Hi there! I am new to these forums and would love some advice on a situation we are having. My boyfriend and I are using our in-laws property to house our fifth wheel while we renovate. It is a 1994 fifth wheel, 34 feet. For the past 3 months, we have had our rig plugged into a normal 120v house circuit using an appropriate extension cord. Our rig is 30 amps. We weren't informed at first (but thats beside the point), but my in-laws are claiming that having our rig plugged in "quadruples" their electric bill. The fridge is broken, we are never running any lights when not inside, and only have 2 small dehumidifiers running inside, and even then those shut off automatically when full. No appliances like microwave or anything else have been used. A space heater was for maybe 10 hours total over the 3 months, but I still don't see how this could account for this much extra power. So I guess my question is- does this seem possible to you all? and if its absolutely wrong how do I gain proof my rig isnt causing this raise in price (mind you, this is the 1st winter they have lived in the house..... they have baseboard heat and the wintertime and cold months coincide perfectly with when we moved the fifth wheel over there..... lol.)? My mother in-law was saying how she heard that when you plug into a normal house outlet you use 3x as much power or something. Im sorry for my lack of terminology, I have literally no frame of reference for this lol. Thanks for reading!!!

If you are plugged into a regular 15 amp household circuit, get yourself one of these Hard to know how much power used by guessing, much better to have an exact figure. Art.

My mother in-law was saying how she heard that when you plug into a normal house outlet you use 3x as much power or something.It is hard to argue with a statement like that, which contains no factual information at all. Your MIL may have a totally different grievance that she can not / will not address, and this is the "outlet" she chose.Or the "spike" they observe is always there in the winter - they just never looked in the past when your camper was not there. We use natural gas for heating and hot water. The consumption of January can be 30x the reading of July.The previous poster's suggestion to add your own meter may not help whan your in-laws want to believe otherwise. But it will give you an exact knowledge of how much you actually use.Do your in-laws get electric bills that state the actual consumption and the meter readings at the time? You should be able to compare the current usage to last year's, when your camper was not there. At least you should be able to calculate a daily average, which you can easily compare with current meter reading. Then unplug for a day or two...

So how much is it worth to you per month to keep peace or is this worth it to you to do battle with the possible out come of you not being able to keep your 5th wheel there anymore?

You mention they have base board heat and I'm assuming it's electric, which is by far the most inefficient way to heat. You say this is the first winter they have lived there, and if they moved out of a house with gas heat they certainly would get a rude awakening when they got their first electric bill, and it just so happens it was the same time you parked your rig there.Maybe help them with the electric bill to keep them pacified, then when you move out and the electric bill doesn't go down (if they are still using heat) they will know it wasn't you.Hopefully you don't move out in April when they stop using heat and they will think they are right and will have to wait until next winter to see the spike again.

Even if you had a dead short in the RV you still can't go over 15 amps(1800 watts) without blowing the circuit breaker. As Troubledwaters pointed out keeping the peace is also important. An electrician visit to both check your usage and explain how electricity is billed to all of you would be a good neutral ground.Are you using the house washer, dryer, shower, tub, micro, oven, lights, etc? You stated that this is their first winter in the house, the Electric company can provide prior usage numbers for comparison.I would pay half the bill and move on. Also, what does the child of this woman have to say? Sounds to me like you are without backup here.

Typical electrical usage | Good Sam Community

Rvpapa
Explorer
Feb 06, 2018
If you are plugged into a regular 15 amp household circuit, get yourself one of these Hard to know how much power used by guessing, much better to have an exact figure.
Art.
joerg68
Nomad III
Feb 06, 2018
My mother in-law was saying how she heard that when you plug into a normal house outlet you use 3x as much power or something.

It is hard to argue with a statement like that, which contains no factual information at all. Your MIL may have a totally different grievance that she can not / will not address, and this is the "outlet" she chose.

Or the "spike" they observe is always there in the winter - they just never looked in the past when your camper was not there. We use natural gas for heating and hot water. The consumption of January can be 30x the reading of July.

The previous poster's suggestion to add your own meter may not help whan your in-laws want to believe otherwise. But it will give you an exact knowledge of how much you actually use.

