Electrical ??? / Building New RV Metal Storage Building

[fottip]

Originally Posted by Kiawah

A trap I always fall into, is that I'm running fat dump and happy, then realize that all of my neighbors have power.....and find out power came back on many hours ago. When the power in the neighborhood comes back on, you have no way of knowing it. You have to periodically check.

And that's why most manufacturers of whole-house backup generator installations also provide an automatic transfer switch. When utility power is restored, the switch senses it, shuts down the genset, and transfers utility power back on, no muss, no fuss.

[Busskipper]

Originally Posted by twinboat

The specs say that the 12.5 Onan is 240 volts.
240 volts is single " split " phase power.

Normal 240 volt appliances will run on it.

As with most electrical posts - info is often - - just a little Off

IMHO, sit and talk with a Competent Electrician, they can usually figure it all out.

Just because "The Coach" only uses 120 - does not mean there is not 240, this false misconception about the RV 50 amp service has been repeated so often that many actually believe it is fact.

No matter how many tell you it does not exist - rv 240 - you cannot change the fact that it is. ........opco rn: An Electrical Fact. ....

[Kiawah]

Originally Posted by twinboat

The specs say that the 12.5 Onan is 240 volts.
240 volts is single " split " phase power.

Normal 240 volt appliances will run on it.

Oh I missed that.......perfect then!

[vsheetz]

I have 200a main panel on the house with physical lockout for the main breaker. Plus 100a subpanel in detached workshop where the motorhome is parked. There is a generator inlet physically located at the work shop for generator connection. I have a wheeled 5500w gasoline generator bought used on Craigslist for $325.00 several years ago. When connected and running powers the whole house.

For gasoline I keep a few five gallons containers on hand. Plus 35+ gallons in dual tanks on an older pickup truck (can be readily siphoned). So usually about 50 gallons on hand - from experience the generator typically uses 12-15 gallons in a 24 hour period.

I don't use the motorhome generator: Difficult to connect because they typically are not 240 two phased. But moreso motorhome may not be at home when needed...

[jimnkee]

1st let me say that many of the replies to the OP post are really in left field. A few are right on though. You need to check with a licensed electrician so you can follow proper electrical codes when hooking up a generator to power your house during power failure. Your RV generator does provide 240 vac (two 120 vac lines 180 degrees out of phase with each other) and it is single phase just like the voltage in your house. You do need an automatic transfer switch installed at your breaker box to be in code. Turning off individual breakers is not acceptable.

[xrated]

Originally Posted by Busskipper

As with most electrical posts - info is often - - just a little Off

IMHO, sit and talk with a Competent Electrician, they can usually figure it all out.

Just because "The Coach" only uses 120 - does not mean there is not 240, this false misconception about the RV 50 amp service has been repeated so often that many actually believe it is fact.

No matter how many tell you it does not exist - rv 240 - you cannot change the fact that it is. ........opco rn: An Electrical Fact. ....

Isn't that exactly what twinboat stated? I don't understand why you think there is any "mis-information" in what he posted.

[vsheetz]

Originally Posted by jimnkee

1st let me say that many of the replies to the OP post are really in left field. A few are right on though. You need to check with a licensed electrician so you can follow proper electrical codes when hooking up a generator to power your house during power failure. Your RV generator does provide 240 vac (two 120 vac lines 180 degrees out of phase with each other) and it is single phase just like the voltage in your house. You do need an automatic transfer switch installed at your breaker box to be in code. Turning off individual breakers is not acceptable.

A physical main breaker lockout is code compliant in most places. Instead of a transfer switch.

[vsheetz]

Originally Posted by vsheetz

I have 200a main panel on the house with physical lockout for the main breaker. Plus 100a subpanel in detached workshop where the motorhome is parked. There is a generator inlet physically located at the work shop for generator connection. I have a wheeled 5500w gasoline generator bought used on Craigslist for $325.00 several years ago. When connected and running powers the whole house.

For gasoline I keep a few five gallons containers on hand. Plus 35+ gallons in dual tanks on an older pickup truck (can be readily siphoned). So usually about 50 gallons on hand - from experience the generator typically uses 12-15 gallons in a 24 hour period.

I don't use the motorhome generator: Difficult to connect because they typically are not 240 two phased. But moreso motorhome may not be at home when needed...

I misspoke here when I commented two phase. And I stand corrected if the two legs are 180 degree out of phase.

[wa8yxm]

Ok when I had a sticks and bricks I had a proper Generator Transfer Panel installed in the house, and ran a custom extension cord from the RV to the Inlet on the back of the house.

IN YOUR CASE I would do it a bit different

First.. You need to understand the RV benerator is only 120 volt, not 120/240 (At least in most cases) you can order 120/240 I suspect but have not confirmed.

