50 to 30 amp Adapter

wolfe10 wrote:
I prefer the adapters with a short pigtail/cord. That way the heat generated in the connections is not focused in one small area.

I agree with Wolfe, THe "Puck" adapters put too much strain on the power outlet and are quite likely to disconnect on you in the middle of when you least want to go out and plug in again

The "Dogbone" type (Short cord between plug and outlet) put a lot less strain on the outlet.

I do use a "puck" for connection to extension cords but there both plug and outlet are lying on something so no strain,

Get a dogbone style. Make sure it is UL/CSA listed otherwise you won't know how poorly it is made inside. Portable cords and adapters aren't required by code to be listed. CW near us has a shelf full of various adapters that aren't listed. Our adapters are Camco.

Keep the blades on adapters and shore power cords lean and shiny and always turn the power off before plugging in. If you're 30 amps and have a choice of 30 or 50 at a pedestal, it's often better to go for the 50 amps straight away because 30s are often tired and abused in comparison. 50 amp pedestals can also have better voltage due to heavier gauge wiring to them.

FWIW, we also carry a 30 to 30 amp dogbone adapter if we absolutely must plug into a bad pedestal and can't go elsewhere. That way if it overheats and melts, we'll only lose the adapter (hopefully).

Hi,

I use a Sola Basic autoformer 4000 va unit at campgrounds. I've added a surge suppressor to that, running it on the input side.

I no longer do double conversion as I have a hybrid inverter/charger.

wolfe10 wrote:
Don,

Makes perfect sense. But only something a really electrically savvy owner could do.

To be able to use most shore power in Mexico, I had some homemade adapters as well. Some devices can run on a much wider range of voltages than others.

Don,

Makes perfect sense. But only something a really electrically savvy owner could do.

To be able to use most shore power in Mexico, I had some homemade adapters as well. Some devices can run on a much wider range of voltages than others.

Hi wolfe10,

The box has one 30 amp breaker for the OEM rv on one leg, and twin 20 amp breakers for the other leg (unbalanced--but that often happens in real life).

To use the box, I added two auxiliary shore power cords. In the summer time, one is intended for running the electric water heater, and one was used to power just the converter when there was low amperage shore power. (then use double conversion plugging the OEM 30 amp into a 2500 watt MSW inverter, before I had the hybrid inverter/charger).

In winter, the auxiliary circuits are used to run additional electric heaters so I can be in the -30ties without burning any propane.

wolfe10 wrote:

pianotuna wrote:
I prefer dog bone adapters. However, I created a break out box that gives me access to both legs of a 50 amp pedestal.

Don,

Sorry, I don't understand. A 30 amp coach has a single hot. How did you wire from the other hot and what do you run on it?

Hi Lenny,

In order to not pollute the thread I've sent you a private message about the breakout box and how I use it.

Lenny K wrote:
Don. I would like to hear more about the break out box. It wouldn't help me as I'm set up for 50 amp but my SIL is not and I can see that helping him out.

pianotuna wrote:
I prefer dog bone adapters. However, I created a break out box that gives me access to both legs of a 50 amp pedestal.

Don,

Sorry, I don't understand. A 30 amp coach has a single hot. How did you wire from the other hot and what do you run on it?

The heat is always at the connections in the ends so length of wire won't affect it and may actually help dissipate heat. Having the heat sources farther away from each other can only help.
Simple pucks with no wire at all seem to melt the worst.

pianotuna wrote:
I prefer dog bone adapters. However, I created a break out box that gives me access to both legs of a 50 amp pedestal.

Don. I would like to hear more about the break out box. It wouldn't help me as I'm set up for 50 amp but my SIL is not and I can see that helping him out.

I prefer dog bone adapters. However, I created a break out box that gives me access to both legs of a 50 amp pedestal.