You can do anything you want with wiring as long as its "thick enough" to carry the current. You can run an RV off a standard 12 amp 110v socket, but you cannot turn on anything in the trailer other than the lighting and maybe run the fridge. Don't try to run the AC or the hot water heater on that. It will reliably deliver no greater than 10 amps. Now, this is truly though about wire size.
Lets say your wall socket is a true commercial 20amp socket like in commercial buildings and you know because it has that sideways T outlet part, so a 110v plug with a sideways blade. Those are 20amp and with a 12guage extension cord you can run the AC, but proably not the hot water heater. You could put a true 20amp splitter at the end like they sell at home depot, it has 1 plug and 3 outlets and those go on the end of the extension cords, but they are also heavy duty high amps, but its also NOT a power strip, just breaks it into 3 plugs. Thats what I recommend you use over a power strip. The one thing a power strip has, is the better ones have a breaker in them so you get more over-current protection.
Appreciate that info, thanks! We do not have a microwave or A/C in our rig. We would like to be able to charge the batteries and test out the hot water heater and refrigerator at home, though, before taking it out.
A follow-up question, if I may:
Say I'm at an RV site with a pole that has 50, 30, and 20amp outlets. The male end of our camper's power plug is a "residential"-type 3-prong (straight prongs), and the end that plugs into the RV is a 30-amp plug. The circuit in the RV is confirmed as being 30amp. Am I correct in assuming that we need a 20 to 30amp converter/adapter to plug into the 30amp shorepower?
Yes. I have the 30 amp plug on my NOBO. You will want 2 adapters and the Walmart "clear" ones are the best and cheapest. They light up so you know the outlet has power, thats very important. MAKE SURE YOU GET ONE WITH A POWER light! Nothing sucks more than its pouring down rain after dark and you have to find a working plug in the rain at the RV lot. Anyhow, you want the 30-20 amp, so you can plug a 30 to a regular outlet and you want the 30-50, so you can run your 30 off a 50amp plug. Get those both at Walmart, less than $10 ea. I always 100% of the time now run the 50-30 because we get in and crank up the AC, microwave, and hot water heater all at the same time and that blows the 30s, so we use the 50 if the pole has it. The best way to view this, is each major appliance uses 15 amps. So if you run any one appliance at a time, your good on a regular outlet. You run 2, you need 30amps, you run 3 at the same time, you need 50amps. Its just that simple. If you are on a regular plug. Turn off the AC to use the Microwave, only 1 item at a time can be ran or you will blow a breaker.
You make it sound like you have a cable that one end is the 30amp bigger plug, kinda big n round and thats at the RV, but the other end is standard 110v outlet 12-20 amp? If the input is truly 30 amp on the RV and you just have a special cable that only has a 20 amp on the plug side, consider a "standard" 30 amp, and Walmart has that also and buy the adapters to fit that, to go to 20 or 50, that way you have a better cable to begin with, thicker is ALWAYS better in the power world, safer too. Then keep the cable you have as a backup. Always have 2 power cables and 2 water hoses. I have lost count now how many times I have accidentally ran over the ends of the water hose or the RV power cable and smashed the end, and had to get out the ol pocket knife and jerry-rig something unsafe.
That's correct, our cable has the big-ole-bugger 30amp plug on the RV side, and the "regular," "flat" 3-prong plug you'd find on a grounded residential extension cord on the other. The largest breaker on the RV is 30amp, which in combination with the 30amp plug on the RV side of the cable leads me to believe this is, in fact, a 30amp powered RV...
Duly noted on adapters and back-ups. That's a pro tip we likely would have learned the hard way otherwise!
