30 amp hook up at home.

[raforan]

It is time to turn the camper into Santa's work Shop.

I have been planning on running a dedicated 30 amp hook up at home, and now seems to be the time to do it. Instead of running the propane we are going to use electrical heaters.

I just need to narrow down my parts list.

What guage wire do I need under the house and single pole or double pole breakers?

I will post pictures when done. Thanks

[wmtire]

We keep a pdf file for this in our FAQ section. Hold on and I will find it and edit this post.

Here you go. You can also print this pdf file out.

http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...let-27223.html

http://www.myrv.us/Imgs/PDF/30-amp%20Service.pdf

[BandJCarm]

I will offer some advice. It may not apply to you, if not ok.

I have a garage that was added on after house was built. It had wiring run to it and a whole new separate breaker panel for just the garage. I had a 30 amp receptacle put in on outside wall for our old camper. Worked fine, all was well.

Then we got a 5th wheel. Needed a 50 amp receptacle. They put it in, but said that the 'feeder cable' to that whole garage was not going to support the garage (lights, refrig, etc) AND the 50 amps. So they had to run new 6 gauge wire to that remote breaker panel in garage.......in addition to the new 50 amp receptacle.

So, now I have a 30 amp and a 50 amp outside receptacle, running on heavy enough wire........but of course I can't (and wouldn't) ever use both RV receptacles at once.

So, think about what you may have in the future.............

[DaveSchwartz]

I wired one in my garage last summer. I used the packaged 30amp kit (socket and outdoor box) from Lowes. I also used individual 8AWG black, white and green conductors (8AWG cable was hard to find and individual was a lot cheaper, not to mention its much easier to pull in conduit around bends). You also need a single pole 30-amp breaker (<$10).

You may not be in Ontario, but I found an online copy of our electrical code to determine that individual 8AWG 75degC conductors in conduit is good for 30 amps and three such conductors is the max allowed in 1/2" conduit. Try to find something similar for your jurisdiction to make sure you stay legal.

There is also a voltage drop calculator (and a table of selected precalculated values) in there and if the length you are needing results in more than about a 1% voltage drop then you'll need to go up, numerically down (i.e. 6AWG), a size. In my case, 8AWG at 32 amps gives a 1% drop at 7.7 meters - which was exactly the length I was going. If you have to go to 6AWG you'll have to go to 3/4" conduit because 1/2" is only good for 3 8AWG (and 3 6AWG won't fit in 1/2" either).

[raforan]

Thank you all for the response. I should go bigger wire and breakers to ensure when we get a 5th wheel we can hook up as well

[timfromma]

Unless you plan on running your high current appliances such as your AC and microwave, you really do not need a full 30A / 50A.

[raforan]

I plan on running all of that plus some outlets I can plug heaters in

[Mr Havercamp]

Originally Posted by raforan

What guage wire do I need under the house and single pole or double pole breakers?

Depends on the run from your house panel to your RV.

#6-3 w/ground up to around 60' to 70'. Much longer than that go to #4-3 w/ground.

Double pole breaker.

[Livin the Life]

30 amp set up is a SINGLE pole breaker as asked by the OP.

Download and utilize the .pdf as in wmtire post for the setup.

[sfsgm]

Originally Posted by raforan

Thank you all for the response. I should go bigger wire and breakers to ensure when we get a 5th wheel we can hook up as well

What are you trying to run that you need 50 amps? I have a 30 amp wired into my 44 x 42 foot garage and it's just fine. BUT my wife thinks we need a 50 amp receptacle in case friends staying in it would want to use the coffee pot, the electric heater ad the hair dryer at the same time.

Sheesh!

[BandJCarm]

My PI Voltage thingy tells me the amps I'm using on both legs. Many times in the summer I'm above 30 amps.......so glad I did the 50 amp receptacle.

If you have the EMS system, it will tell you how much you're using....no guessing. Another benefit of it.

[RamblerGuy]

Originally Posted by raforan

Thank you all for the response. I should go bigger wire and breakers to ensure when we get a 5th wheel we can hook up as well

If you are planning to install the cable for a future 50 amp service but install a 30 amp receptacle now, you need to feed it with a single 30 amp breaker. You need to size the breaker for the receptacle. At least, that's what the codes in the US require.

As an electrical engineer explained to me, even though you would normally only pull 30 amps, if you have a 50 amp breaker and conductors for 50 amps, the receptacle itself is only good for 30 amps. If there's a short, a 50 amp breaker wouldn't trip and the 30 amp receptacle and anything plugged into it would fry. He had some very convincing photos. (I asked because I had an unused 50 amp / 220 volt circuit and was installing a kiln that had a 40 amp / 220 volt cord. I changed the double breaker to 40 amps.)

