Lightning and surge damage on an RV: what died, in what order, and what it costs

If an afternoon storm came through Sebring and the rig has been wrong since (converter dead, AC that will not start, fridge board blank, lights dim) it took a surge through the pedestal. This is the most Florida of all RV failures, and it is repairable on site: converter $400 to $900, AC board $250 to $600, fridge board $250 to $700, tested and quoted together. Trip fee $75 to $150, and we document everything for an insurance claim.

Check this first (fifteen minutes)

The pedestal breaker. Go outside and look. A surge often trips it, and a rig on a tripped pedestal looks like a rig with everything dead.
The rig’s main breaker and the GFCI. The main 120V panel inside, and the GFCI outlet (usually in the bathroom or kitchen) that protects a chain of other outlets and, on many rigs, the converter’s supply. Reset both.
Converter output. With shore power confirmed on, meter the converter’s output lugs. 13.2 to 14.4 volts: it survived. Zero: it did not. Check its output fuses first; a surge blows them and the converter behind them is sometimes fine.
The 12V fuse panel. Pull and look at every fuse. A surge that came in on the 12V side through the converter blows several at once.
What runs and what does not. Make a list. Lights on 12V: converter or batteries. Rooftop AC: fan runs but nothing else, or no response at all, means the board. Fridge: blank display means the board. Water heater: no click means the board. Microwave and TV: their own supplies.
Smell. A burnt-electronics smell near the converter or at the AC ceiling assembly is confirmation.

What is usually wrong

What you observe	Likely cause	Fix and cost
No 12V anything, shore power confirmed	Converter	$400 to $900
12V fine, several fuses blown	Surge through the 12V side	Fuses plus the failed load
AC fan runs, no compressor, or no response	AC control board or thermostat	$250 to $600
Fridge display blank on both sources	Fridge control board	$250 to $700
Water heater will not click	Water heater board	$250 to $450
Inverter dead or faulting	Inverter	$300 to $1,200 depending on size
Everything dead, pedestal breaker will not hold	Fault inside the rig, or the pedestal itself	Trace; the park owns the pedestal
Batteries dead two days later	Converter died, bank ran down	Converter, and we test the bank

Same figures as the pricing page, with labor at $125 to $190/hr inside those ranges.

Why this is a Highlands County problem

Florida recorded 305 lightning events per square mile in 2025, more than any other state, and over the decade from 2009 to 2018 it averaged nearly 1.2 million cloud-to-ground flashes a year, ranking first in the country at 20.8 flashes per square mile. The storms come almost every afternoon from June into September, which is also the stretch when the rooftop AC on every occupied rig is running.

A direct strike on an RV is rare. What is common is a strike on or near a park’s electrical service, a transformer, or a line, which sends a voltage spike down the distribution to every pedestal on that loop at once. The rig’s first line of defense is nothing: the shore cord goes straight to the main panel. The converter, a switching power supply sitting on the 120V line, absorbs the spike and dies. If the spike is big enough, or comes in on the neutral, it goes past the converter onto the 12V side and takes the boards: the AC, the fridge, the water heater, the furnace, anything with a circuit board that lives on 12 volts.

The pattern we see after a big afternoon storm at a park like the Okeechobee KOA, with hundreds of rigs on one service, is several converters and a few AC boards on the same day. At the Lorida fish camps on the open shore of Lake Istokpoga, it is the same story on a smaller scale. Either way, the rigs with an EMS-style surge protector on the pedestal are the ones that do not call.

What the repair involves

We do not replace the first dead thing and leave. We meter the chain from the pedestal through the converter to the batteries and every 12V board, list what failed and what survived, and give you one number. Converters for the common sizes are on the truck, so that part is a one-visit job. Boards are sometimes stock and sometimes special-order; we tell you which before you approve anything. And we write it all up with meter readings, photos, and the storm date, because that is what an insurer needs to see to treat it as a lightning claim rather than “wear and tear”.

Preventing the next one

Put an EMS-style surge protector between the pedestal and the shore cord. The good ones also cut power on low voltage, which protects the AC compressor on a hot afternoon when a 30-amp fish-camp pedestal sags, and on open ground or reversed polarity, which is common on older pedestals. Unplug the shore cord when a big storm is forecast and you are leaving the rig for the day. And keep the converter’s output fuses in the rig’s spares, because a fuse is the cheapest thing a surge can blow.

When to call

The day after the storm, before the batteries run down and turn one problem into two. We do these on site across Sebring, Avon Park, Lake Placid, and the whole county, and the appliance and 12V page covers the electrical system in more detail.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does a lightning surge usually kill on an RV?

In order: the converter, the rooftop AC control board, the refrigerator control board, then the inverter, the TV, and anything else with a switching power supply. A direct strike is rare. A strike near the park's electrical service that spikes every pedestal on the loop is common, and that is what takes out converters by the dozen.

How much does surge damage cost to fix?

A converter is $400 to $900 replaced. An AC control board is $250 to $600. A fridge board is $250 to $700. A water heater board is $250 to $450. We test all of them on one visit so you get one number, and we document what failed for your insurer.

Will insurance cover it?

Often, as a lightning claim, but the adjuster wants proof that the failure was electrical and sudden, and most of the damage is invisible. A tech's written findings with meter readings, photos, and the date of the storm is what makes the claim go through. We provide that.

Will a surge protector actually prevent this?

An EMS-style protector, the kind that also cuts power on low voltage and open ground, stops the large majority of pedestal surges from reaching the rig. A cheap power strip inside does almost nothing. A $300 protector is cheaper than one converter, and it also saves your AC from the low-voltage afternoons at the fish camps.