Do your in-laws get electric bills that state the actual consumption and the meter readings at the time? You should be able to compare the current usage to last year's, when your camper was not there. At least you should be able to calculate a daily average, which you can easily compare with current meter reading. Then unplug for a day or two...
troubledwaters
Explorer III
Feb 06, 2018
So how much is it worth to you per month to keep peace or is this worth it to you to do battle with the possible out come of you not being able to keep your 5th wheel there anymore?
2003silverado
Explorer II
Feb 06, 2018
You mention they have base board heat and I'm assuming it's electric, which is by far the most inefficient way to heat. You say this is the first winter they have lived there, and if they moved out of a house with gas heat they certainly would get a rude awakening when they got their first electric bill, and it just so happens it was the same time you parked your rig there.

Maybe help them with the electric bill to keep them pacified, then when you move out and the electric bill doesn't go down (if they are still using heat) they will know it wasn't you.

Hopefully you don't move out in April when they stop using heat and they will think they are right and will have to wait until next winter to see the spike again.
bucky
Explorer II
Feb 06, 2018
Even if you had a dead short in the RV you still can't go over 15 amps(1800 watts) without blowing the circuit breaker. As Troubledwaters pointed out keeping the peace is also important. An electrician visit to both check your usage and explain how electricity is billed to all of you would be a good neutral ground.
Are you using the house washer, dryer, shower, tub, micro, oven, lights, etc?
You stated that this is their first winter in the house, the Electric company can provide prior usage numbers for comparison.
I would pay half the bill and move on. Also, what does the child of this woman have to say? Sounds to me like you are without backup here.
gbopp
Explorer
Feb 06, 2018
2003silverado wrote:
Maybe help them with the electric bill to keep them pacified, then when you move out and the electric bill doesn't go down (if they are still using heat) they will know it wasn't you.

That's a good idea. I'm guessing when the bills stay the same or go back up next winter, the in-laws will be convinced the fifth wheel 'did' something to their electrical system.
valhalla360
Navigator
Feb 06, 2018
troubledwaters wrote:
So how much is it worth to you per month to keep peace or is this worth it to you to do battle with the possible out come of you not being able to keep your 5th wheel there anymore?

This is the real answer. What is the relationship worth vs how much is the electric bill? You can be 100% right but proving her wrong can likely make the situation worse.

Looping back to the technical side of the question:

Find out what the price per KWH is. Let's use $0.10/kwh (round number easy to calculate)
- Theoretical maximum: 30 amps at 120v = 3.6kw *24hr*30ays= 2592kwh or $259.
- Assuming you are plugged into a 15amp outlet and not tripping the fuse you can only pull around 15amp so only around half that amount maximum: 1296kwh $129.
- Realistically you are using far less. The only way to get a real defendable number is to get a meter as suggested by someone else. They are pretty cheap at home depot and we have one to keep an eye out for low voltage, but they will automatically calculate KWH.

A rough guestimate based on the items you listed (assumed values):
- 50w * 4hr for lighting
- 10amps at 120v for 12hr/day for the dehumidifiers
- 1500w heater for 4hr per day
- 200w for the battery charge for 12hr/day

Add it up and it's around 690wkh or about $69/month (even this is likely a high estimate). But again, it's likely not about the electric bill.

For reference, we paid $90 for 6 months last summer living in the RV full time and no we didn't ration the air/con.
2112
Explorer II
Feb 06, 2018
The Kill-A-WATT meter will tell you how much you are using over time.
Are you keeping the extension cord connections dry? Dehumidifiers will use power similar to an AC. Do you have a dead or weak battery? A bad battery will draw constant power and you would never know unless you measure it.

Offer half of the electric bill to keep peace in the family regardless how much you are using. Are you parked there for free using their other utilities and appliances? Water is not free either. Half of the light bill seems inexpensive considering the alternatives.
Toolguy5
Explorer III
Feb 06, 2018
gbopp wrote:
2003silverado wrote:
Maybe help them with the electric bill to keep them pacified, then when you move out and the electric bill doesn't go down (if they are still using heat) they will know it wasn't you.

That's a good idea. I'm guessing when the bills stay the same or go back up next winter, the in-laws will be convinced the fifth wheel 'did' something to their electrical system.

I agree it is not worth fighting over.

Knowing first hand how electric baseboard heat can be expensive. It is more then likely their heat bill driving up the cost. The only hard facts to prove is to unplug the Trailer with similar conditions and the bill will not go down.
Mandalay_Parr
Explorer
Feb 06, 2018
I would guess your portion would be $25-50 per month

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