should I or shouldnt I

[Arch Hoagland]

I suggest a 50 amp setup.... I originally put in a 30 amp because we didn't need 50 amp for storage beside our house. Two months ago a plastic fitting broke on the water inlet for a toilet and flooded our entire house. We've had to move out to the motorhome while the repairs are being made to our home.
It's normal to be 105 degrees here in the summer so our insurance company paid to upgrade my outlet to 50 amps so we can run both air conditioners. In fact the insurance company sent an electrician out to do the upgrade work the day after I asked them about it.
So for emergency reasons I suggest a full 50 amp hookup.

[fxdave]

Originally Posted by JimM68

Have you checked your AC voltage in the rig?
You may very well be starving things for power right now.

I use a heavy duty (30 amp) extension cord to plug into a 20 amp circuit. At 20 amps draw (indicated on my ems panel) a voltmeter stuck in an a/c outlet on the rig shows 106 volts. At the outlet in the garage shows 121.

no but i just keep it plugged in to keep the battery's up and when im gonna go somewhere i run the fridge a few days before

[alvinc]

Originally Posted by fxdave

i figure its another 200 to 250 for the wire an conduit breakers ect and really i guess you need a permit to do it correctly i know we can do it im just thinking do i really need too ?

For a 50 amp service at 165 ft you would need 6 awg wire (3.4% drop).... this stuff runs $4.50 a foot or so for copper UF (direct burial). This would be $742 just for the wire.

For a 30 amp service you would still need 6 awg wire, but one less conductor, so the cost per foot is approx $3 or $495.

For a 20 amp service at 165 ft you need 10 awg wire at approx a $1 a foot.

You can also use two 100 ft 10/3 extension cords (for 20 amp service) and have the flexibility of using this when you travel. They cost approx $90 a piece.

[Cougarkid]

With the setup you have, sounds your genset gets a workout on a pretty regular basis. That is a good thing.

Why tamper with success?

Both hookups I have done have been under 15' of wire - minimal cost. First one was barely used. Took wire and box to second location and reused - just had to buy a new breaker.

[bbeane]

Aint nothing cheap. While ext cords are cheap and work to some degree, I can imagine they are a pain in the rear. For me it would be the 50A service just couldn't deal with the cords. You can use aluminum wire which will help with the cost. Check with your local home imporvement store on the price of SER cable 4 conductor.