Good Governor 3-in-1 Digital meter

I have been working on our next video project for quite some time now. It’s titled “Easy RV Add On’s & Must Have RV Products”. While preparing for it I did a great deal of research on numerous RV products. I accidentally stumbled across one product that really caught my attention. With the name of the product in hand, I searched for more information about it. I soon realized that the information I wanted was not readily available. There was no website, no email address, and it took me awhile to run down a phone number. I was shocked to discover that the product has been available to RVers since 1997.

The name of the product is the Good Governor. It is a digital 3 in 1 plug in tester that measures AC line voltage, frequency and tests polarity. Larry Veenstra introduced it through his company, Power Watch Technologies. I contacted Larry and explained that I might be interested in using the Good Governor in the video, but would like to test it first. I must admit that when I first contacted Larry I wasn’t even aware of exactly what his tester was capable of. He educated me about his product on the telephone, and most of what he said went right over my head when he discussed peak voltage vs. RMS voltage.

 Through talking to Larry I found out that he was an RV technician for many years. During that time he recognized a real need for an accurate, affordable and user-friendly frequency meter to adjust generator governors. Not only did he help RV technicians, but also in my opinion he designed a product that every RV owner should have, especially motor home owners. I have always been an advocate of monitoring the AC line voltage coming into your RV. Campground electricity can fluctuate a great deal. If you don’t know what the voltage is, coming into your RV, you risk damaging thousands of dollars worth of electrical appliances and electronic equipment. Plug it in to any 120-volt outlet where it will be easy to monitor.

The Good Governor not only measures the AC line voltage, but also goes one step further. It measures, or counts the AC frequency output of the generator. Frequency is the number of times that electricity alternates per second. Appliances are designed to operate at 60 cycles per second, or 60 hertz. Most people assume that when you start the generator everything will work just fine. But what happens if it is not adjusted properly? When you use your generator the governor in the generator must hold the speed constant at, or close to 60 hertz from no load on the generator to a full load. Depending on the load placed on the generator, AC voltage can range from 105 to 135 volts and the frequency can range from 58 to 63 hertz. If the generator is not operating properly, less than 105 volts or more than 135 volts, you can damage electronic equipment and appliances.

So, whether you are plugged into shore power, or using the generator, by monitoring the readings on the Good Governor you will know when NOT to use your appliances and electronic equipment. It will let you know when the generator is not operating within the proper ranges and you can have it checked out and repaired before any damage occurs. The Good Governor is also a polarity tester. This allows you to test the campground electricity for improperly wired circuits prior to plugging your RV in.

After testing the Good Governor I called Larry back. I told him it was an excellent product, and that it would benefit anybody with an RV. I also told him I would like to use it in future videos and promote it on our website. I was just glad, when I plugged the Good Governor in with my generator running, the readings I saw were within the proper ranges.