Is 50 Amp power better than 30???

[doc73]

So I've never needed my dogbone.. But my house has 200amp service. I bet my breaker box gets more than 200 amps coming in from the peco feeder line to my home(maybe not I have no idea) ... But yet it does not burst into flames burning the neighborhood down. I think, like many things on here, everyone is reading way to much into things.. I'll continue to carry one and use if needed. But they charged more around here as well for 50amp service.

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[itat]

I'll continue to use the 30A plug unless either my PI EMS tells me the voltage is dropping or the receptacle is not a good solid fit. Then I'll switch to the 50A with dogbone if it's available. As I said earlier, at our Provincial Parks they only have 30A and 15A on the site post.

[Karl4Cat]

Originally Posted by Papa GLS

Read my post #56.

And ignore it unless you plan on worrying about every other cord plugged into a higher rated circuit. Take a tour of your home. They abound.

[Flybob]

Please keep your posts on subject and respectful to other members. Inciting or baiting posts will be deleted.

[Papa GLS]

Very sorry to all Flybob. Have removed most of my posts. Hope this thing settles down; not having much fun. Was just trying to help.
SORRY EVERYONE

[Evereddie]

Think some just have cabin fever. Would rather be out plugging in than talking about it.

[Karl4Cat]

Originally Posted by Flybob

Please keep your posts on subject and respectful to other members. Inciting or baiting posts will be deleted.

Not to worry Bob. Papa and I have made nice via PM. Not as nice as Kenny but nice just the same! Back to your regularly scheduled programming....

Evereddie = correct....

[jkoenig24]

" the potential for a short along the cord and inside the RV "



WHAT??????



Unless the wiring is defective or improperly installed, that's NOT going to happen. Do you also worry about the sky falling?

[TURBS]

Originally Posted by jkoenig24

" the potential for a short along the cord and inside the RV "



WHAT??????



Unless the wiring is defective or improperly installed, that's NOT going to happen. Do you also worry about the sky falling?

[emoji23]


2015 Columbus 320RS
2008 2500HD Duramax
2015 nights camped "34"

[Springerdad]

Originally Posted by jkoenig24

????? How is the Neutral being "lost"??????

Pardon my terminology. I'm not an electrician.

What I might have said is that the neutral somehow develops an "open", perhaps due to a poor connection inside the tower. The thread I referenced in my original post had a picture of just such a failure that caused an overvoltage in the camper that was plugged in.

[oldtool2]

Originally Posted by youroo

There are C/G in KY and Wi that ONLY have 50A Outlets so Keep your adapter handy! Youroo!!

Thanks for that info. So far I haven't run into one that didn't have a 30. Guess I better keep it handy though because was planning on going to KY this summer.

Jim

[oldtool2]

Originally Posted by jkoenig24

????? How is the Neutral being "lost"??????

Even though 50A are available, a rig wired for 30A is still limited and protected by the 30A master breaker.

The 30 amp in the trailer. Your power cord will be protected at 50 amps from that breaker to the post. The 30 amp can't protect anything back to the post.

Jim

[oldtool2]

Originally Posted by Jim in Halifax

Nobody has considered that the trailer cable and wiring and main breaker is only rated for 30 amps...BE CAREFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! j

See my post #58. This is being questioned.

Jim

[oldtool2]

Originally Posted by itat

As a lay person, I'm a bit confused about how the RV's power cord is at risk here. I understand that if you plug a 30A cord into a 50A receptacle using the proper dogbone adapter, you don't have the extra benefit of a 30A breaker at the power pedestal, but doesn't the 30A breaker in your converter (assuming its functioning as designed) prevent the entire system (internal electrical system and external power cord) from seeing more than 30A? Is the electricity a wave coming down the power cord that hits and trips the breaker?

No, the 30 protects anything PAST it, not BEFORE it. So, from the pedestal plug, the power cord, trailer plug and wiring in the trailer to that 30 amp breaker will be protected at 50 amps.

Now granted a short circuit will trip the 50 amp breaker. Also granted the 30 amp breaker in the converter should prevent any load in the trailer from going over 30 amps. This should provide protection to the inside wiring, plug and cord.

See my word "should"? What if, and I have seen this happen, the 30 amp in the converter goes bad? Now your only protection is the 50 amp breaker at the pedestal. This will allow your trailer wiring, trailer plug and cord plugs to overheat. This is why I asked about a breaker in the 50 to 30amp plug converter.

I worked for the state as an electrician. At times we needed to change a bad receptacle. DON'T TRY THIS AT HOME!! If we didn't have a line tracer handy and couldn't find the breaker for it we would short the wiring and trip the breaker. quite often the breaker didn't trip because it was bad! Then I had to go get the tracer to find the breaker. They do go bad, especially cheap breakers. I am sure that the manufctures of the converters buy their parts on low bid so you think about it.

