50A power adapter

[Old-Biscuit]

I would rather use a 50A/30A adapter then to plug into a worn out 30A CB anyday of the week.
CG Maint might respond, might change out bad 30A, might know what they are doing


But chances are better that NOTHING will happen using that 50A/30A adapter for a 30A RV


Potential exists but very low odds.
Now if I were to get struck by lightning, have a blowout en-route, propane leak and have to be towed to destination I MIGHT not push my 'odds'
"A man's got to know his limitations"

[hclarkx]

Originally Posted by Old-Biscuit

I would rather use a 50A/30A adapter then to plug into a worn out 30A CB anyday of the week.
CG Maint might respond, might change out bad 30A, might know what they are doing

But chances are better that NOTHING will happen using that 50A/30A adapter for a 30A RV

I've had them changed out or been moved to another site three times.

I plug the male end of the cord into the receptacle first and if it does not need a firm push to go in, I go no further. Once the receptacle was okay (took a firm push to plug the cord in) but the socket itself was able to move around ... with the three wires going into the back of it probably in not very good shape. I moved.

Worst experience was in Casa de Fruita RV park near Hollister CA. When I pushed my 30A plug into the socket, the whole back of the panel fell off exposing all of the wiring. And there was water from a leaking faucet all around the pedestal!! I had them fix it but didn't watch. Weeks later we stayed at the same Park on our way back north and we were assigned to the same site (300 sites and the place was only 20% full ..... go figure). Same thing happened. The back fell off again. Clearly they had put it in place but put no screws in it. This time I put it back myself; I figured no sense in bothering them. Of course, Have not stayed there since.

[LakeKerrGuy]

A little over a month ago I posted this message. It received few replies at the time. Perhaps in this thread it will be seen more. My intent is to inquire whether anyone else has experienced similar issues and to let everyone know that I'm now more of a believer in the power/surge protection devices. My process of verifing no load voltage and having a true 50 amp - 240 volt supply was not enough.

I have since purchased a new Magnum 2012. But, I'll add, the 2012 is not a direct replacement for my Heart Interface as it has no circuit protection on the output.

HERE IS THE ORIGINAL POST:

Arrived at campground and checked for 120v L1 to N, L1 to G, L2 to N, L2 to G, and 240 volts L1 to L2. All checked ok.
After going inside, I saw the remote panel was not showing AC input but I knew that was not possible because I had noticed the pilot light on the water heater switch was red. I turned on the air and it seemed to work so I'm now really scratching my head. About that time I heard the refrigerator fire up on gas. It then cycled back and forth between gas and electric for a couple of cycles. More head scratching...
I went back outside and turned the power off at the pedestal and fired the generator. Guess what, still no power input indicated at the remote panel. By this time, I'm getting frazzled so I do not remember the exact sequence of events for a little while.
At some point, I checked the voltage at the ACV power distribution panel. That's when I knew I was doomed. The voltage was behaving as if there was an open neutral - windshield effect. But, how could that be, I had checked the pedestal. After checking the neutral connections in the power panel and my 50 amp cord, I returned to the pedestal. The neutral buss bar was not attached. It was in contact just enough to give a good read, but as soon as load was applied, the neutral opened.

Now to the real problem. It seems my Inverter/Charger is damaged. The batteries are not being charged; it does not seem to be passing 120 volts from the shore cable through the inverter. The inverter is receiving 12VDC from the batteries and sending out 120 volts but my only way of keeping the batteries from going completely down is with the small 12 amp portable charger I keep in the motor home.

What I have done (other than a lot of head scratching):
removed cover from inverter to check for damage (see or smell none); disconnect phone cable and reconnect at remote (read that somewhere); verified all dip switches are in off position; I'm keeping the inverter off so none of the 120 volt connected to it can be used - wife not happy at not having a microwave.

Short of buying a new Inverter/Charger what is my next move???

[JohnBoyToo]

WoW, lot's of great info....
bottom line - protect your rv with a GOOD EMS, not just a surge protector !


Our PI ems will not let bad power through - and actually, let me say that if it detects bad whatever, it won't let anything through have had campground staff 'discuss' it with me, but I believe the EMS more and will move on !


(Why first thing we do is plug in the portable PI ems before doing anything else - except DW walks the dog - and within a minute or two you know if power is good.)

[LakeKerrGuy]

Originally Posted by JohnBoyToo

WoW, lot's of great info....
bottom line - protect your rv with a GOOD EMS, not just a surge protector !


Our PI ems will not let bad power through - and actually, let me say that if it detects bad whatever, it won't let anything through have had campground staff 'discuss' it with me, but I believe the EMS more and will move on !


(Why first thing we do is plug in the portable PI ems before doing anything else - except DW walks the dog - and within a minute or two you know if power is good.)

Does your EMS apply a load. Without application of a load, the open neutral condition I experienced would not have been seen.

[tropical36]

Originally Posted by WyCamper

Possibly a dumb question, but I'll try anyway. Our Vista is 30A service, and the dealer made a point of making sure we had a 50A dogbone before we left.


But the operator's manual states to not use an adapter to connect to 50A service.


I can't figure out why, as long as it's 110v and not 220. Can anyone explain where I'm wrong on this and how it could damage my Vista? 50A male to 30A female adapters seem pretty common, and like I said the dealer made sure I had one.


What am I missing?

Engineering math is why and one must remember that breakers and fuses are meant to protect the wire it's feeding.
You're using 30amp, 10ga wire between the pedestal and the coach main breaker, so in essence that part of the run could cook before the 50amp pedestal breaker trips.
Any problem inside the coach and downstream from the main, above 30amps, will trip the coach main, however.
Short circuit anywhere is going to trip one or the other, 50amp pedestal main included, regardless.
Probability with a scenario of such an unfortunate event and leading to anywhere near, disastrous consequences, is next to 0 and the reason why they are approved for sale, in the first place.
As for the manufacture's manual and like everyone else these days, always CYA ...

[brokenrule]

We dog mostly dog shows at fairgrounds with our 30A service. We carry a 50A to twin 30A adaptor because the fairgrounds have 50A and 20A. This way two RV's can connect to a single 50A outlet. Never had a problem with "over current", never tripped our main 30A breaker in the converter box.

[docj]

Originally Posted by LakeKerrGuy

Does your EMS apply a load. Without application of a load, the open neutral condition I experienced would not have been seen.

The couple of times that our PI EMS has protected us from problems with the neutral it has done so by detecting one leg of the connection spiking at voltage >132V. The spiking was transient but it was enough to cause the PI to shut down power to the coach.

This happened a couple of years ago at our own RV property in TX. The power company technician who responded to my service call said "you RVers are the only ones with equipment sensitive enough to spot this sort of thing." He tightened all the connections in the pedestal and at the voltage stepdown transformer. The problem disappeared and hasn't re-occurred.

[hclarkx]

Originally Posted by brokenrule

We dog mostly dog shows at fairgrounds with our 30A service. We carry a 50A to twin 30A adaptor because the fairgrounds have 50A and 20A. This way two RV's can connect to a single 50A outlet. Never had a problem with "over current", never tripped our main 30A breaker in the converter box.

Most people never will experience a trip. Those that do can thank their lucky stars the system worked ... the alternative is not pretty ... and can be lethal. The NEC is a very thick book with only one goal in mind; protection of life and property (think fire).