dieselenthusiast wrote:
When we take the travel trailer to the in-laws, we are lacking some distance from where our trailer can park vs. where their closest standard 120V outside outlet is located.
Are you saying you would be plugging into a "standard" 15 amp duplex receptacle? If yes, you can't do that. If you want to run an AC unit as well, you will need 30 amps. If you look at the panel inside your unit, you will probably find that the AC has a 20 amp breaker and you'll need a minimum of 20 amps for just the AC.
Even if not running an AC unit, plugging into a 15 amp receptacle and extension cord can cause problems. First of all, you should always plug in the shore power cord(s) when the power is turned off. Easy to do in a campground at the pedestal, but in a house, you'd need to go to the panel. If you are going to do this a lot, I'd make up a disconnect switch that can be plugged into the extension cord or add a switch at the recept. at the house. The converter has a momentary inrush current that causes pitting on the blades of plugs and internally inside receptacles& connectors. The pitting attracts dirt which leads to an increase in resistance and eventually enough heat to cause a meltdown. The inrush is the zap you can hear and in the dark, a flash. You should make sure the blades are kept clean with a scotchbrite pad or sandpaper. 15 amp extension cords can easily go up in smoke from the heat (as I have found out twice in our driveway).
If you are plugging into a 30 amp receptacle, three 30 amp extension cords together will not be a problem unless there is a low voltage situation. I would also check the voltage at the house receptacle before turning the AC on to see if it is low to start with. You should normally be close to 120 volts inside the house, but depending on where you are located and some other factors, in the heat of the summer, if a lot of people in the neighborhood are running AC units, the voltage can drop quite a bit. You could read the AC unit's manual but generally when you get down to 105 volts, the AC unit can be damaged. At the very least, I would get a power line voltage monitor that plugs into a receptacle such as the Camco one, and keep an eye on the voltage inside your camper. Using a dogbone adapter is always a good idea.
