I want 50 amp, water and sewer at home. Any thoughts or pointers?

[LJ2654]

I ran a fifty amp service myself. Very easy to do...hardest part was digging the 20 foot trench for the wires and pipes. Got the box, receptacle and post from Lowes....had it done in 2 hours......less than $150 bucks.

[dabrooks]

Go with the 50amp it is a little more expensive for the heavier wire but the rest of the components cost the same. Home Depot sells the exterior waterproof box along with the 50amp receptable as a package. The may also have the 50amp breaker but that depends on what kind of breaker box you have. Also make sure you always turn of the breaker in the panel before you plug or unplug you rv. It is easy to do in the campgrounds when the breaker is right on the pedestal but at home you may need to go to the basement or garage to do it. Don't get lazy TURN THE BREAKER OFF.

[Frutza]

The 50 amp service is pretty staight foward, its the 30 amp service that I see people trying to hook up to 240v and smoke, sewer will depend on local ordinances if any, as far as a concrete pad goes, search the forms about moisture wicking thru and causing the belts to rust and make your own judgement

[Long Island Mac]

When at home,I am running the rv on a 20 amp plug added to the driveway. My unit will shed the load and keep the unit cool when I have it set to cool. Am also running a residential fridge that is always on when home. Water, frost free hose bib (if warranted) as mentioned. I have sewers at home. I tapped into te clean-out pipe and ran it to the driveway. I believe that septic systems use a clean-out also. Only dump when needed, just like when "camping"

[Matchayan]

If you buy a prewire 50 amp RV box from Lowes/homedepot it will save your electrician time so you will pay less. Another suggestion for the sewer dump if it is to costly you can get a sani con from Campers world and then you can pump your sewage up to 150 feet away with a 5/8 garden hose. I use this setup and when friends come over we attach the sani con to their unit plug em in and they are go to go so to speak.

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by Route 66

50 amp RV service seems to always cause confusion.

Respectfully, the poster above is incorrect.

The service is indeed 50 amp. 240 volts. It's a standard 4 wire service. Nothing special or tricky.

Your motorhome will use 120 volts from each leg at 50 amps each for a total for 100 amps.

It's all explained here.

RV Electric

Yep, it's when you say you want a 30 amp RV plugin that causes problems, most electricians will wire it as 30 amp 240 volt, not 30 amp 120 volt.

[TdogKing]

I installed all of the hook ups myself, been using them over 25 year or so. I myself didn't get any permits, it's my own house. The Sewer is hooked up to my Septic System. Its where people stay when visiting .

[tedgard01]

I want to thank everyone for the great responses and all the information and good advice. I am very impressed with the help I received.

Thanks again,
Ted

[wyorancher]

Originally Posted by Clifftall

I wouldn't bet the ranch on that.
Cliff

I saw a comment on another forum several months ago where licensed electrician wired wrong because he wasn't familiar with RV plugs. I think after it was wired I would double check his work before plugging in my RV. I installed a full RV site near my septic. Water, dump, and 20/30/50 outlet. Probably don't need that much power unless you were going to stay in RV. Putting in the dump is great. I don't have to be concerned about finding a dump station on the way home. I pull in and dump, & leave RV plugged while we un pack things. The dump should be as close as possible to septic (or city line). I think you will find running wire longer distance will be cheaper than sewer pipe. Sewer pipe needs specific slope. Wire can be put in shallow trench.

[Wannabe]

Originally Posted by Clay L

It wasn't feasible to trench deep enough for the sewer line so I bought a Flojet macerator and trenched for a one inch PVC pipe 130 feet long with hose fittings on each end in valve boxes. It ends within ten feet of the sewer clean out in the back yard. I have a couple of dedicated 3/4 inch hoses - one connects the output to the clean-out and the other between the RV site input and an RV when the macerator is used.

I did about the same thing, but permanently installed the discharge end in the clean-out. I use a "sewer-solution" for my current RV, but my previous RV had a "San-i-con" which really made it simple.

My RV is behind a privacy fence so nothing is obvious to my neighbors and in 10 years of being in a restricted S/D never had any problems from any officials. It's a fairly cheap install so I can't imagine a situation where I would worry about a permit. Seems like one would just be asking for grief to even apply.

[Dr4Film]

Originally Posted by wyorancher

I saw a comment on another forum several months ago where licensed electrician wired wrong because he wasn't familiar with RV plugs. I think after it was wired I would double check his work before plugging in my RV.

It would be difficult to screw up the wiring of a 50 amp 240 Volt AC receptacle but I guess it could happen to some in you are color blind. You can't fix Stupid either.

However, it is VERY easy to mis-wire a 30 amp 120 VAC receptacle and many Certified Electricians have done just that causing hundreds if not thousands of dollars worth of damage to the RV owners rig.

HOWEVER, if the RV owner would install a Progressive Industries EMS unit in their RV or have a portable one to use, that EMS unit will make SURE that the electrical power is wired correctly ALL of the time. It doesn't go to sleep or take a break, it's checking the quality of the power 24/7 when hooked up to shore power.

Just my opinion.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

[Heber Eason]

I would go with the 50 am service.Read the RV Electric instructions and follow them and be sure to check before plugging in your MH. If you have someone install, have him review the RV electric site. If he doesn't understand, find someone else. DO NOT ASSUME, it is easy for someone to confuse with a 220 volt hook up for old ranges. I can provide phone numbers for first hand experiences with major costs for 220 volts entering a MH.

[Wannabe]

Originally Posted by Heber Eason

I would go with the 50 am service.Read the RV Electric instructions and follow them and be sure to check before plugging in your MH. If you have someone install, have him review the RV electric site. If he doesn't understand, find someone else. DO NOT ASSUME, it is easy for someone to confuse with a 220 volt hook up for old ranges. I can provide phone numbers for first hand experiences with major costs for 220 volts entering a MH.

I don't see how anyone could mis-wire a 50 amp service that would hurt the RV. As stated the mistakes occur when wiring a 30 Amp/110V service and getting 30 amp/220V instead.

[tedgard01]

Thanks for the additional responses. It looks like the information that I received from this group should keep me out of trouble, and that is appreciated!

Thanks again,
Ted