Change electrical outlet with a UBS port

[campnqueen]

Ok I have hunted for an answer but cant find one.

We have a 2014 Work & Play 25 ULA. It has MANY (YAY) elctrical outlets.
There are six in the bedroom alone.

I was thinking about changing out a couple of outlets with the ones that have a USB port built in. They would replace the currnet outlets.

Has anyone done this? Do I need to buy "special" electrical outlets for Rv's?
The replacement outlets would be 15 amps. The same as the ones that are in there now. I can buy them from Home Depot or Amazon.

Your help is greatly appreciated.

[carlsbad]

If they fit under the plate, the swap is easy. Any Home Depot switch will work as long as it’s the same size.

[Scubanut]

Originally Posted by campnqueen

Ok I have hunted for an answer but cant find one.



We have a 2014 Work & Play 25 ULA. It has MANY (YAY) elctrical outlets.

There are six in the bedroom alone.



I was thinking about changing out a couple of outlets with the ones that have a USB port built in. They would replace the currnet outlets.



Has anyone done this? Do I need to buy "special" electrical outlets for Rv's?

The replacement outlets would be 15 amps. The same as the ones that are in there now. I can buy them from Home Depot or Amazon.



Your help is greatly appreciated.

I put two in my trailer. I used a retrofit electrical box and used regular outlets with the USB ports. The only issue you may have is you need space to fit a standard electrical box in the location your using. I put one in my bunk house in the space where water heater and water pump was located. The other in the main bedroom where the storage compartment is.

[mmangiarelli]

I changed out several on our TT. The RV outlets are a all in one receptacle and roughin in box. You'll need to use old work boxes and cover plates. Check wall cavity thickness before swap.

[Flybob]

You need to remove the outlets you plan to replace and look at them. Many RVs use self contained punch down outlets (see photo) that are not installed in a box. You may have to add a box and also may not have room for the box. Other than this you are fine with standard 15A outlets w or w/o USB.

[DavidBo]

I added a 120V outlet with USB ports near the slide of my 2104S to service the dinette area. I used a deep old-work gang box so there would be enough room for the larger outlet. I ran some Romex from a nearby existing outlet (the kind in Flybob's post) which I also replaced with a box and standard receptacle. The hole had to be enlarged a bit to fit the plastic box.
The panels are paper thin, so I used some sections of paint stirring sticks to reinforce the structure. Fortunately I had easy access to the new wiring through the left pass-through storage door so I was able to nail some wire clamps in place for a nice, secure installation (the picture was taken before that).
It's a definite plus to have some experience with electrical wiring before taking on such a task, the danger of a substandard installation is very real. I did my setup as per local residential codes, not really sure if a specific code exists for RVs. I should probably look into that

[rockfordroo]

It would be a LOT faster to just get a plug-in adapter. They make dozens of them in different configurations. Below is just one style. You can get them with 1 to 6 110VAC outlets and 1, 2 or more USB ports.

Just plug it in an you're done! I've got several of them in both my house and my RV.

Just walk around the electrical dept at Home Depot, Lowes, or Menards. Walgreen and CVS sell them, too.

[keith52]

I would also like to change a couple of my outlets to have USB ports. I have checked with Cedar Creek customer service and also with a Forest River Parts and Warranty person. I got no response from Cedar Creek and have been waiting for almost 3 months for the FR person to respond to me. He told me he is checking on it. I will probably have to go with the plug in type for now.

[Telstar]

I’ve changed a few. In most cases the walls are thick enough for installation of a shallow box. I had one that wasn’t for which I wrapped the outlet with thick insulating electrical splice rubber tape.

[DougW]

There is a 4 port USB outlet in our Sunseeker MH. It is above the seating, in the bottom of the overhead cabinets. It works off the 12 volt which I think is ideal. I have no idea where to get one like it.

[masterglenn72]

If you have limited depth for an old work box . You can use a cooper GFER extension to allow depth for the outlet device.

[757Dave]

This is what we have used...

https://www.amazon.com/Decor-USB-Out...51ATJ0RF76WEJ7



Happy travels!

[CurtPutnam]

You might want to look at Snappower,com. I have three of their nightlight version running in our house. I think it is close to 2 years now.

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by 757Dave

This is what we have used...

https://www.amazon.com/Decor-USB-Out...51ATJ0RF76WEJ7



Happy travels!

This won't work on an RV outlet, unless you've already replaced it with a home-style outlet. RV outlets are called "self-contained" outlets and have no screws on the outside to provide power. RV outlets look like this:


You lay the wiring inside it and when you snap on the back, internal metal prongs cut through the wiring's insulation and make the electrical connection. Because it's all internal, there is no normal electrical box. They are fast and easy for the manufacturers to install.

That's why if you want to use normal house-style outlet with USB ports, which has screws for the wiring, you need to install an electrical box to protect the screws from shorting on something.

UPDATE:
After some searching I THINK i've found a self-contained outlet with USB. See here, pg 7:

http://www.hubbell-wirecon.com/liter...on_catalog.pdf

Not sure where you'd buy them, though.

Don't let the special tool scare you off. You can start each wire individually by just pushing them down on the prongs with a screwdriver, than put the back on, put a block on wood on each side, and use a C-clamp to squeeze them together.

UPDATE UPDATE:
Here's a video of a guy tapping into the self-contained outlet under his dinette and routing power to a 2nd USB outlet installed in an electrical box. He COULD have simply installed the electrical box and USB outlet in place of the original self-contained outlet, but I'm guessing he wanted his USB outlet closer to the aisle (I'm guessing because I only "spot-watched" the video, as I've already done something similar, but with a regular duplex outlet, not a USB one.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgrFPleQqhc

[damann]

I don't know much about RV electricity, but I'm wondering if this would work?
Snappower.com has an outlet cover that converts a regular outlet to a USB charger plus outlet, just by replacing the plastic cover.
I ordered a few, but they are still in transit so I don't know how they will work in an RV.

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by damann

I don't know much about RV electricity, but I'm wondering if this would work?
Snappower.com has an outlet cover that converts a regular outlet to a USB charger plus outlet, just by replacing the plastic cover.
I ordered a few, but they are still in transit so I don't know how they will work in an RV.

If they're like the ones in Post #12, they won't work. See why in post #13.

[757Dave]

Rockfordroo, you are correct, sir! The outlet was one that the previous owner had put in our MH. Didn't know that the original outlets were different. Thanks for pointing this out!

[jrowe0521]

i did this in my 2014 georgetown xl. the outside wall are abou 1-1/2" thick. the recp I bought from amazon was too big, so I madea 1/2' spacer from wood and painted it black. the couch uses 12 gauge wire so it is very stiff, so make sure screws are tight.

[Chuck.C]

Whatever receptacle or external plug you use, be sure it has plenty of amperage. I used this one for my RV and it supports 2 USB cables at fast charge. Internal chip controls charge rate.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This one has 3.6 amps to the USB ports.
The other thing to look for is the placement of the various plugs. Some are set up so you can't use both 3-prong and USB simultaneously.