Plugging 30A 5th wheel into 50A service
Will I have any problems if I plug my 30A fiver into 50A service at a RV park. I will not be drawing any more than 30A, but the park says I should pay $50 deposit to rent a "box" from them.
Forum Discussion
Me Again wrote:
Coach-man wrote:
The 50 amp service is over what you need for your 30 amp rig, one it should be more stable, two at 50 amps even if it is overloaded from too many other 50 amp rigs in the park you should have no problems with using 30 amps! The adaptor is less than $20, well worth the price! No worries you can not use more than the 30 amps that your rig is rated for! If there should be a fault your 30 amp circuit breaker will kick in and handle the emergency, and that would be a problem un related to your using the 50 amp plug!! The lack of knowledge about how electricity works makes you wonder???
The 50 amp outlets are power by the same conductors that the 30 outlets are powered from. If the park is having brownout conditions(which is low voltage because of load, and more amps are trying to flow to make up for it) on one or both of the power legs of a 50 outlet, that same condition will be occurring on the single leg of a 30 amp outlet if brownout is on both legs or on the single leg if 30 amp outlet and you are on the same brownout leg. The 30amp outlets if wired correctly should be alternating site to site
between the two legs of the parks power distribution.
The worst condition people face is those with full 50 service. If the neutral lead goes bad, then 240V is placed across everything in the trailer or coach, and you burn up TVs, micro waves, converters, inverters, stereos, and sat equipment. Friend had that happen this winter in California. His bill to date is 7K and they are not done replacing things.
If you have full 50 service, have a good isolation device that will protect you from this happening.
"The lack of knowledge about how electricity works makes you wonder???"
Chris
Well which is it? Are they the same or differant? I double checked my calculations online with NEC, and stand by their minimum requirements, none the less you have already contradicted yourself, the lack of knowledge about how electricity works makes you wonder!- The wire feeding (repeat feeding) the pedestals is neither 10 nor 12. Probably #2 or commercial distribution. Feeder.
Me Again wrote:
Coach-man wrote:
The 50 amp service is over what you need for
The 50 amp outlets are power by the same conductors that the 30 outlets are powered from. If the park is having brownout conditions(which is low voltage because of load, and more amps are trying to flow to make up for it) on one or both of the power legs of a 50 outlet, that same condition will be occurring on the single leg of a 30 amp outlet if brownout is on both legs or on the single leg if 30 amp outlet and you are on the same brownout leg. The 30amp outlets if wired correctly should be alternating site to site between the two legs of the parks power distribution.
"The lack of knowledge about how electricity works makes you wonder???"
30 amp and 50 amp uses the same wiring? 30 amp uses 12 gauge wire, 50 amp uses 10 gauge wire! They better not be using the same wires! I guess some parks will try and get by using the same wires, but that is so wrong! It is far more common to have a 30 amp overheat than a 50 amp. Now, if you are using a full 50 amps, and there is a brownout, you may be in trouble, and you should be using some sort of protection to avoid burning out AC compressors and or expensive electronics! But a 30 amp RV plugged into a 50 amp circuit, would have more of a cushion than a 50 amp, not to say an isolation transformer or some other protection should be avoided.
And my quote, about the lack of knowledge was not directed to the OP, it was directed to the person who stated there was imminent danger of plugging a 30 amp rig using an adaptor into a 50 amp plug!Coach-man wrote:
The 50 amp service is over what you need for your 30 amp rig, one it should be more stable, two at 50 amps even if it is overloaded from too many other 50 amp rigs in the park you should have no problems with using 30 amps! The adaptor is less than $20, well worth the price! No worries you can not use more than the 30 amps that your rig is rated for! If there should be a fault your 30 amp circuit breaker will kick in and handle the emergency, and that would be a problem un related to your using the 50 amp plug!! The lack of knowledge about how electricity works makes you wonder???
The 50 amp outlets are power by the same conductors that the 30 outlets are powered from. If the park is having brownout conditions(which is low voltage because of load, and more amps are trying to flow to make up for it) on one or both of the power legs of a 50 outlet, that same condition will be occurring on the single leg of a 30 amp outlet if brownout is on both legs or on the single leg if 30 amp outlet and you are on the same brownout leg. The 30amp outlets if wired correctly should be alternating site to site between the two legs of the parks power distribution.
The worst condition people face is those with full 50 service. If the neutral lead goes bad, then 240V is placed across everything in the trailer or coach, and you burn up TVs, micro waves, converters, inverters, stereos, and sat equipment. Friend had that happen this winter in California. His bill to date is 7K and they are not done replacing things.
If you have full 50 service, have a good isolation device that will protect you from this happening.
"The lack of knowledge about how electricity works makes you wonder???"
Chris- The 50 amp service is over what you need for your 30 amp rig, one it should be more stable, two at 50 amps even if it is overloaded from too many other 50 amp rigs in the park you should have no problems with using 30 amps! The adaptor is less than $20, well worth the price! No worries you can not use more than the 30 amps that your rig is rated for! If there should be a fault your 30 amp circuit breaker will kick in and handle the emergency, and that would be a problem un related to your using the 50 amp plug!! The lack of knowledge about how electricity works makes you wonder???
- I often use the 30 amp cord for my 50 amp 5er. I haven't added the second air yet, so why wrestle with the 50A cord? Like others, I use the 50/30 adapter, the 50A outlet is usually unmolested.
Water-Bug wrote:
Not to mention the table lamps with 18 or 20g wire pulling maybe 1 amp out of those 15amp outlets. What if that skinny wire develops a fault?Roadpilot wrote:
Even worse, that 20 amp circuit is probably terminated with a bunch of 15 amp sockets. If that socket doesn't have a horizontal slot on the neutral side, it is probably only rated at 15 amps.Me Again wrote:
I've got a little usb box that charges my phone plugged into a 20 amp outet in the kitchen. The cable to my phone is 22 guage. Should I be worried?
Just remember that you will have a 50 breaker feeding #10 30amp rated cable, so if you have a problem ahead of the trailers 30 main breaker, you could have an electrical fire risk. Chris
Same difference AFAIC!
To the OP, get the 50A to 30A dog-bone, use it and don't worry.Roadpilot wrote:
Me Again wrote:
Just remember that you will have a 50 breaker feeding #10 30amp rated cable, so if you have a problem ahead of the trailers 30 main breaker, you could have an electrical fire risk. Chris
I've got a little usb box that charges my phone plugged into a 20 amp outet in the kitchen. The cable to my phone is 22 guage. Should I be worried?
Even worse, that 20 amp circuit is probably terminated with a bunch of 15 amp sockets. If that socket doesn't have a horizontal slot on the neutral side, it is probably only rated at 15 amps.- When I had my TT with 30amp I always used the 50amp circuit with adapter . .
Me Again wrote:
Chances of a failure in the cord itself that causes more than 30A but less than 50A to flow is so low it is almost zero. In the unlikely event a short occurs, then the 50A breaker will take care of it.
Just remember that you will have a 50 breaker feeding #10 30amp rated cable, so if you have a problem ahead of the trailers 30 main breaker, you could have an electrical fire risk. Chris
IMHO that "risk" is more than offset by the reduced potential of an overheated 30A outlet on the pedestal caused by dirty or weak contacts.
I use a 50A to 30A dog-bone whenever a 50A outlet is available. It's usually in MUCH better shape than the 30A ones.
