Storage. 50amp to 20amp

[ibdrillin]

Hey folks. I have a Crusader 35rlp. Storing it for the first time at a facility. There is a regular outlet I have access to. I was going to buy a trickle charger to keep the battery in shape. I noticed they sell a 50-20 converter plug. If I used my regular 50 amp cable and used that converter, would that keep the battery charged? I wouldn’t have any other appliances turned on. Thanks.

 

[Charles Reese]

That’s what I do while it’s parked in driveway and keeps everything charged

 

[wmtire]

Yes you can use the 15 amp to 50 amp "adapter" you have pictured and the converter in your rv will keep your batteries charged

 

[wmtire]

See these faq threads for better explanations and proper terminology as a converter and adapter are two way different things in RV terms.

Converter or Inverter (they are different)

One of the more often confused RV terminology things encountered is 'converter' and 'inverter'. Hopefully this thread will be able to simply explain what both are and their functions in a RV without getting too technical. Most RV's will have two distinct electrical systems. One will be a 120...

www.forestriverforums.com

RV Receptacles, Plugs, Cords, and Adapters 101

This thread is going to hopefully give those reading a basic understanding of the common outlets/plugs and cords you may encounter with a RV as well as adapters to use same. We are going to discuss mainly the NEMA 14-50, NEMA TT-30, and NEMA 5-20(5-15) receptacles/plugs you will encounter at...

www.forestriverforums.com

 

[Charles Reese]

You can buy the regular plug with the 20 amp end so you don’t have to use your big heavy cord also.

 

[Aussieguy]

Plus you can use all of your appliances even the air conditioner for testing maintenance.
BUT….. only turn on one thing at a time

If you use an extension cord …. It must be a good quality one with capability of handling the load
Don’t use cheap thin extension cords

 

[ibdrillin]

You can buy the regular plug with the 20 amp end so you don’t have to use your big heavy cord also.

Oh ok. Didn’t know they made a regular plug like that.

Plus you can use all of your appliances even the air conditioner for testing maintenance.
BUT….. only turn on one thing at a time

If you use an extension cord …. It must be a good quality one with capability of handling the load
Don’t use cheap thin extension cords

thanks!

 

[Reverse_snowbird]

You've gotten a lot of good advice.
As someone who stores their rig at a storage facility with electricity, you need to consider a couple of things. You're usually sharing an electric connection with multiple people.

If you use a trickle charger and the electricity goes off at storage, the trickle charger will probably turn off and not turn on again. We tried it with a battery tender and when another person trips the main breaker, we return to find a low or dead battery. We have a GFCI plug, but that doesn't help when the main breaker goes off. Only the storage facility has access to the main breakers.
If you're plugged in with the shore power cord, that will restore electricity automatically. Just maintain your batteries.

Our storage spot is covered with a metal roof and once it was struck by lightning. Luckily we had a surge protector installed and it cratered the surge protector and blew a fuse in the rig, but everything else seemed to be ok.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[ibdrillin]

Thanks

 

[esdill]

Yes, it will work as long as no one steals your very expensive 50A power cord. If it was me I'd use a separate battery maintainer plugged into a standard 15/20A extension cord.

 

[jjscsix]

That is what I do as well.

 

[Aussieguy]

Or install solar
I never have to charge battery using converter or a maintainer charger

I got 740w and In storage or while camping it works great.
but if you store it under shade …… all bets are off

 

[ibdrillin]

Yes, it will work as long as no one steals your very expensive 50A power cord. If it was me I'd use a separate battery maintainer plugged into a standard 15/20A extension cord.

Good point

 

[DJ252]

I wouldn't leave lead acid batteries on a charger full time and I wouldn't leave much of a cord, for someone to steal either.

 

[RhumbleFish]

Agree - lots of good thinking here.

Another hidden bugaboo about powering an RV in storage is that the 12v fridges are setup to power back on if they have power cut from them, and then powered back up - even if they were powered down in the first place. It's a form of usage protection, so you don't come back to a fridge of spoiled food if you lose power momentarily while away from your RV. Unfortunately, it means that - if you leave your fridge powered down (and potentially open) while in storage AND you're running power to the RV, the fridge is likely to come back on if you get a service interruption. For this, I'd almost recommend a normal extension cord and a stand alone battery/float charger connected directly to the battery, leaving the RV's systems OFF.

This is all assuming that your storage is secure, and you're comfortable leaving power running to it all the time.

Just my .02. Hope this helps.

 

[5picker]

I wouldn't leave lead acid batteries on a charger full time and I wouldn't leave much of a cord, for someone to steal either.

I've been fortunate to always have my R/V next to my houses/garage. My last 8 R/Vs have been plugged in 24/7 the entire time they are not on the road with no degradation to the battery(ies) whatsoever. A good working converter or a proper battery maintainer isn't going to hurt them.

 

[5picker]

Another hidden bugaboo about powering an RV in storage is that the 12v fridges are setup to power back on if they have power cut from them, and then powered back up - even if they were powered down in the first place. It's a form of usage protection, so you don't come back to a fridge of spoiled food if you lose power momentarily while away from your RV. Unfortunately, it means that - if you leave your fridge powered down (and potentially open) while in storage AND you're running power to the RV, the fridge is likely to come back on if you get a service interruption. For this, I'd almost recommend a normal extension cord and a stand alone battery/float charger connected directly to the battery, leaving the RV's systems OFF.

Or... put an off switch on the refrigerator feed.

 

[RhumbleFish]

Or... put an off switch on the refrigerator feed.

Yep - also a really good idea (in fact, doesn't even have to be part of the charging regimen. Just seems like a solid design to have a physical cutoff, especially for electronics that have to pay attention to soft switches).

Since any given solution doesn't work for all campers, my biggest thought was really about minimizing electrical draw/usage. Why energize the entire camper (and the converter and the onboard charger, and everything that comes on with shore power, etc), when just trickling straight into the batteries with a proper charger designed specifically for that kind of service duty seems to be the right intersection between need and utility.

I'm jealous of your storage setup, with "right next door" access. Ours is in dedicated, enclosed storage with power just shy of an hour away. Something about leaving the trailer with juice in it for months on end, without immediate supervision, seems like a problem waiting to happen (or even tempting fate). Good to know that it CAN do it, if we NEEDED to do it that way.

Right now, our camping is fairly curtailed - while we're weekend warriors at best (till the retirement comes), last year and this have been dedicated to some family-focussed issues that we're working through. Light is at the end of the tunnel, however, so we'll be back out there soon.

This place *waves hands around* helps. If we can't be out camping and enjoying our trailer, we sure can be talking about it!

Just my .02. Happy camping!

 

[CedarCreekWoody]

I use this and a 12 guage cord.

https://a.co/d/5r3G61b

 

[5picker]

I use this and a 12 guage cord.

https://a.co/d/5r3G61b

Me too except I'm using a right angle 50a with a 10 ga. cord.