Melting extension cord

[Claybe]

I will be taking our first big trip soon and we will need the air conditioner. We usually boondock and never use the AC. I have only used it at home a couple of times and when I did the extension cord got really hot and the converter adapter plug from 220 to a 110 plug was almost melting. I will only have 110 available at the houses I will be staying at and need to use the AC. What should I do???

[Claybe]

Sam Spade wrote:

Claybe wrote:
but need to figure out how to plug into a house while we are on the road. Thanks!!!

You make SURE that the house is properly equipped BEFORE you get there......or resign yourself to NOT using the air conditioning.
There really is no middle ground.

When it comes to extension cords, the fewer connections the better.

I personally wouldn't do a 100' run at 30 amps with 12 gauge, especially not with multiple connections involved.

I am assuming that just using a regular household outlet will handle my air conditioner. I have a small 25 foot RV and read earlier that I would be okay to use a 10 gauge RV extension cord with a dog bone style adapter and plug into any outlet. Am I wrong in thinking this?!?

[MrWizard]

some rubber coated 'S0' cord is going to be easier to roll and unroll than Romex
i certainly recommend using 10ga
and yes you could use a 25ft and a 50ft, just about as easy to use as three each 25ft long
use them in what ever combination is the going to reach either one or both

[Sam_Spade]

Claybe wrote:
but need to figure out how to plug into a house while we are on the road. Thanks!!!

You make SURE that the house is properly equipped BEFORE you get there......or resign yourself to NOT using the air conditioning.
There really is no middle ground.

When it comes to extension cords, the fewer connections the better.

I personally wouldn't do a 100' run at 30 amps with 12 gauge, especially not with multiple connections involved.

[westend]

I'd suggest to make a breakout box. Use 10 AWG Romex from the box to a male 120 V plug. The box will have a standard female RV 30 amp receptacle. Wire length for your new breakout will depend on length of your existing shore power cord and the length you need to extend to the house receptacle.

The alternative is to buy additional 30 amp RV extension cord. It isn't that expensive.

[Claybe]

MrWizard wrote:
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

Great advice! I was using a 12 gauge cord from the RV to the house. I just took the whole cord out from the compartment and have about 25'. I would like to get another 75 feet, but 3 RV 25' cords are pretty expensive. What should I do here? Just bite the bullet and order them or can I get away with a 50' and a 25' cord to get to 75'? Or, do I really need that much length? Looking for advice on how people usually plug into a home on a trip??? I will make sure we only run one thing at a time when plugged in from now on but need to figure out how to plug into a house while we are on the road. Thanks!!!

[MrWizard]

Sam Spade wrote:

MrWizard wrote:
The A/C by itself did not melt your cord

You can't do this with 75 ft Chinese 14 ga cord

You seem to be contradicting yourself here. 😉

Not knowing what kind of cord he was using, you can't really make that first statement.

Unless he specifically turned off those other items, which he did not say
I think it's safe to say he had other items on, plus the cheap cord

[Oldenuftoknowbe]

Dog bone would be better choice!

[time2roll]

Get the dog-bone over the puck style.

[Sam_Spade]

Claybe wrote:
I will order a bigger gauge 30 amp cord and then use the "puck" adapter or should I get the dog bone style?

This is good but I still wonder why a breaker did not trip.

The AC and the vacuum cleaner are both "single use" items on a 15 amp breaker; probably even a 20 amp one.

I think you need to study the breakers in your house box some.
Something is not right there too.

And check for heat with your new setup.....at both ends of the extension cord and at the adapter.......and at the corresponding breaker in the house box.

[Sam_Spade]

wildtoad wrote:
It is possible to run a single AC unit on a 15 amp breaker but nothing else.

Not knowing what size AC he has, you can't really make that statement.

An 8000 BTU probably. A high efficiency 10,000 maybe.
But many RVs have units bigger than that.

[Sam_Spade]

MrWizard wrote:
The A/C by itself did not melt your cord

You can't do this with 75 ft Chinese 14 ga cord

You seem to be contradicting yourself here. 😉

Not knowing what kind of cord he was using, you can't really make that first statement.

[2oldman]

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

[Claybe]

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 🙂

[wildtoad]

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.

[MrWizard]

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