Help 30 amp cord melted

[Travler]

If the braker did not trip in the trailor and also did not trip the supply then you may not of had a full 30 amp load. The clamp on meeter listed will only work if yu can get to a single wire. If clamped around the main cable you will not get an accurate reading. If you can get to a good spot testing is the best way.

I have alos been told that a breaker is only rated to trip once. After that the rating could change. Though I have seen some work many more times with no problems. Changing it is not a bad idea just to be safe.

[KyDan]

Until/unless you actually check with a clamp on meter you are guessing!

FYI, I don't know what type breakers you have.
My trailer uses standard household plug in breakers such as these-
Search Results for*30 amp breaker*at The Home Depot

As you can see by the link, you can get a single pole 30 half wide
breaker for $6 and change or a full wide single pole 30 for $3 and change.
If you're worried about it, put in a new one.

I've never heard of needing to change a breaker because it was tripped
once. Maybe the lawyers and or the breaker salesmen say that but I'm
not gonna do it!
YMMV

[backin15]

Originally Posted by herk7769

Not religiously twisting and locking your connecting ring (while running the AC) will do this. Don't ask how I know...

PS not my photos. My connectors did not show water corrosion; just the burns.

Those photos are actually mine! Thanks for digging them up. DW hooked up the cord that day and did not know to twist after connecting.
Check with the manufacturer, mine was made by Marinco and although they were quick to point out the damage was most likely caused by not giving the cord the required twist they covered it under warranty. In a few days a box appeared at my door containing a new receptacle and cord. I can't say enough about their outstanding customer service!

[youroo]

Originally Posted by jdefeo1

Thank all of you for your replies I understand why the plug may have melted . My new ? is why wont any breakers trip when i intentionally over load them to test it. I had the AC ,toaster,hair dryer,and micro on and never tripped a breaker . I can remember when the AC was on and the wife dried her hair the breaker tripped every time before . So I was wondering if this is a problem and what it my be? Could it be the converter?Every thing is working fine and I'am not having any other issues with any thing else 12 v or 110. THanks again everyone hope someone can give me a answer.

It is a (2013) trailer,is it still under Warr? If so what did the Dealer say? I doubt if a Dealer will (Guess) what caused the Problem. I still have not heard anyone say (Yes we turn on our W/H,A/C,coffee pot ,and hair dryer) without triping a breaker! Maybe our Main is Bad? Youroo!!

[HIDE OUT]

hi everyone just talked to my electrician. He said that by me not tripping a breaker with all of those items on is probably because I didn't have enough amp to trip it. He also said that most reasons why people cant run too many things in their RV's is because the campground supply lines are too long and there isn't enough amps in them. The dedicated 30 amp service that he installed for me at my home for my RV can take enough amp. Therefore, he told me not too worry. He is going to come and check it with a meter for me to be safe. He also agrees that the reason my power cord melted was due to a bad connection.

I appreciate all the feedback and advice you have all given me. This site is great
I will let you know what the results are when I get them. Hopefully, this information will help others.

[HIDE OUT]

Originally Posted by backin15

Those photos are actually mine! Thanks for digging them up. DW hooked up the cord that day and did not know to twist after connecting.
Check with the manufacturer, mine was made by Marinco and although they were quick to point out the damage was most likely caused by not giving the cord the required twist they covered it under warranty. In a few days a box appeared at my door containing a new receptacle and cord. I can't say enough about their outstanding customer service!

Hi Backin15 already bought a new set but will try to get a new one in case this happens again do you remember where you got the contact info I would appreciate it thanks

[BarryD0706]

Originally Posted by jdefeo1

hi everyone just talked to my electrician. He said that by me not tripping a breaker with all of those items on is probably because I didn't have enough amp to trip it. He also said that most reasons why people cant run too many things in their RV's is because the campground supply lines are too long and there isn't enough amps in them. The dedicated 30 amp service that he installed for me at my home for my RV can take enough amp. Therefore, he told me not too worry. He is going to come and check it with a meter for me to be safe. He also agrees that the reason my power cord melted was due to a bad connection.

I appreciate all the feedback and advice you have all given me. This site is great
I will let you know what the results are when I get them. Hopefully, this information will help others.

I hope you're paraphrasing there. The only thing that limits the amps in a circuit is the breaker.

Long campground supply lines means there is voltage drop in the lines, so you might say you didn't "have enough volts to trip them". When voltage goes down, the hair dryer and toaster (and water heater) draw less current so perhaps that's what he means. The air conditioner and microwave (and converter) on the other hand are going to draw more current at lower voltage, so it's hard to say what would have won out.

