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Old 04-18-2016, 05:27 PM   #1
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Plugged in full time at home questions

As a first time RV owner, I am coming across many things that I try and research out to find answers for. These forums are great to search for answers from expended users. Here is something that I was wondering about, but have not found many people taking about.

I plan on keeping our RV plugged into our house between trips. I installed a 50 amp service so I can run anything I want. For those of you who keep your RV plugged in, how often do you run the fans or AC?

Since the Fantastic fan and AC units are not made to run 24/7, keeping them on all the time would not be an option. But, I can imagine it gets pretty hot inside the coaches when closed in for any length of time.
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Old 04-18-2016, 05:40 PM   #2
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In the very hot times of 90 to 100+temperatures I set the air conditioning on to keep interior from becoming way over temp. Same with furnace should there be freezing temperatures. I sometimes run a fantastic fan on hot days or if the coach has been closed up to circulate and freshen the air.

Once a month the generator should be exercised under load. Running the air conditioning at this time creates the needed load and also exercises the air conditioners.
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Old 04-18-2016, 05:57 PM   #3
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In the very hot times of 90 to 100+temperatures I set the air conditioning on to keep interior from becoming way over temp. Same with furnace should there be freezing temperatures. I sometimes run a fantastic fan on hot days or if the coach has been closed up to circulate and freshen the air.

Once a month the generator should be exercised under load. Running the air conditioning at this time creates the needed load and also exercises the air conditioners.
That makes a lot of sense to hit the extremes. I did not know about exercising the generator. I will put than on my monthly checklist!
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Old 04-18-2016, 06:27 PM   #4
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That makes a lot of sense to hit the extremes. I did not know about exercising the generator. I will put than on my monthly checklist!
When our mh is moving, 9 times out of 10, the genie is running as we will usually have 1 of the roof airs on and sometimes both or if the outside temp is cool enough, we will instead run the acs in the heat pump mode; power our residential fridge, have a crock pot cooking up goodies for dinner, etc. Quite often, we also will have the dash ac on in the max cool mode along with our roof ac(s). The point is, "do not be afraid to use your generator on a regular basis. If you do any frequent traveling at all, 150-200 hrs + of use should be on the generator every year as 1/2-3/4 gal per hr is all they generally use. Running it once every month for 1-2 hrs is simply not doing it any favors as they are meant to run.


When at home and plugged in, I wouldn't hesitate to use our roof ac(s) with the stat set at 80-85 or so. As you can see, I believe that lack of use is not equipment friendly.
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Old 04-18-2016, 07:12 PM   #5
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Hmmm. We live in our MH so the AC or heat runs as much as required to keep us comfortable. Other than your electric bill, your coach will be better off if you keep the internal temperature to reasonable levels.
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Old 04-18-2016, 07:17 PM   #6
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On our '02 Dutch Star I ran the heat pumps when I ran the generator. Set one for heat and the other for cool. Then, after about half the gen run time I switched them so they ran opposite of what they started at. After 13 years I still had the original units, control boards and thermostat with never any problems.
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Old 04-18-2016, 07:32 PM   #7
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The Edge - Just checking, I hope that 50 amp service you have is wired for two 120 volt service and not 240 volt. A lot of people make that mistake when wiring home service plug. As far as running things, I turn on all my items at least once a month. That includes A/C, heat, hot water, TV, and so on. I try to simulate camping. Hope that helps.
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Old 04-18-2016, 07:38 PM   #8
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The Edge - Just checking, I hope that 50 amp service you have is wired for two 120 volt service and not 240 volt. A lot of people make that mistake when wiring home service plug.
Actually a 50 amp RV plug is a 240 volt service, its the 30 amps that cause the problems since a 30 amp dryer/stove plug is 240 volt.
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Old 04-18-2016, 07:50 PM   #9
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Actually an RV plug is a 240 volt service, its the 30 amps that cause the problems since a 30 amp dryer plug is 240 volt.
Right!
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Old 04-18-2016, 08:11 PM   #10
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The Edge - Just checking, I hope that 50 amp service you have is wired for two 120 volt service and not 240 volt. A lot of people make that mistake when wiring home service plug. As far as running things, I turn on all my items at least once a month. That includes A/C, heat, hot water, TV, and so on. I try to simulate camping. Hope that helps.
Look at your plug and receptcal and you will see that they are marked 50 amp, 120/240 volts.
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Old 04-18-2016, 09:35 PM   #11
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The Edge - Just checking, I hope that 50 amp service you have is wired for two 120 volt service and not 240 volt. A lot of people make that mistake when wiring home service plug. As far as running things, I turn on all my items at least once a month. That includes A/C, heat, hot water, TV, and so on. I try to simulate camping. Hope that helps.
Yes, I have it wired for an RV connection with twin 120 and ground going into a double 50 amp breaker using #6. After some research into the subject, I decided to do it myself instead of have a local electrician do it. Too many horror stories about residential electricians wiring up the 50 amp service wrong (30 and 20)
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Old 04-19-2016, 10:02 AM   #12
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In hot weather I set my air conditioners to come on at 82 degrees. I cycle the Hydro Hot once a month using the electric element and later the same with the diesel burner. I also leave my refrigerator running full time. I use the Qwik-Fill battery watering system monthly to top off the house batteries. In addition, I crank the gen set and run the ACs with it for approximately 30 minutes once a month. Not related to electric items, I check tire pressures at least monthly and more frequently in cold weather. Been following these procedures for 33 years and it has worked fine for me.
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Old 04-19-2016, 10:23 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hawkeye1995 View Post
The Edge - Just checking, I hope that 50 amp service you have is wired for two 120 volt service and not 240 volt. A lot of people make that mistake when wiring home service plug.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr_D View Post
Actually a 50 amp RV plug is a 240 volt service, its the 30 amps that cause the problems since a 30 amp dryer/stove plug is 240 volt.
hawkeye1995
Mr_D is correct.
All 50A 240V receptacles provide two separate legs/lines of 120V power.
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Old 04-19-2016, 10:15 PM   #14
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Yes, I have it wired for an RV connection with twin 120 and ground going into a double 50 amp breaker using #6. After some research into the subject, I decided to do it myself instead of have a local electrician do it. Too many horror stories about residential electricians wiring up the 50 amp service wrong (30 and 20)
You didn't mention a neutral wire. Did you wire one in? You have to have one.
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