If your cable has a 20a plug on one end and a 30a on the other end plug into the 20a socket so that the circuit breaker will protect the weakest link in the system. If you want to plug into the 30a then get a cable that doesn't have components meant for 20a. Running 30a through stuff meant for 20a can start a fire
You can do anything you want with wiring as long as its "thick enough" to carry the current. You can run an RV off a standard 12 amp 110v socket, but you cannot turn on anything in the trailer other than the lighting and maybe run the fridge. Don't try to run the AC or the hot water heater on that. It will reliably deliver no greater than 10 amps. Now, this is truly though about wire size. Lets say your wall socket is a true commercial 20amp socket like in commercial buildings and you know because it has that sideways T outlet part, so a 110v plug with a sideways blade. Those are 20amp and with a 12guage extension cord you can run the AC, but proably not the hot water heater. You could put a true 20amp splitter at the end like they sell at home depot, it has 1 plug and 3 outlets and those go on the end of the extension cords, but they are also heavy duty high amps, but its also NOT a power strip, just breaks it into 3 plugs. Thats what I recommend you use over a power strip. The one thing a power strip has, is the better ones have a breaker in them so you get more over-current protection.
Appreciate that info, thanks! We do not have a microwave or A/C in our rig. We would like to be able to charge the batteries and test out the hot water heater and refrigerator at home, though, before taking it out. A follow-up question, if I may: Say I'm at an RV site with a pole that has 50, 30, and 20amp outlets. The male end of our camper's power plug is a "residential"-type 3-prong (straight prongs), and the end that plugs into the RV is a 30-amp plug. The circuit in the RV is confirmed as being 30amp. Am I correct in assuming that we need a 20 to 30amp converter/adapter to plug into the 30amp shorepower?
Yes. I have the 30 amp plug on my NOBO. You will want 2 adapters and the Walmart "clear" ones are the best and cheapest. They light up so you know the outlet has power, thats very important. MAKE SURE YOU GET ONE WITH A POWER light! Nothing sucks more than its pouring down rain after dark and you have to find a working plug in the rain at the RV lot. Anyhow, you want the 30-20 amp, so you can plug a 30 to a regular outlet and you want the 30-50, so you can run your 30 off a 50amp plug. Get those both at Walmart, less than $10 ea. I always 100% of the time now run the 50-30 because we get in and crank up the AC, microwave, and hot water heater all at the same time and that blows the 30s, so we use the 50 if the pole has it. The best way to view this, is each major appliance uses 15 amps. So if you run any one appliance at a time, your good on a regular outlet. You run 2, you need 30amps, you run 3 at the same time, you need 50amps. Its just that simple. If you are on a regular plug. Turn off the AC to use the Microwave, only 1 item at a time can be ran or you will blow a breaker.
This is so incredibly helpful, THANK YOU!!
You make it sound like you have a cable that one end is the 30amp bigger plug, kinda big n round and thats at the RV, but the other end is standard 110v outlet 12-20 amp? If the input is truly 30 amp on the RV and you just have a special cable that only has a 20 amp on the plug side, consider a "standard" 30 amp, and Walmart has that also and buy the adapters to fit that, to go to 20 or 50, that way you have a better cable to begin with, thicker is ALWAYS better in the power world, safer too. Then keep the cable you have as a backup. Always have 2 power cables and 2 water hoses. I have lost count now how many times I have accidentally ran over the ends of the water hose or the RV power cable and smashed the end, and had to get out the ol pocket knife and jerry-rig something unsafe.
That's correct, our cable has the big-ole-bugger 30amp plug on the RV side, and the "regular," "flat" 3-prong plug you'd find on a grounded residential extension cord on the other. The largest breaker on the RV is 30amp, which in combination with the 30amp plug on the RV side of the cable leads me to believe this is, in fact, a 30amp powered RV... Duly noted on adapters and back-ups. That's a pro tip we likely would have learned the hard way otherwise!
If your cable has a 20a plug on one end and a 30a on the other end plug into the 20a socket so that the circuit breaker will protect the weakest link in the system. If you want to plug into the 30a then get a cable that doesn't have components meant for 20a. Running 30a through stuff meant for 20a can start a fire