The important thing is that he's going to do that measurement that was suggested so you'll know for sure if there's a problem.

[HIDE OUT]

Originally Posted by youroo

It is a (2013) trailer,is it still under Warr? If so what did the Dealer say? I doubt if a Dealer will (Guess) what caused the Problem. I still have not heard anyone say (Yes we turn on our W/H,A/C,coffee pot ,and hair dryer) without triping a breaker! Maybe our Main is Bad? Youroo!!

Hi youroo, it is still under warranty but I don't like to bring it there to much I prefer to try to fix it myself I found in the past that most of the time I know more then they do by reading this forum. and i do a neater and quicker job and for a electrical problem I would rather have a license electrician work on it if I cant do it myself than my dealers techs if you know what I mean thankyou for all your help on this forum

[HIDE OUT]

Originally Posted by BarryD0706

I hope you're paraphrasing there. The only thing that limits the amps in a circuit is the breaker.

Long campground supply lines means there is voltage drop in the lines, so you might say you didn't "have enough volts to trip them". When voltage goes down, the hair dryer and toaster (and water heater) draw less current so perhaps that's what he means. The air conditioner and microwave (and converter) on the other hand are going to draw more current at lower voltage, so it's hard to say what would have won out.

The important thing is that he's going to do that measurement that was suggested so you'll know for sure if there's a problem.

Thanks berry that is what I meant to say but like you said I am going to leave it up to the professional to make sure every thing is safe

[1A Camper]

Barry
The electrician is right long run can limit the maximum amount of current supply.
Lets say you are a 100 feet from good supply of 120 volts power. That means you have 200 feet of wire (round trip). Lets say that 200 feet of wire has 4 ohm resistance. Now lets short a socket in the RV that is connected to this 100 supply line. Question: How much current is flowing in the wire? Amps= volts/ohm so you would have 30 amps flowing and no matter what you do you can not get any more amps out of that cord. A fuse does not limit current, it interrupt the flow of current at a set level but this is all semantics. You made a valid point

[BarryD0706]

1A Camper,
agreed! Taken to the limit of wire-R >> RV-R, the wire will limit the current.

[VinceU]

In real life #10 wire will conduct a lot more that that at 120 volts. More like hundreds of amps which would melt that wire so quick you'd only find the skeleton of it. The wire is rated .1 ohm per 100'.

I think the 30 amp and trip problem is the breakers are designed to first clean on a gross overload (short circuit) to prevent fire. The secondary purpose to to clear load faults but, its on a timer curve. 40 amps will clear quickly, however 31 amps will be timed. Purpose is not to clear prematurely like a short burst of motor start. Besides they are not guaranteed to clear on the rating, they have a touch of error built in.

[rick42wood]

It rarely happens but sometimes a breaker malfunctions and won't trip. They are designed to fail the other way and trip at lower amps rather than higher. Your problem where the connection fused had to be a bad connection with a corroded prong or if it was wet that could also cause it to arc. When a connection arcs just a little it causes more resistance which causes even more arcing and heat. Then the connection fuses and actually becomes a better connection. All this can happen without tripping the breaker. But remember, the cord is protected by the device you plug into. I suspect that there was a problem with whatever you plugged into. That is what should have tripped.

[BarryD0706]

Originally Posted by rick42wood

...
But remember, the cord is protected by the device you plug into. I suspect that there was a problem with whatever you plugged into. That is what should have tripped.

Unless you we're using a 50->30 adapter to power your RV from a pedestal which only provided 50-amp service.

[rick42wood]

Quite right. This is a dangerous thing to do. That is why they make 50A cords. The adaptors make no sense and I don't know how they are legal.

[backin15]

Originally Posted by jdefeo1

Hi Backin15 already bought a new set but will try to get a new one in case this happens again do you remember where you got the contact info I would appreciate it thanks

Here you go: Contact Us | Marinco
I think they have a 5 year warranty.

[HIDE OUT]

Originally Posted by backin15

Here you go: Contact Us | Marinco
I think they have a 5 year warranty.

THANKYOU BACKIN Ill let you know how it turns out for me

[Matthewsbj1]

You can try to run all f that stuff again and make sure that the air conditioner compressor is on sometimes there is a delay and when you are running all of the stuff do not look at the breaker box go to the side and flip the main breaker in your camper if you feel any resistance in any direction you will need to get the breaker replaced do that in your homes 30 amp breaker to that might have a problem. I did this for my Xmas light show and found out that my main breaker was malfunctioning and when they went to change out the box ad the meter they found that there was remnants of a fire in the outside meter box!