Power

I put a dedicated 30 AMP circuit in my garage for the RV. Easy Peesy.. hardest part for me was repairing the dry wall post installation.

Mike

The outlets/wiring in my storage bldg are 20A. The 20A circuits consist of #12 wire and 20A rated outlets. Most home wiring is #14(smaller gage) with 15A rated outlets. I just use a 30A to 15/20A adapter to plug in.
Park the trailer close enough so you don't use an extension cord. A longer/smaller extension cord will create voltage drop and increase the current draw thus tripping a 15A breaker. Also, if the outlet you are plugging into is too far away from the breaker panel, there will be increased voltage drop.

KD4UPL wrote:
I have a simple 30A to 15A adapter on the end of my camper's cord. I use it to plug the camper into an outlet in my garage. It runs the AC just fine.

x2

It depends on where you plug it in. Normally I use an adapter and plug in to an outside receptacle, but that receptacle is part of a circuit that has 2 bedrooms and the living room on it, plus it is already a long run from the panel. This is fine for battery and lights, but will not start the AC. If I want to run the AC, I plug into the washing machine receptacle in my garage. By code, a washer receptacle has to be dedicated, meaning nothing else is on that circuit, so I know nothing else is using capacity, no problem running the AC now.

It depends. Some can do it and some can't. The key is voltage and how "stable" it is.

You never want the voltage at the AC unit to be under 105 volts as it can cause damage. If using an extension cord, use at least #12 and preferably #10 and keep it as short as possible. Keep the plug blades clean and don't plug in with the power on otherwise the blades will get pitted, attract dirt and not have a good connection leading to heat and damage to the plug and receptacle.

AC units are an exception to motorized equip. in that they draw more current as the voltage goes down and the breaker can trip when the voltage *seems* okay. They draw around 5-6 times running current when starting and can result in a high voltage drop initially (split second only). A hard start capacitor can help in some cases.

Depending on how far the recept. you plug into is from your panel and how far the panel is from the transformer on the street, you can have some voltage drop (under load) before you get out to the AC unit.

I would measure the voltage at the recept. in the house and also at the TT (with AC on). Don't run other items when the AC is on. A hardwired or plug-in voltmeter in an RV is always a good idea for camping and at home.

My AC yes, but do not try the Microwave or toaster. I think my AC draws about 13 amps.

30 Amp to 15 Amp adapter. Good normal extension cord, and you can run the air conditioner as stated above. But you will not be able to run much more. If you exceed the Amp from the house / garage, the most you'll do is pop the breaker in the house / garage. Nothing hurt. Just reset the breaker, and turn something off in the camper.

Remember, anything on that same circuit (in the house or garage) is adding up to the total 15 or 20 amps that the line is set for based on the circuit breaker. If you have a 20 amp circuit, and 5 amps is running an appliance in the house, you have only 15 you can used for the camper. If the air conditioner takes 10 amps, that leave only 5 left before the breaker will pop. Turn on that hair blower and the breaker my pop. So any electricity being used inside the house needs to be considered also.

The best solution is to eventually have a proper 30 amp plug and breaker installed dedicated for the RV.

We do it all the time, just as other have said about the adapter and appropriate extension cord.

I have a simple 30A to 15A adapter on the end of my camper's cord. I use it to plug the camper into an outlet in my garage. It runs the AC just fine.

Just make sure Joe the electrician knows that an RV 30 amp outlet needs to be wired for 120V, not 240V.