Advice on 30 amp Install at Home

rockhillmanor wrote:

AND BTW do NOT put a 50amp in for future use if your RV is 30amp.

Why not? The 30 amp RV will only draw as much current as needed within its 30 amp main breaker rating.

cekkk wrote:
Thanks to all for such quick responses! My guy is fully licensed, etc., and has a great reputation in the area. I will make sure I see 120 before he leaves and will have the TT30 receptacle before he comes. And I'll offer him the diagrams and other things you've recommended. He won't turn his nose up, I know. Only problem I've had with his work was the 220 he ran to the room above the garage for the baseboard heaters. I suspect my cutting the line with the auger may have had something to do with that. LOL

Doesn't matter if he is licensed. IMHO Of all the trades the electricians just seem to not want to listen to any customer because they think none of us can understand electric.

"I" am one of the horror stories.

Hired a licensed electrician, printed out the sheet from the RV electric site, I actually bought the outlet, pounded his head with 30 amp dedicated, NOT 220......AND HE STILL WIRED IT 220!

I left for a trip and the electrician installed it while I was gone.

Came back home at 2:00 in the morning to new house headed for my new shore station and grabbed my cord in the dark and yes I have a surge protector but I take it off for storage in the bay. So instead of reaching in for it that night, I thought sure don't need that right now.

How wrong could I have been. Over $2,000 damage.

OP: Stand there right next to your electrician while he is wiring your outlet with a hammer over his head and repeat after me, NOT 220, NOT 220. Until he is finished and THEN test it before you plug in.

Seriously make sure.

AND BTW do NOT put a 50amp in for future use if your RV is 30amp.

30A RV = 1 HOT, 1 NEUTRAL, 1 GROUND = 30A/120V
30A RESIDENTIAL = 2 HOTS, 1 GROUND OR NEUTRAL (DEPENDING ON DEVICE) = 30A/240V

After pos ting I realized I should probably go 50 amp so it's ready for our next RV. This for our own TT that guests can use as a guest house. Glad I didn't already order the TT30. It's really more for me than them - I like my privacy in the wee hours. And I did catch the one post that would have it wired for a dryer, 220. No problem there, it'll be 120.

Kimbrew81 wrote:
If he is a residential electrician he won't have any problems. Basically all he will be doing is adding a receptacle just like is ran for your clothes dryer except possibly in some sort of weatherproof enclosure depending on your mounting location . I picked mine up at Home Depot for around $25-$30 for enclosure and receptacle together.

This is exactly wrong. That is the mistake that residential sparkies make that burn up RV stuff.
It is NOT the same as a dryer, it's 120, not 220 but it looks like a 220 volt 30a recep.

Reading all these horror stories - I guess I got lucky. I asked for a 30 amp outdoor receptacle for RV parking and didn't have any problems. At the time I was in an area with a high rate of RV ownership so maybe electricians used to requirements or campers themselves.

rr2254545 wrote:

cekkk wrote:
Our electrician will be coming soon for needed work, and while here I want to add 30 amp service so kids can use it when visiting and have more power available than what I have now, which is using an adapter and standard residential duplex receptacle. He's excellent but does residential and commercial work, not RV stuff. I've read here and elsewhere about problems arising due to the differences in RV wiring. He won't be touching the RV itself, but still, is there anything he should know now that might otherwise catch him by surprise and cause trouble when I plug the power cord into the new receptacle?

I would put in 50 amp - most 5ers and MH have 50 now, if they have 30 now I am sure they have a pigtail for using a 50 connection. Then you will not have to upgrade later when they upgrade

Best suggestion yet.

cekkk wrote:
Our electrician will be coming soon for needed work, and while here I want to add 30 amp service so kids can use it when visiting and have more power available than what I have now, which is using an adapter and standard residential duplex receptacle. He's excellent but does residential and commercial work, not RV stuff. I've read here and elsewhere about problems arising due to the differences in RV wiring. He won't be touching the RV itself, but still, is there anything he should know now that might otherwise catch him by surprise and cause trouble when I plug the power cord into the new receptacle?

I would put in 50 amp - most 5ers and MH have 50 now, if they have 30 now I am sure they have a pigtail for using a 50 connection. Then you will not have to upgrade later when they upgrade

With all due respect to your electrician, we have read MANY stories about qualified guys hooking a RV30 recept. up to 220. They just aren't accustomed to it and assume wrong.
You need to verify his work.

Lot of horror stories about people who have plugged into plugs that a house dryer was set up for---as mentioned several times--BE sure he does not wire it like a 220 dryer would be wired. Also, don't know what type of rv your kids have but if they have a 50 amp system they will NOT be able to run two a/c's at the same time like you can on 50 amp. Also would be a good idea to have them not use electric option to heat the water--other than that a good wired 30 amp system is definitely the way to go. Depending on how far the plug will be from their rv, you may need to either invest in a TRUE 30 amp extension cord if they don't have one--would suggest you not try to just use a standard heavy duty extension cord.