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Old 03-04-2018, 09:05 AM   #1
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Plugging in right?

Hi, I am a newbie, so I am sure this is a lame question, but we bought an RV 23 ft, and not sure what we can run inside it while plugged into a normal plug on my back porch with an adapter. This RV has it all, microwave, hot water heater, AC, stereo, gas oven, 2 large tanks of LP, fridge and separate freezer. We bought an adapter yesterday so we could plug into the normal household plug, just don't understand the logistics, my RV is a 1999 Komfort and I cannot find a manual on line....
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Old 03-04-2018, 09:12 AM   #2
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I'm sure others will chime in with more details, but quick and short. Not much.
Your regular house receptacles will run your charger/convertor, this will keep your batteries up and allow you to run any of the 12 v DC items. And you should be able to run your fridge on ac.
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Old 03-04-2018, 09:16 AM   #3
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You don't want to run everything at the same time . it will ruin your bigger alliances such as air conditioning. Low voltage and amperage is bad. If you want to run fridge that will work . but use one thing at a time. Converter charging batteries on high mode is about 11 amps your 20 amp outlet should pull no more than 16 amps. A coffe pot draws 13 amps.

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Old 03-04-2018, 09:28 AM   #4
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Your question is about basic electrical capabilities and is probably not discussed in any owners manual.

It depends a bit on what the rating is for the home circuit you want to use. Is it a 15, 20, 30, 50 amp??? Also what is the rating for the adapter and extension cord(s) you are using. You need to stay under the lowest rating in that mix.
You can probably run the AC and not much else on a 20 amp circuit. You can probably run everything else except the AC at the same time on the same 20 amp circuit. You need to determine the power requirements of the items you want to have "on".

If your adapter or extension cords start getting hot, you are over working them and are asking for trouble.

Bottom line: amps = watts / volts or watts = amps * volts.

ie. 1500 watt heater consumes 1500 watts / 110 volts = 13.6 amps.

You will find a number of threads on the forums about what size generator you need to run a trailers AC unit. Know that, once started, the AC will consume under 20 amps. So a 2000 watt generator is "enough". However, starting the AC has a very short surge of somewhere near 40 amps. Most 2000 watt generators are not capable of supporting that surge and shut down. Your home circuit is capable of supporting the surge. That is why it will generally run okay when plugged into a 20 amp circuit.

A bit of a search will find a list of the power requirements for most items that are in trailers.
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Old 03-04-2018, 09:49 AM   #5
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Old 03-04-2018, 11:19 AM   #6
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A lot depends on how long a cord you have from your house to the RV. If the cord supplied with the RV is long enough , your in good shape and should be able to run the A/C , or Microwave and nothing else. If you are not running the A/C or microwave , you should be able to run everything else , except maybe the hot water tank if it has an electric element. If you have to use a longer cord , the A/C use is out.
If you run the fridge , freezer , hot water on propane , you could possibly run the A/C , TV , radio & lights. A lot depends on the draw of the A/C unit.
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Old 03-04-2018, 01:04 PM   #7
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Thanks Everybody!!!!

I just want to say thanks so much for all the replies!!!! I was overwhelmed by so much info!!! I feel more knowledgeable for sure!!!!! And I will be installing a 30 amp power supply ( independent) just for the camper soon!!!!!
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Old 03-04-2018, 08:04 PM   #8
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I will be installing a 30 amp power supply ( independent) just for the camper soon!!!!!
Others have said on other threads, that if you are going to the effort and expense of installing a 30 amp circuit and outlet then you may as well go all out and install a 50 amp circuit/outlet. That will allow for your next RV upgrade! Bigger and Better.
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Old 03-04-2018, 08:24 PM   #9
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With a 23 ft RV you probably have a converter rated somewhere between 30 and 60 Amps. That is at 12 VDC. Your 120 VAC draw will be roughly one tenth of that due to the voltage conversion so 3-6 amps if the batteries are low. Less when they come up to charge. If you run the refrigerator on propane you can run either the water heater or A/C or microwave or a small electric heater at the same time with a few other small loads. Your furnace runs off 12 VDC and propane so you can run that. Going to 30 Amp will let you run 2 of the heavy loads and put the refrigerator on electric.
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Old 03-04-2018, 08:37 PM   #10
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I suggest that you have the electrician put in a 20 /30/ 50 amp box... The cost is not that much more......
WARNING !!!
Make durn sure that the electrician KNOWS that it is to be a RV wired outlets !!!!!
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Old 03-06-2018, 11:30 AM   #11
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You are probably ok to run everything EXCEPT air conditioning/heat pump, and electric water heater, and some accessories like coffee maker and hairdryers. Fridge on electric doesn't draw much after it gets cold, but they also use very little propane. Plug in and let the batteries get charged up and the fridge cooled off before you start using the other goodies.
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Old 03-07-2018, 06:33 AM   #12
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Originally Posted by saddlesore View Post
I suggest that you have the electrician put in a 20 /30/ 50 amp box... The cost is not that much more......
WARNING !!!
Make durn sure that the electrician KNOWS that it is to be a RV wired outlets !!!!!
An electrician wired my pastor's 30 Amp RV outlet as 220 volts. Burned up every 120 volt appliance plugged in.

20 amp - 120 volt
30 amp - 120 volt
50 amp - 240 volt - 50 amp service for RVs split the legs inside the breaker box just like in your home.
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Old 03-07-2018, 06:46 AM   #13
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the quick and very easy answer to your original question is: YES

what you can 'run' within your coach is only limited by what you are plugging it into. If it's a regular household outlet, then you can run anything you wish, but when you start tripping breakers, you'll quickly start to understand that you have to limit what you use at the same time. Most anything can run on a household outlet, even your air conditioner, but trying to run something else at the same time might trip the breaker.
If you're just trying to prepare your coach for a trip, sure, turn on the lights, run the fridge, turn on the fan, etc.

a 30a RV plug you find at most rv parks and campground simply gives you twice as much power than you normal household plug.... you can do more things at the same time. : )

It's all good.
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Old 03-15-2018, 12:30 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dar1957 View Post
Hi, I am a newbie, so I am sure this is a lame question, but we bought an RV 23 ft, and not sure what we can run inside it while plugged into a normal plug on my back porch with an adapter. This RV has it all, microwave, hot water heater, AC, stereo, gas oven, 2 large tanks of LP, fridge and separate freezer. We bought an adapter yesterday so we could plug into the normal household plug, just don't understand the logistics, my RV is a 1999 Komfort and I cannot find a manual on line....
I would avoid running the A/C when plugged into a normal plug via an adapter. We jumped right into our current MH, which is our first, and nobody really told us the little "does and don'ts" such as this. It after the breaker tripped and I was troubleshooting that I noticed both ends of the extension cord and the adapter were burned pretty badly. I will only run the A/C off of a 30A supply or the generator now.

When I am plugged into my house, it's only to run the fridge, interior lights, and maybe the vent fan.

Even when plugged into a 30A supply, you'll find there's limits to what you can run. For example, you won't be able to run the A/C and the microwave at the same time.

I guess my biggest suggestion is to avoid running the A/C off of a household 15A supply.
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