Now, I"d run two sets of power lines from House to "Garage" one out one back as it were, the 2nde set connects to the Transfer Switch.. And in the "Garage" it has an INLET. use a short extension cord (Custom generator size cord (30/50 amp, you want 50 amp neutral) to connect the RV to the INLET when needed.

Use a proper transfer switch DO NOT rely on "Turning off" the main breaker cause sure as shooting someone is going to forget and major damage, or death mnay result

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by wa8yxm

First.. You need to understand the RV benerator is only 120 volt, not 120/240 (At least in most cases) you can order 120/240 I suspect but have not confirmed.

The OP HAS a 12,500 watt, 240 volt generator. That size is equivalent to 120/240 volt, 50 amp shore power.

Why are we going thru this again ?

[C.Martin]

I think you face an uphill battle...

Install an appropriately rated and breaker protected receptacle on your coach...preferably a twist lock connector.

Install an inlet box near your coach that will run to a transfer panel near your main load center.

Making a cord to connect these two.

Transferring the Circuits you wish to power from the coach generator from your load center to the transfer panel. The transfer panel has to be equipped with a disconnect or relay which prevents the generator source from back feeding your service panel...and will only allow one connection at a time...unless you get one of those super fancy phase coordinating relays commonly used for Yachts. It still has to have backfeed protection.

Having an inspector sign off on the acceptable loads for each panel. IE ...he may require a transfer switch installed in the coach...as it would overload the generator to try to feed the coaches load center as well as the generator transfer panel in the house.

Definitely a job requiring a permit and inspection.

I think I prefer the redundancy of having two separate generators...one for the coach...one for the house. If I were gone on a trip...would my wife connect the cord, start the generator in the coach, and deal with the potential overload, when the coach needs to charge ist’s own Batteries?

We have a portable generator...she can wheel it around back, connect it to the inlet panel on our combination entry device. Inside the house our breakers are color coded. She shuts all the branch circuits off except for Red ones or blue ones...depending on when she wants hot water for showers. Flips the MAIN on combined entry device OFF...moves a blocking plate...which allows the inlet feed breaker to be positioned ON. This blocking plate is what prevents the generator from being able to back-feed the FPL service lines and injure a worker. Push start crank the generator and boom...she’s got power.

Now that we have the coach...we’d probably just go out and live in it until the power outage is over. We could actually run just a small portable to keep the fridge cold in the house.

[MWKingSD]

You can't get 400A of power just because you have 2x200A panels - fundamentally you are limited by the power company supplying your home. There are local zoning ordinance is play too, designed to keep people from killing themselves. That may also explain why the contractor wants to put in a 200A panel on both buildings.

Remember that genset power doesn't come back out your RV power cable, so to get the 12kW out of the generator you'd have to somehow rewire the output of the generator. You could get 15 or 20A out of an outlet on your motor home...simple solution is to drive the MH next to the house and use an extension cord to plug into a transfer switch for the house circuits.

Whatever you do, don't jury rig something you "think will work" - that's a good way for people to wind up dead, or at least something fried.

[fottip]

Originally Posted by MWKingSD

Remember that genset power doesn't come back out your RV power cable, so to get the 12kW out of the generator you'd have to somehow rewire the output of the generator. You could get 15 or 20A out of an outlet on your motor home...simple solution is to drive the MH next to the house and use an extension cord to plug into a transfer switch for the house circuits.

Several of us have stated here that we've done the extension cord thing in the past, and it does address short term needs for 120v household power. But it's not a be-all, end-all solution either. Most people have a few appliances that require 240v. We can survive a few days without running the laundry dryer, but what about HVAC system? 240v cooktops? 240v well pumps? Our SB is on a well, so without 240v, we can't even flush the toilet.

Whatever you do, don't jury rig something you "think will work" - that's a good way for people to wind up dead, or at least something fried.

That sums it up. OP stated he doesn't want to buy a seperate whole-house generator. But trying to make do with the 120v output of an RV generator instead leads to all the hoop-jumping workarounds suggested here, and many fall into the category you refer to. This is one more example of how "there ain't no free lunch". And at the end of the day, even if someone DID find a way to make it work for them, everything goes off the rails when the SB utility power fails when the RV's not home.

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by fottip

That sums it up. OP stated he doesn't want to buy a seperate whole-house generator. But trying to make do with the 120v output of an RV generator instead leads to all the hoop-jumping workarounds .

The OP has a 240 ( two hundred & forty ) volt 12,000 watt generator in his MH.

This would be a perfect whole house emergency generator, if not sitting in a MH chassis. Its a backup for the essentials, not full power for everything at the same time.

A standard 240 volt, 50 amp receptacle in a compartment near the generator is all the modifications the MH would need.
That would be used to connect up to the proper wiring and transfer switch in the house.