Switch guards/covers for water pump/heater switches

[rdickens]

I am curious what other owners have used to prevent inadvertent operation of
the rocker switches for the 12 volt fresh water pump and/or the switches for the hot water heater.

In a Scamp, these are usually mounted on the side of the sink/stove cabinet
and, depending on which direction/way you sleep, could inadvertently be bumped and turned on/off by hands or feet while sleeping (or awake?).

If the fresh water tank only contains air, it seem like the 12 volt pump could
try to run continuously while trying to build up enough pressure (normally water pressure) to shut off.

The attached picture will show what my switches look like.

Thanks bunches for any help and ideas!

Ray

[Carl V]

I've added switch guards on most toggle switches in my trailer.
Mostly for look, but they certainly do the job.
I wanted real aviation switch guards but they are quite expensive, so I just used small u-bolts from the hardware store.
Switches on this pictures are by our bed, I wouldn't want to bump my head on the toggles or pry the USB plugs in the ports, so the guards here are really useful.

[Glenn Baglo]

Nice.
And you used proper screws too.

[Neto]

Carl: What a professional installation.

[Captleemo]

Spirit Underbed Storage Redux - Page 3 - Casita Trailer Modifications Forum - The Casita Club Forums
Scroll down until you get to the pictures of the SSI Plastics Recessed Panel. I don't think you will find a more functional or professional looking installation than this.

[k corbin]

I live in a community with lots of boats and lots of marine supply stores. I have been very impressed with the electrical products from the company "Blue Sea". They offer an electrical switch panel that has built in switch guards. It also has a label area for each switch. This really cleans up the cluttered look of having a cluster of various switch styles and plates that have little relationship in color and shape to each other and turns it into from looking like an afterthought install into a pro job.

Of course with switches that don't match it can be easier to recognize which is which without having to put on your reading glasses
However as nice looking as an integrated panel is for something such as a water pump switch I want it right where my hand reaches for it when I am using the sink and preferably in my common line of sight from various positions I might be sitting in. Also using a lighted toggle style switch that glows when it is active.

When I set up a panel I put the most commonly used switch at the edge I would reach over to first. For instance the light I would turn on when I walk into the door is located in the best ergonomic position for using it. Not always easy as sometimes the best switch location is not all that easy to reach depending on how your door is located and which was it swings open. On my trailer it would put the panel right over the kitchen sink which I don't think is an optimal place for such a panel.

[mary and bob]

Some big trucks had switch guards, think I've seen them in Kenworths or Peterbuilts. I was looking for one a while back, found a few, but they were expensive. Since we don't use the onboard water tank, and the switch did get turned on accidentally one time, I put another switch under the counter to disable the original switch. Access to it is behind the silverware drawer.

[Jann Todd]

[QUOTE=rdickens;668659]I am curious what other owners have used to prevent inadvertent operation of
the rocker switches for the 12 volt fresh water pump and/or the switches for the hot water heater.

In a Scamp, these are usually mounted on the side of the sink/stove cabinet
and, depending on which direction/way you sleep, could inadvertently be bumped and turned on/off by hands or feet while sleeping (or awake?).

If the fresh water tank only contains air, it seem like the 12 volt pump could
try to run continuously while trying to build up enough pressure (normally water pressure) to shut off.

The attached picture will show what my switches look like.

Thanks bunches for any help and ideas!

Ray[/QUOTE)

We used fan switch covers that screw into the switch plates of a house. They are under $3 each and are so easy to install. We put one over our pump switch that sits in front of the sink and one over the hot water tank switch that sits under a chair and at foot level. Would be easy to break the switch. They are like a half circle that covers the switch. You have to on purpose go under the half circle with your finger to turn it on. Any hardware store, Home Depot or any other place like that carries them. I think we had to drill holes for the screws since our switches are pop riveted in. Easy, quick, cheap and has lasted us 11 years. I'm a woman and I did it myself. Looks very nice since they are white. Just ask for fan switch covers in the electrical dept.

[floyd]

I see that you have a deluxe.
I saw one where the owner cleverly just removed the switch, drilled a larger hole through the cabinet, then mounted the switch inside the cabinet with the rocker inside facing out through the hole.
You would simply stick your finger through the hole in the cabinet to operate the switch. If you want you could even drill out the escutcheon plate to match the hole in the cabinet and reinstall it.

[k corbin]

I have located a type of switch with a name classification for this type that may solve the issue for you. You can find them on Amazon and on Ebay for less than $20.00. Has a cover and also has a red light to indicate the pump is powered on. If you bump it then it is most likely to turn it off rather than on. Several companies are making them in different colors of cover plates and bases so just use the keywords for online shopping.
safety Cover Aircraft 12V Toggle Switch With Red Indicator Light

[Borrego Dave]

Originally Posted by rdickens

I am curious what other owners have used to prevent inadvertent operation of
the rocker switches for the 12 volt fresh water pump and/or the switches for the hot water heater.
In a Scamp, these are usually mounted on the side of the sink/stove cabinet and, depending on which direction/way you sleep, could inadvertently be bumped and turned on/off by hands or feet while sleeping (or awake?).
If the fresh water tank only contains air, it seem like the 12 volt pump could try to run continuously while trying to build up enough pressure (normally water pressure) to shut off.
The attached picture will show what my switches look like.
Ray

Hi Ray, you didn't say but have you actually turned a switch on/off while sleeping or is your question a "what if" one? If my pump started running while I'm sleeping it would sure wake me up. I don't have any in the bed area to worry about. I only have the water pump switch on when I need it but I have left it on by accident. It is now a lighted switch but with keeping a couple gallons of water in the tank if it does get accidently turned/left on it's kind of a moot point. The only switches I can say I've read about being a possible problem is on the touch pads of some refers being accidently changed to a different power source. I've got the touch pads and haven't had an issue...yet but LLC has a quick fix for it.

[rdickens]

Dave,

I actually have bumped the switch during the night, awakened, heard the soft whirring
sound, shut it back off, and gone back to sleep.

I have also returned to the trailer (after a shower?) and heard the soft whirring sound
and had to shut the pump off. Whether I bumped it or my wife bumped it while we
were grabbing shower stuff is probably not important. Somehow the switch got bumped.

Since we live in KC, where the temperature gets below freezing in the winter, always leaving a. couple of gallons of water in the tank doesn't seem like a real great option for us.
(In the winter months, we sometimes go south for awhile and then return to freezing temps for awhile.)

I just need to find some aesthetically pleasing way to put guards on those switches so
that kind of thing doesn't happen any more.

Ray