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Old 02-24-2019, 05:36 PM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by OYO View Post
Folks, this is an A-frame forum. There's no fireplace, no 120v fridge, no oven, no electric water heater and actually no air conditioner (it has a heat pump).

The only 120v appliances are the microwave and heat pump. Everything else is 12v.

Ours has been plugged into 20 amp service all summer for 3 years without issue.

Enjoy.
A heat pump is an A/C compressor with a reversing valve which reverses the gas flow to produce heat inside.
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Old 02-24-2019, 05:55 PM   #22
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Originally Posted by cavie View Post
A heat pump is an A/C compressor with a reversing valve which reverses the gas flow to produce heat inside.
You are correct. And it runs just fine on a 20A circuit.
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Old 02-24-2019, 05:58 PM   #23
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Originally Posted by JArry View Post
I put a lot of thought into this the past couple fall seasons. To be on the safe side I plan for 2,000 watts on a 20A 110-120V circuit. As I don't often need to use A/C, and almost never on a 20A hookup, my main concern is heating (using heat pump or space heater). If the Cool Cat noticeably dims the lights when it kicks on, I assume I might be stressing a 20A circuit too much. I have not been able to confirm the amps when that occurs. So I use a space heater that has a more stable draw - most are 1,500W on max heat. I am careful with what other electricity I am using at the same time as this.

Also, make sure you are not using a standard 13-15A outdoor extension cord for the trailer-pedestal connection. I have a cord that can handle 20A so can max that out, and occasionally I also have to use it as an extension cord when I am too far from a 30A pedestal (I only have the factory 25-foot RV cable).
Using the heat pump is using the A/C. Both are the same unit.
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Old 02-24-2019, 05:59 PM   #24
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You are correct. And it runs just fine on a 20A circuit.
As it should. Should be about 7 or 8 amps to spare.
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Old 02-24-2019, 06:44 PM   #25
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Originally Posted by lastayt View Post
We just booked a campsite that only has 20 amp service. I’m a total dweeb when it comes to this electrical stuff. What will/won’t we be able to run?
Or will it be basically don’t run the air conditioning and the microwave at the same time?? Thanks again everybody [emoji2]
Laurie
When I am parked in my driveway, I'm plugged in to 20amp. I can run my 13.5k A/C, my 6 cu.ft. Dometic fridge, and my 32" LED TV. without popping the breaker.
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Old 02-25-2019, 05:13 AM   #26
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Originally Posted by lastayt View Post
We just booked a campsite that only has 20 amp service. I’m a total dweeb when it comes to this electrical stuff. What will/won’t we be able to run?
Or will it be basically don’t run the air conditioning and the microwave at the same time?? Thanks again everybody [emoji2]
Laurie
Probably not depending on the size of the microwave. Just kill the A/C for the time you want to run the microwave. Don't know why people have such a hard time with this. Turn the A/C off for 5 min while the microwave is on.
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Old 02-25-2019, 07:11 AM   #27
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Last summer we parked the fiver in the driveway to do some mods.

Plugged into what I thought was a 15 amp gfi circuit.

I came outside the second day and was surprised to find both 15,000 ac units running! Shocked to see the puddle of condensate on the ground.

Voltage was at 118. 12 gage cord.

Typically when we stay at a 30 amp site we would switch the front unit off during the day and on at night. We had forgotten to do this at home.

Just surprised.

But, the circuit will not tolerate the fireplace being on no matter what.
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Old 02-25-2019, 08:34 AM   #28
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Exactly

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Originally Posted by TrailerTexan View Post
I agree with OYO. As an electrical engineer I also would add another two cents:
The power converter is also drawing power but if the 12V is well charged then it is only really trickle charging the battery. At night it may need to supply more current since the lights are on but those are LEDs at least in my A214HW so this is negligible.

Modern power converters are "switching" power supplies and as such approach 90 to 98 percent efficient as opposed to transformer-based direct conversion supplies of years ago that were 60 percent efficient at best. This means each light draws 12V x 0.050A for a power consumption of 0.6 watts each. Turn them all on and you are using maybe 3 watts. This means the converter is drawing 1.1 x 3 or 3.3 watts. At 120 Vac, that is only 28 mA.

I'm not sure of the current draw of the 12V components like the thermostat and the stereo because I haven't measured them. The thermostat is a touch sensor and those tend to draw miniscule amounts of power so if you leave the stereo off then this isn't significant at all.

Older trailers with incandescent lamps draw significantly more, so...change those to LEDs and 20A service is a piece of cake! Just turn off the A/C when you use the microwave and there shouldn't be a problem.
Agreed, allow the battery to fully charge before turning on the AC and turn off AC while using any other appliances that draw any significant amperage and you’ll be fine with a 20amp outlet.
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Old 02-25-2019, 12:47 PM   #29
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Again, the OP has an A-frame. There are only 4-5 AC circuits (4 if WFCO combines the converter with the fridge AC circuit - which they did in my A-frame):

- WFCO converter - 35 amp
- Cool Cat (10K BTU) air conditioner
- microwave (900-1100 watts)
- AC outlets
- fridge AC circuit (120 watts) - can/will be combined with AC outlets and/or converter in some installations

LED interior lights have been standard in A-frames since 2014. And there are only 2 interior lights (4 if you have the front dormer).

A single Group 24 battery will draw 15 amps or less when being recharged = 200 watts max.

In other words, there are only 2 significant uses of AC power in an A-frame - the Cool Cat and the microwave.

I run my A-frame, including the Cool Cat, quite successfully off a 15 amp GFCI circuit in my garage - yes, I checked the CB to verify 15A. The only thing I do, as has been already suggested, is to turn off the Cool Cat when I want to use the microwave. Everything else remains on.

The only time I have ever heard of issues running the Cool Cat is with a 2K inverter generator when operating above 5K ft altitude. At that point, a typical 2K generator is down to 1300 watts continuous maximum.

Fred W
2019 Flagstaff T21TBHW A-frame
previously 2014 Rockwood A122 A-frame
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Old 02-25-2019, 07:20 PM   #30
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Thanks, this is all good to know for my future reference too - probably should have asked about it myself!
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