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Old 07-03-2013, 02:35 PM   #1
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30 amp vs 50 amp power

When we arrive at THE rally, it will be with our CKTS that we pick up later this month - our 1st 5er. I realize only 30amp service will be available. Our CC will have the res fridge. Will I be able to power it and one AC unit simultaneously?
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Old 07-03-2013, 03:16 PM   #2
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It shouldn't be a problem. Be sure to use propane for the water heater and not electric.
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Old 07-03-2013, 03:18 PM   #3
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Not a problem. We can and have run our Whirlpool and the HP main AC on a 15 amp circuit. You may need to cut the A/C off to run the convection/microwave. Ditto on the propane for heating the H2O.
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Old 07-03-2013, 03:20 PM   #4
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You should be just fine running the refrigerator and one AC unit on 30 amp. If you run the microwave it might have issues but even that will depend on your model.
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Old 07-03-2013, 03:35 PM   #5
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I really hope to meet some of you at Goshen. You've answered my questions, helped me along the way - ok, I got picked on a little too - but I've met - though by proxy - a great bunch! Thank you.
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Old 07-03-2013, 05:42 PM   #6
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When we are on 30amps we run the 2 refrigerators (residential inside and small apartment one outside), one air, then we pick one other thing; the other air, hot water heater, or the microwave.
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Old 07-03-2013, 07:46 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by arjerram View Post
When we arrive at THE rally, it will be with our CKTS that we pick up later this month - our 1st 5er. I realize only 30amp service will be available. Our CC will have the res fridge. Will I be able to power it and one AC unit simultaneously?
You'll need a 50A female x 30A male adapter (available @ RV suppliers, Camping World and of course, Walmart) and you will have no problems.

BTW your fridge is powered by the 4 6 volt batteries through the inverter when not plugged into shore (park) power. When you are plugged in to shore power the inverter is in bypass mode, the fridge is powered normally from your AC bus.
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Old 07-03-2013, 08:32 PM   #8
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I have a 30 amp MH and was told once that I could plug into a 50 amp service with an adapter. I've never tried it and am wondering what the general opinion is about this?
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Old 07-03-2013, 08:43 PM   #9
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I never have had a 30amp coach but have met several people plugged into 50amp plug with a 30amp coach using the adapter with no problems.
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Old 07-03-2013, 08:49 PM   #10
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I didn't think there would be but didn't want to do something that could cause damage. I would think it would work better providing more amp's to the rig to run things?
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Old 07-03-2013, 09:14 PM   #11
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I didn't think there would be but didn't want to do something that could cause damage. I would think it would work better providing more amp's to the rig to run things?
That's not how it works. You will only get 30 amps past your RV's main breaker.
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Old 07-03-2013, 09:16 PM   #12
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I never have had a 30amp coach but have met several people plugged into 50amp plug with a 30amp coach using the adapter with no problems.
Only problem with this is, if the 30A breaker in the RV fails to clear in an overload situ, the shore won't open till over 50 amps is reached. Something will smoke in the meantime. Your cord or your dist panel, just buyer beware.
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Old 07-04-2013, 09:12 AM   #13
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OK thanks guys this is what I'm trying to find out before I hook up to one. The forum and youtube are the best places I know to find info. Keep it coming. Happy Independence Day. 4th of July.
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Old 07-04-2013, 09:48 AM   #14
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My question fits the title of this thread. An electrician at an RV park told me that it's ok for 50 amp rigs to use 50/30 dogbones, but those of us on 30 amp should not attempt to plug into 50 amp with 30/50 dogbones. In eight years of RV'ing, I have only encountered two situations where I was at a place that did NOT have 30 amp, or the site I got was 50 amp not 30, or maybe the 30 amp was not working so I plugged into the 50 amp.

The electrician said that using a 30/50 and plugging into a 50, well, you can exceed 30 amp and not know it or something like that.
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Old 07-04-2013, 10:03 AM   #15
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The electrician said that using a 30/50 and plugging into a 50, well, you can exceed 30 amp and not know it or something like that.
I suppose there is the potential to have so many things running in the camper that you would exceed the 30 amp rating of the camper wiring, as the breaker at the pole would not trip. That might result in melted wires, or simply very low voltage to your appliances.
As always, common sense is required.
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Old 07-04-2013, 11:29 AM   #16
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The electrician said that using a 30/50 and plugging into a 50, well, you can exceed 30 amp and not know it or something like that.
VinceU already spoke directly to this question in post #12. It is possible IF your 30 Amp main fails. However it is very unlikely. If it is a concern, you can build a buddy box with another 30amp fuse/breaker or a fusible link.
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Old 07-04-2013, 01:17 PM   #17
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I regularily plug in my MH into 30 amp service. I can power my Norcold fridge, both 13.5K BTU A/C units as well as TV, Blu_ray, etc at the same time. Theone thing I do is that if it is really hot I only start up with one A/C unit ruinning until the unit is cooled down then turn on the 2nd one.
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Old 07-04-2013, 06:41 PM   #18
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I regularily plug in my MH into 30 amp service. I can power my Norcold fridge, both 13.5K BTU A/C units as well as TV, Blu_ray, etc at the same time. Theone thing I do is that if it is really hot I only start up with one A/C unit ruinning until the unit is cooled down then turn on the 2nd one.
See, his 30 amp breaker is maybe a bit too forgiving, what do you expect of a $11.00 circuit breaker? With two in series much better chance of clearing in time. Your xxx,xxx.00 coach depends on it.
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Old 07-04-2013, 06:59 PM   #19
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I would think it would work better providing more amp's to the rig to run things?
If you have a 30 amp RV, then the electric box in your RV has a 30 amp inlet circuit breaker, so it shouldn't matter if you plugged into a 50 MILLION amp plug (I'm being facetious, but you get the idea), you'd still pop the 30 amp RV inlet breaker if you tried to pull more than 30 amps. What you DON'T have when you plug into a higher amp circuit is a backup breaker (the one on the electric post) if your RV breaker fails to open. Actually, you do still have a backup breaker on the post, but it won't open unless you pull 50 amps, by which time your RV could be toast. So you can always plug into a higher amp system (I have many times) but you just need to be aware of the risks.
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