Breakers aren't expensive, so use what you need now and change it in the future. And yes, I know the coach has a 30 amp breaker to prevent loading the shore line and receptacle, but the breaker that feeds it is to protect the house wiring and the receptacle. Of course, it's also protecting the shore line up to 30 amps, but that's not the primary intent.

[BandJCarm]

Rambler guy makes a great point. Read that carefully!

I have both receptacles, connected to separate breakers on my wall. However, I'd NEVER plug anything into both simultaneously. Just easier to not de-install the 30.

Electricity will kill you and plumbing will break you and then make you smell bad. Trust Pro's on both!!!!

[Mr Havercamp]

Originally Posted by Livin the Life

30 amp set up is a SINGLE pole breaker as asked by the OP.

Download and utilize the .pdf as in wmtire post for the setup.

You are correct but then the OP posted........

Originally Posted by raforan

Thank you all for the response. I should go bigger wire and breakers to ensure when we get a 5th wheel we can hook up as well

So if he is planning on a future 5th wheel that most likely will be 50 amp, might as well do it now then use a 50 to 30 adapter.. Either that or buy some #6-2 with ground now, and a 30 amp receptacle. Then a few years down the road just piss the total cost of that wire away at $3 per ft and replace it with #6-3 and a 50 amp receptacle?

[Hector517]

I installed a 30 amp receptacle under a carport at home, into which I plug in my 30 amp travel trailer. The trailer is my "man cave." I have learned to use one high energy appliance at a time to avoid tripping the house/trailer breakers. It is really no big deal, for example, to turn off the AC before using the microwave for a minute or two. Likewise, I don't run the microwave, coffee pot, and electric heater simultaneously. And I turn off the breaker for the hot water heater until I need it. A little adjusting goes a long way.

[Old Bleu]

I like Mr Havercamp's advice! I installed a 30 amp circuit for our travel trailer earlier this year. Now we're looking at moving up to a 5th wheel that will have 50 amp service. Kind of wish I had planned ahead. :-)

[emm-dee]

Can't find the thread but I asked the same question almost a year ago. Lots of good replies. I wound up running 110 feet of 6/3wg in ¾ inch grey PVC pipe. Double 50 amp dedicated breaker feeding a standard RV receptical box (50/30/20 outlets).

Voltmeter and Progressive EMI both show 118 volts at the outlets. Total cost about $300.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Eaton-50-Am...Panel/50088190

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Square-D-Ho...reaker/1078729

[5picker]

Originally Posted by Mr Havercamp

So if he is planning on a future 5th wheel that most likely will be 50 amp, might as well do it now then use a 50 to 30 adapter.. Either that or buy some #6-2 with ground now, and a 30 amp receptacle. Then a few years down the road just piss the total cost of that wire away at $3 per ft and replace it with #6-3 and a 50 amp receptacle?

I agree.
We discussed this about a year ago and if I recall, the difference in a 30 to a 50 amp service was <$75.

Just wire in a 50 amp circuit/receptacle and use a 50-30 dogbone adapter until the time you need the full 50 amps.

[FrankG]

Originally Posted by emm-dee

Can't find the thread but I asked the same question almost a year ago. Lots of good replies. I wound up running 110 feet of 6/3wg in ¾ inch grey PVC pipe. Double 50 amp dedicated breaker feeding a standard RV receptical box (50/30/20 outlets).

Voltmeter and Progressive EMI both show 118 volts at the outlets. Total cost about $300.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Eaton-50-Am...Panel/50088190

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Square-D-Ho...reaker/1078729

You get an A+ for this post, everything is correct. The only thing that could be added is to verify the brand and type of breakers required, Also is there space in the existing box for the 2 pole 50A breaker.

A word of caution, we built a new house a year ago and the local codes require arc fault breakers in some locations as specified in the NEC. It is always wiser to follow the codes and get it inspected.

[CedarCreekWoody]

Originally Posted by emm-dee

Can't find the thread but I asked the same question almost a year ago. Lots of good replies. I wound up running 110 feet of 6/3wg in ¾ inch grey PVC pipe. Double 50 amp dedicated breaker feeding a standard RV receptical box (50/30/20 outlets).

Voltmeter and Progressive EMI both show 118 volts at the outlets. Total cost about $300.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Eaton-50-Am...Panel/50088190

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Square-D-Ho...reaker/1078729

Great advice here. Remember that 50 amps requires 3 wires plus ground, 30 amp only two. If you're considering upgrading to 50 it is easiest to pull all wires at once.