Electrical and Systems
RV Transfer Switch, Shore Cord and Power Inlet Repair
Typical range
$285 to $1,500
Shop hours
1 to 6
Labor rate
$260/hr
The short answer
Transfer switch and shore power work covers pitted contactors, burned inlets, damaged cords, and surge protection on 30 amp and 50 amp systems. Work runs $285 to $1,500, or 1 to 6 hours at $260 per hour plus parts. Diagnostic time is $285 per hour, refundable against an authorized repair.
01
What this work actually involves
The automatic transfer switch is a set of high current contacts that pick between shore power and generator power. Those contacts arc every single time they change state, and over a few hundred cycles they pit, build resistance, and start generating heat exactly where the heat cannot escape. The classic result is a coach that works fine on generator power and does nothing on shore power, or one air conditioner running while the other side of the panel is dead. We pull the cover and the evidence is usually visible as blackened, welded, or eroded contacts.
The shore inlet and cord fail in a similar way. Campground pedestals across Southern California are wired by whoever was available, and open grounds, reversed polarity, and low voltage during a heat wave are routine. A 50 amp coach running two air conditioners on a pedestal delivering 104 volts pulls more current to make up the difference, and the inlet pins heat, discolor, and eventually melt into the receptacle. Once a pin has arced, cleaning it is a temporary fix. The metal has lost section.
Coastal storage makes this worse. Salt air in Long Beach, Newport Beach, and Oceanside builds resistance on inlet pins and inside transfer switch terminals, and resistance under a 40 amp load is heat. This is one of the very few RV systems where a slow failure ends as a fire, so we treat a discolored inlet or a hot cord end as urgent rather than cosmetic.
Systems and brands we work on: Progressive Dynamics, WFCO, Magnum, Xantrex.
Location: All work is performed at our Yorba Linda facility. We do not offer mobile, roadside, or fleet route service.
02
What the job includes
- Automatic transfer switch inspection, contact evaluation, and replacement
- 30 amp and 50 amp shore power inlet replacement
- Shore cord end, reel, and cord body repair or replacement
- Torque check and rebuild of every high current terminal in the path
- Leg balance verification on 50 amp split phase service
- Open ground, reversed polarity, and low voltage testing at the inlet
- Hardwired surge and voltage protection installation
- Thermal inspection of the inlet, transfer switch, and main lugs under load
- Generator to shore transfer timing and sequencing verification
- Burned or heat damaged wiring section replacement
03
When you need this service
- Coach works on generator power but nothing works on shore power
- Only half the 120V circuits function on a 50 amp connection
- The shore cord end or the inlet is discolored, melted, or warm to the touch
- A loud clunk followed by a brief power loss when transferring sources
- A burning smell near the transfer switch bay after running air conditioning
- Air conditioners short cycle or fail to start on shore power at a busy park
04
How we do it, step by step
- 01
Source-by-source verification
We confirm what works on generator, on shore, and on inverter separately. The pattern of what fails narrows the fault to the switch, the inlet, or the panel before anything is opened.
- 02
Inlet and cord inspection
Pins and cord ends checked for discoloration, pitting, and lost section. Any arcing damage on a pin means replacement, not cleaning, because the metal is gone.
- 03
Transfer switch teardown
Cover off, contacts photographed, and every terminal checked for heat signature and correct torque. Loose lugs cause more transfer switch failures than the contacts do.
- 04
Load testing
Coach loaded to a realistic current on each leg while we measure voltage drop and take temperature readings across the inlet, switch, and main lugs.
- 05
Repair and protection
Failed components replaced, terminals rebuilt to spec torque, and hardwired surge and voltage protection added where the coach does not already have it.
- 06
Transfer verification
We cycle shore to generator and back under load, confirm timing, and re-check temperatures before the unit is released.
05
Pricing and posted rates
| Item | Rate or range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Typical job range | $285 to $1,500 | Varies with extent of damage and parts availability |
| Shop hours | 1 to 6 | Quoted after teardown, not before |
| Mechanical and electrical labor | $260 per hour | 2026 posted rate |
| Parts | 100% markup under $100, 35% over | Special order parts require a non refundable deposit at order |
| Deposit | 50% at authorization over $2,000 | Additional 25% when parts arrive on jobs over $10,000 |
| Sales tax | 7.75% on parts and materials | Labor is not taxed |
Insurance billed jobs may be billed at carrier negotiated labor rates that differ from the posted retail rates above. See all posted rates.
06
On the insurance side
Surge and pedestal fault events that damage a coach are often claimable. We document the burned contacts, measured voltages, and every downstream component affected so the loss is supported.
07
Vehicles we do this work on
Vehicle
Class A Gas Motorhomes
A Class A gas motorhome is a flat-front coach built on a Ford F53 or Workhorse front-engine chassis, typically 28 to 38 feet. Rear
Vehicle
Class A Diesel Pusher Motorhomes
A diesel pusher carries a rear-mounted diesel on a raised-rail air ride chassis, usually 34 to 45 feet with full-body paint and pa
Vehicle
Class C Motorhomes
A Class C is a coach body built onto a cutaway van chassis with a sleeping or storage cabover extending above the factory cab. Tha
Vehicle
Standard Fifth Wheels
A fifth wheel couples to a hitch in the truck bed through a kingpin and pin box, with a raised forward bedroom over the truck. The
Vehicle
Toy Hauler Fifth Wheels
A toy hauler fifth wheel carries a cargo garage behind the axles with a full-height rear ramp door. Load behind the axle centerlin
Vehicle
Travel Trailers
A travel trailer tows from a ball hitch behind the tow vehicle rear axle on an A-frame tongue, which makes it the most sway-prone
Vehicle
Bus Conversions, Prevost and Marathon
A Prevost, MCI, or Van Hool conversion is a commercial motorcoach shell finished by a second-stage builder such as Marathon, Feath
08
Questions about transfer switch and shore power diagnostics
Frequently asked questions
Why does my RV work on the generator but not on shore power?
That symptom points almost directly at the transfer switch or the shore inlet. The switch chooses between two sources, so a failure on the shore side leaves generator power fully functional. We verify voltage arriving at the inlet, then at the switch input, then at the switch output. Whichever step loses it is the failure.
What does transfer switch replacement cost?
Work runs $285 to $1,500, or 1 to 6 hours at $260 per hour plus parts. A straight transfer switch replacement in an accessible bay is at the low end. A melted 50 amp inlet with heat damaged cable that has to be sectioned back, plus a new switch and surge protection, is at the high end.
Is my melted shore cord end dangerous?
Yes. A melted or discolored cord end means the connection has been running hot under load, and the copper has lost cross section at that point. It will get hotter, not better. Both the cord end and the matching inlet need replacement, because the arcing damage is always on both halves of the connection.
Do I need a surge protector if I have one of the portable ones?
A portable unit at the pedestal works, but it walks away in parks and it does not protect against a fault that develops between the pedestal and your panel. A hardwired unit inside the coach protects the whole path, reports fault conditions on a display, and cannot be stolen. We install hardwired protection routinely.
Can a bad campground pedestal actually damage my coach?
Regularly. Low voltage during a Southern California heat wave makes air conditioner compressors draw more current to do the same work, which heats the inlet, the switch, and the compressor windings. Open grounds and reversed polarity damage electronics directly. Most of the burned inlets we replace started at a pedestal, not inside the coach.
09
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Ready to move on transfer switch and shore power diagnostics? Bring it to Yorba Linda.