-TerryLinnell told tomerstoalwaysWCMthat sales were placemeteredup15%in2019, pedestalsattheirwhichshecon- parks sites. tributedmainlyto Iwouldsayreferrals.around95%ofmyTerry Linnell Referralsare customersareget- Magie Linnellhugeforus,she tingmeteredsaid. We are also working more with pedestals now, she explained. Theydevelopers who are building new parks have to because electricity costs haveand park owners who are expanding gotten out of hand.their campgrounds. She told WCM that the new digitalPaul Croteau, senior sales engineer metershavemadeitaloteasierforandprojectmanageratKingston, owners to collect that information andWash.-basedUtilitySupplyGroup chargecampersfortheirelectricity(USG), said the company had another usage. great year in 2019.LisaSenior,generalmanagerofWe have had three very good years Hialeah, Fla.-based Hialeah Meter, saidin a row where we have seen double- that the company has noticed an in-digit growth, he told WCM. There is a crease in customerslittle bit of everything going on right lookingtometernow in the RV park and campground theirpedestalsassectors, from expan- well. sions to new builds. I They continue tohavebeendoinga understand the ben-lot of work on proj- efitsofitandalsoects.new owners are a lit- Lisa SeniorMostelectrical tle bit more techno-equipment suppliers logically savvy and they understand theReal Log Park Model Cabins Paul Croteau are telling WCMthat impact electrical costs can have on theirowners are becom- parks bottom line, explained Senior.ing more interested in metering their We live in the world of data and factselectrical pedestals, something that tra- now. We dont have to make decisionsditionally hasnt been done in the past.based on feelings anymore. The fact is Real Rustic Log Cabins Croteau said that as utility costs con- that if you can measure the energy con- Turn-Key! tinue to rise, it is smart to beginning sumption being used by someone, thenmetering electricity usage to get a han- its better to charge them exactly what Durable and Appealing dle on costs.theyuse.Theresnoreasontolose Highly Profitable It is a park owners No. 1 expense money from electrical consumption if Pays Off Within 1-3 Years and if there is any way to get a handle on you meter.Park Model Cabins it,theyneedtobedoingit,heex- OverthepastyeartherehasalsoStarting at $27,900 plained. Even if you dont read those been a lot of talk about the 2020 Na-meters or charge for electricity, just the tional Electric Code (NEC) and an at-Located in Lancaster, PA factthattheyarethereinviewof tempttorequiregroundfaultcampers tells them to maybe be a little protection (GFCI) on 30- and 50-amp717-445-5522www.LancasterLogCabins.com more conservative. pedestal circuits. A move Wade Elliot,28 -February 2020 Woodalls Campground Management'