confusion on wiring while replacing 30 amp inlet

Julie.Stox · 09-30-2018, 10:12 AM

For some reason, one of the prongs on our Furrion 30-amp inlet melted to the shore power cord. We got a new Furrion inlet and new power cord. The color coding on the inlet is green, black and white. The wires on the RV side seem to be bare, black and red. I know bare = green = ground. Black is hot. Now what do I do about the red vs white difference?

One instruction I read on the internet said " ALWAYS check out the new installation before you plug in the RV." How do I check it out without plugging in the RV? I have a Progressive Industries EMS at the power supply pole; will the shut-off/message work on the both sides of the EMS, or just from the power post to the EMS?

formerFR · 09-30-2018, 10:22 AM

your cord doesn't really 'care' about the color, as long as it's wired correctly from the start to ending points...

I would assume:
bare = ground/green
black = power/black
red = neutral/white (it's your only option : )

llr · 09-30-2018, 10:41 AM

I would open the breaker panel and see what color is their.
Or without power to the unit you could jumper hot or common to ground and verify with a meter. The hot prong or an outlet is the smaller one and ground is round

Scrapper · 09-30-2018, 11:18 AM

You should have purchased a cord with the connectors on both ends. If the connection on the side of the RV was damaged then the end of the cable that plugs into it is also damaged. I actually don't think it matters whether you use the black or red wire for the hot wire as long as you mark the wire connected to neutral.

Julie.Stox · 09-30-2018, 01:37 PM

Aha! This is one of those " did you turn it on" results. Husband peeled back more of the wire sheath on the "red" wire, and, lo, it was white. I guess that whatever happened to make the prong melt to the cord heated up the wire and turned the sheath red. Problem solved. Thanks for all your input.

TGR · 09-30-2018, 02:04 PM

Trace the RV's wiring back to the power distribution panel from the connector you are replacing. You should be able to determine which color wire goes where. I too would expect the bare wire to go to ground, the black with to go to the distribution panel's 30 amp circuit breaker and the remaining wire to the neutral buss in the distribution panel. Double check yourself to ensure that the wiring from the connector you are installing goes to the correct point in the power distribution center and you should be fine. If you have any doubt, then have an RV shop confirm your work or have them do it.

Swampy · 09-30-2018, 02:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Julie.Stox

For some reason, one of the prongs on our Furrion 30-amp inlet melted to the shore power cord. We got a new Furrion inlet and new power cord. The color coding on the inlet is green, black and white. The wires on the RV side seem to be bare, black and red. I know bare = green = ground. Black is hot. Now what do I do about the red vs white difference?

One instruction I read on the internet said " ALWAYS check out the new installation before you plug in the RV." How do I check it out without plugging in the RV? I have a Progressive Industries EMS at the power supply pole; will the shut-off/message work on the both sides of the EMS, or just from the power post to the EMS?

Julie, don't worry about matching the wire insulation color, it is not as important since the electricity is colorblind. I am assuming your new cable/cord does not have the plug on the pedestal end, nor the receptacle on the inlet end. Take a picture of the back side of the inlet, before you remove all the wires from it. match up the wire to the prong. Most likely the green matches up to the bare wire and the longest prong with the little bend toward the center ... that one is the ground. Going Clockwise, the next prong is the hot, and the next prong going clockwise is the neutral. I recommend you take a short piece of masking tape and label which wire is which. Now on the cable end, you have to connect the outlet so that the wires will match the prong. (the one slot with the slight hook to the center is the ground. (I'll assume that wire is green). Looking at the receptacle end, moving clockwise, the first slot should be the hot wire, and the last wire would be the neutral. Whatever the corresponding color to the prong that you choose, the pedestal end will be the same. The standard RV-30A connection outlet as you look at it should be the round plug terminal is ground, again going clockwise, the next slot is the neutral, and the last slot is the hot.

You really need an Ohmmeter or continuity tester to check out your wiring connections, before you plug it into the power pedestal. I would recommend a low cost digital multi meter. Look at Walmart or Harbor Freight. Just measure from each end of the cable to the other. You should have infinite resistance between adjacent prongs and a very low resistance between each end of the same wire. Once you have verified proper wiring of the cable, next measure at the inlet You should read infinite resistance between the hot and the ground and you will probably read continuity between the ground and neutral prongs. If it checks out as expected, move to the RV-plug end of the cable and test it again.
If you have verified both the cable wiring and the inlet wiring, trip the main circuit breaker (the 30A in the distribution panel inside the RV) plug it into the power pedestal and energize the cable and the RV. Before you set the main breaker, trip all the individual circuits and making sure the A/C, TV, and microwave, water heater is off as well as the refrigerator and inverter. Set the main and pick a branch circuit breaker and set it as well. Now, go to whichever outlet you energized and test the voltage with the multi-meter ... measure from the rounded hole to the smaller slot and you should see around 120 Volts. That should be your final check. Set the rest of the breakers and go camping! ...You need a break after all of that.

Good Camping .... Swampy

**Mr. Dan** · 09-30-2018, 03:16 PM

Folks, please see the OP's post here ==> #5.

boondocking · 09-30-2018, 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Dan

Folks, please see the OP's post here ==> #5.

Reading comprehension 101

Scrapper · 09-30-2018, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boondocking

Reading comprehension 101

Reading comprehension 101, what's that, I've never heard of it.

Wilco · 09-30-2018, 04:52 PM

If you have enough cord, I would suggest cutting off the discolored section of wire. The insulation on the end of the wire is degraded and should not be used.
If you do not have enough wire to cut that section off, slide some heat shrink tubing up over it to reinforce the insulation.

Daycruiser · 09-30-2018, 04:57 PM

"For some reason, one of the prongs on our Furrion 30-amp inlet melted to the shore power cord."

This is the part that would bother me, I'd want to know WHY it melted!

boondocking · 09-30-2018, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daycruiser

"For some reason, one of the prongs on our Furrion 30-amp inlet melted to the shore power cord."

This is the part that would bother me, I'd want to know WHY it melted!

The usual cause of that is a loose connection causing it to arc and heat up.

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