Melting extension cord

Causes of cord/plug heating:
- corroded socket, plug blades
- too long ext cord
- too small ext cord wires
- drawing too much power ie.. hot water, converter, a/c

Ah yes. DW would put the AC on and then vacuum. So that must be why the cord was getting so hot. I will order a bigger gauge 30 amp cord and then use the "puck" adapter or should I get the dog bone style? Much appreciated! Will have DW plug into the house with an extension cord next time and not the RV :)

Get a larger rated extension cord, perhaps a RV 30 amp rated cord which could also be used at campsites if needed. Also, make sure all the contacts are clean and not corroded. It is possible to run a single AC unit on a 15 amp breaker but nothing else. Make sure water heater is set to gas or off, fridge set to gas or off, do not even attempt to warm that biscuit in the microwave if AC is on.

The A/C by itself did not melt your cord
To use local 20 amp power from a duplex outlet at a residence
You 'MUST' put the fridge on LP and the water heater on LP not automatic not electric
Then use only (1) appliance at a time
MW , coffee maker, hair dryer, air conditioning, vacuum cleaner,
Do not use any of these 'two at the same time'
It's power management, you can't run the whole RV from one duplex outlet
But In most cases
you can run Individual items, one at a time..
Get quality 12ga or better yet 10 GA cords
You can't do this with 75 ft Chinese 14 ga cord
Not enough wire to carry more than 10 amps without heating up
Don't leave you RV shore cord curled up in the RV compartment
Stretch it out as far as it will go, use only as much extension cord as is absolutely needed
Get several 25 ft cords, not one 75 ft cord, use only what is needed
Better yet buy RV extension cords, and string them together
Yes they are heavier, yes they cost more$$ , but they are not going to get as hot, and the voltage in the RV will be higher, a lot better for the A/C unit and everything else

Exactly what adapter are you using? Dog-bone style or a puck?

Do you have a 30 amp or 50 amp RV? (cord end; 3 prong = 30 amp, 4 prong = 50 amp)

How long is the extension cord? And more important is it at least #12 wire?

djousma wrote:

Don't try to plug into a 220v dryer or welder outlet. they look the same but you will fry your electrical appliances in your trailer.

I don't think so.
Why do YOU think that ??

To summarize:
If the houses don't have an appropriate 220 receptacle OR a 30 amp 110 one (highly unlikely) then you MUST run your generator.

If you don't have a generator......then you will be hot.

What you are doing now is dangerous; it's a fire just waiting to happen.....maybe inside the house where it's plugged in. I kind of wonder why the breaker in the house box doesn't trip. Mine did when I tried it.

Mote wrote:
Most camper run on 110 volt. They do however need a 30amp power source. Your adapter is allowing you to use it on a 15 or 20amp power source. Your extension cord is getting hot since it is not large enough wire to pull that kind of power needed for the A/C.
If the houses you are going to don't have a RV specific 30amp 110 volt plug for you to attach to then will need to run a generator.

A generator with a 30A socket. Not a generator with a 15A socket. same situation applies.

You really cannot run A/C on a 15 amp circuit because of what you have already observed happens. It is also very bad for your A/C, let alone dangerous. Unless the place you are going has a dedicated 30amp circuit, you are out of luck. BTW, your trailer is not 220, its just a larger 30amp plug(I am assuming 30a, could be 50a too).

Don't try to plug into a 220v dryer or welder outlet. they look the same but you will fry your electrical appliances in your trailer.

Most camper run on 110 volt. They do however need a 30amp power source. Your adapter is allowing you to use it on a 15 or 20amp power source. Your extension cord is getting hot since it is not large enough wire to pull that kind of power needed for the A/C.
If the houses you are going to don't have a RV specific 30amp 110 volt plug for you to attach to then will need to run a generator.