When was the last time you checked your 30 amp main breaker? I know I never have. Now if that 30 amp breaker goes bad I would only have 50 amp protection on a trailer designed for 30 amp. Thus is why I don't recommend a "dogbone" unless you have no choice.

Jim (post)

[TURBS]

I guess I'll rely on my progressive ems, that's why I have it !


2015 Columbus 320RS
2008 2500HD Duramax
2015 nights camped "34"

[oldtool2]

Originally Posted by TURBS

I guess I'll rely on my progressive ems, that why I have it !


2015 Columbus 320RS
2008 2500HD Duramax
2015 nights camped "34"

This is why I like my portable unit. It gets plugged in before the cord Don't leave home without it! LOL!

Jim

[itat]

I posed the question of overcurrent protection to the tech support folks at Progressive Industries and this was their response:

None of our EMS units control or limit current. Protection from excessive current is provided by the power post breaker or your coach circuit breakers. The current display is informational only and there is no 30 A fuse in our units. You can power a hardwired 30 A EMS from a 50 A source.
Just use the appropriate adapter. As a matter of fact, it works to your advantage, because of the 20 A overhead, you can operate all your devices in your coach and not suffer voltage sag.

Regards,
Donald
Customer Support
919 267-6964

At the end of the day, yes there is some risk in doing this, but it's not really significant. For me, I'll use it as a backup method of connecting to shore power if there's a problem with the 30A supply.

[tkarper14]

Originally Posted by Jim in Halifax

Nobody has considered that the trailer cable and wiring and main breaker is only rated for 30 amps...BE CAREFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! j

So many opinions so I will add mine.

Just my opinion, but if the 30 amp breaker would happen to trip, the current would stop flowing. Therefore, the trailer cable would not see more than 30 amps. This is no different then the panel box in your house. The 200 amp breaker also protects the wire going into your house. Hence the reason you need to upgrade the feeder wires when upgrading from a 100 amp service to 200 amp service. As much as everyone would like to believe, the 50 amp breaker is NOT there to protect your RV. It is there to protect the camp ground wiring.

Yes breakers may go bad. On occasion they will go bad. But the only way to protect against that anomaly would be to install a second breaker or fuse in series with the existing breaker. (As I proof read this, I know someone will state the the CG breaker is the backup, but I trust that one much less then the one in my coach. Did you ever look at one closely?)

And lastly, if it were unsafe to use a 50 amp to a 30 amp adapter, there would be a huge warning engraved on the device "Warning- do not plug into a 50 amp service." It would take one failure until the lawyers would make sure that was in place. And if you could not plug into a 50 amp service, then why are they being sold?

I have always used the 50 amp service when available and if I still had a 30 amp RV, I would still be using it. The odds are better that the connections are better and the RV could care less. Even if I were plugged directly into the Hoover Dam.

But then again, that is just my opinion.

[CraigBean7672]

@Oldtool - I like the idea of a 50 to 30 mp plug with 30 amp breaker in it. If there's nothing commercially offered at this time I wonder if it is something that can be built with available parts. I need to know if a single breaker could be put inline like that in a 'weather-tight' enclosure. If anyone already knows if this will not work I welcome you to shoot it down. I'd rather buy one if there is one on the market.

[doc73]

Originally Posted by tkarper14

So many opinions so I will add mine.

Just my opinion, but if the 30 amp breaker would happen to trip, the current would stop flowing. Therefore, the trailer cable would not see more than 30 amps. This is no different then the panel box in your house. The 200 amp breaker also protects the wire going into your house. Hence the reason you need to upgrade the feeder wires when upgrading from a 100 amp service to 200 amp service. As much as everyone would like to believe, the 50 amp breaker is NOT there to protect your RV. It is there to protect the camp ground wiring.

Yes breakers may go bad. On occasion they will go bad. But the only way to protect against that anomaly would be to install a second breaker or fuse in series with the existing breaker. (As I proof read this, I know someone will state the the CG breaker is the backup, but I trust that one much less then the one in my coach. Did you ever look at one closely?)

And lastly, if it were unsafe to use a 50 amp to a 30 amp adapter, there would be a huge warning engraved on the device "Warning- do not plug into a 50 amp service." It would take one failure until the lawyers would make sure that was in place. And if you could not plug into a 50 amp service, then why are they being sold?

I have always used the 50 amp service when available and if I still had a 30 amp RV, I would still be using it. The odds are better that the connections are better and the RV could care less. Even if I were plugged directly into the Hoover Dam.

But then again, that is just my opinion.

I said the same thing a few pages ago... I think people are reading WAY to much into all this..

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