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Old 01-14-2017, 10:11 AM   #1
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Surviving on 30 AMP

Hello to all you smart people!

We are super excited about the Tampa Supershow but equally terrified about what will be our first experience with 30 AMP power.

Based on Pat's email with show arrival instructions we gather that the electric water heat needs to stay off and we should only use our aqua hot for showers, etc.

Is there any resource out there for knowing what else we can and can't use while relying on 30 AMP?

Thanks in advance!
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Old 01-14-2017, 10:20 AM   #2
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I'm not aware of any list of items for using a 50amp coach on 30 amp power.
You just need to remember you'll only have 30% of the total power your coach was designed to use/need.
So only one air conditioner, and shut that off if you want to use things like the microwave or washer/dryer.
Even using a toaster, coffee maker and a hair dryer at the same time can push you past the power supply limit.
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Old 01-14-2017, 10:23 AM   #3
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It's all about knowing your coach, and exercising good power management. You need to know what circuits run 120 volt through the inverter, and which are supplied directly from shore power. Your big 120 volt electric drains will be:

Hot water heater
Microwave
Air conditioners
Coffee pot
Oven
Clothes Dryer
Block heater
space heaters


You won't be using the last two, so you need to be concerned with the first six. If you use the aqua hot for heating the water, then you are down to the microwave and air conditioners. Only use one AC a time. If your coach is like ours, it still circulates cool air throughout the entire coach, just more in the zone where the AC unit is actually located. If not, you will have to manually switch on and off. Use passive "cooling" as much as possible. By that I mean using window shades and awnings, and full awning on the sun side if possible. That will reduce a lot of the need for AC. If your coach has one of the dark full body paints, and/or black AC covers for aesthetic reasons, your AC units will have to work harder and make keeping the coach cool more difficult. If you have three AC units, you will be switching between them manually more often!

Save your laundry for when you get back on 50 amp.
Coffee pot, use with only one AC unit on, and don't use microwave at same time.
Oven, manage it's use. Recommend not using as you will be heating up the coach with electric to run the oven, and then having to use electric to cool the resultant heat in coach. . . .

We can run both AC units on 30 amp just fine, but need to turn off one in order to use the microwave. We also make sure we heat water with propane (aqua hot in your case) if using both AC units concurrently.

You'll do fine just exercise common sense and manage your power requirements.
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Old 01-14-2017, 12:56 PM   #4
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From our experience:
- If your shore power post has an add'l 15/20 amp plug, and you can drop a line directly to your RR that will help
-- With that set-up we run two A/Cs
- If we need the MW we shut down one A/C
- AH for hot water - the diesel burner will bring it to temp in less than 15 minutes
- If genny use is allowed - use it as needed
-- Run all three A/Cs to get a quick cool-down - then let the two running A/Cs take care of the load as the day cools down
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Old 01-14-2017, 01:10 PM   #5
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In my rig the only thing I can't run on a 30 amp is the 240 volt dryer. Everything else works but I have to manage the amount of watts used at any one time. 3,600 watts on 30 amps vs 12,000 watts on 50 amps. Unless it gets really hot and you need more than one heat pump to keep cool you'll be fine.
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Old 01-14-2017, 01:16 PM   #6
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Going to be rather warm in the afternoons so likely to be a lot of generators humming. Hope everyone brings the venturi exhaust tubes...got my 5 AM coffee lined up using my camping jet-boil for hot water. Coffee pots all going at once in the morning might test the common lines we share.
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Old 01-14-2017, 01:17 PM   #7
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Is it that hot in Florida this time of year you need all 3 ac units ? I don't think so but maybe ..just one in my old beaver coach keeps it cool to 90!cant believe your coach is that poorly insulated . put the aquahot on diesel turn off the elect portion and just be mindful of toaster ,cooktop and blow dryer all the same time won't work .. if you blow the post breaker ( and you will at some time we all do) then get out reset it and don't do what you did that caused it again easy peasy ! It's not that hard. You'll do fine!
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Old 01-14-2017, 01:29 PM   #8
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Don't know about the '17s, but I can run 2 A/Cs on 30 if I turn the battery chargers down to 5 amp, turn off the electric Aqua Hot element and watch what else I try to run. On our old fashioned model, it will load shed to try and keep the load within limits. I assume that the newer ones will do that as well.
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Old 01-14-2017, 02:14 PM   #9
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Dial Shore Power back to 5 amps. If you don't know how, be brave and ask someone at the show if you have trouble with the following instructions for any coach 2016 and older:

Open the cabinet over the passenger seat.
Turn off your second inverter (on 30amp, you only need one) Aspires only have 1 inverter.
On your primary inverter, press the shore power button.
Turn the dial until it shows 5 amps.
Press the dial you just twisted to enter the 5 amp setting.
Close the door.

BTW, generators are not allowed, is my recollection. Check your program to be sure.

To return to normal, press Shore Power and rotate back to 30 amp and press to enter.
Turn your second inverter back on if you have two.

2017's will need to turn off Inverter 2 in the LEFT circuit breaker panel only. Turn it back on when you're ready to depart.

Pat


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www.entegraowners.com
2017 Anthem DEQ/Ford Edge
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Old 01-14-2017, 03:35 PM   #10
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In order to run 2 A/Cs in the afternoon, what about turning off both inverters for a couple of hours, then turn one inverter back on when second A/C no longer needed?
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Old 01-14-2017, 04:00 PM   #11
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When on any shore power source the inverters are NOT being used. If you turn off an inverter it does not shut down that inverters charger. To restrict the amount of power being used for charging when on 30 amp shore power turn OFF the charger on oneinverter remote panel (as installed) and dial the other one back to 5 amps.
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Old 01-14-2017, 04:13 PM   #12
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We often camp with 30 amp in our 2017 Anthem. What we have learned is turn off Inverter/Charger 1 in left panel above toll window. Both inverters continue to work but only one is charging the batteries which is fine. This way we can run two a/cs if needed. We start with the front and add the BR if necessary. Of course this is with no other appliances running. If you want to use coffee maker, toaster, etc do so one at the time with only one a/c on or even better turn both off until done. If we aren't using a/c we keep the hot water on electric unless we need to use other appliances then we turn it off until appliance use is done.

Another item to watch was mentioned in Pat's email. The macerator toilet uses a lot of water; even when you set the bowl level low. We try to use only the half bath gravity toilet and our water lasts much longer.
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Old 01-14-2017, 04:37 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 757driver View Post
If you turn off an inverter it does not shut down that inverters charger.
Is this so even if you turn off the inverter circuit breaker? I thought if you turn off the CB the inverter will stop charging thus saving some of your 30A to be used by something else.
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Old 01-14-2017, 05:28 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marcosdad View Post
Don't know about the '17s, but I can run 2 A/Cs on 30 if I turn the battery chargers down to 5 amp, turn off the electric Aqua Hot element and watch what else I try to run. On our old fashioned model, it will load shed to try and keep the load within limits. I assume that the newer ones will do that as well.

Actually they don't, Stew!

Using an RV with limited power, was apparently not ever discussed with Firefly, by the electrical engineer from Entegra. In fact, Entegra's EE and Firefly seemed to be completely unaware that we ROUTINELY dial back the chargers when presented with less than 50amp service. They do now understand that we don't always go from 50amp to 50amp. Nor did they understand that we would need to control shore power settings to limit the charger draw. They didn't even consider that we would store the coach plugged in to 15amp service so we could keep the refer running and batteries charged. When I brought my coach home and plugged in to 15 amp service, I blew the house breaker several times, and finally had to use my generator the whole time.

So I finally got through to them by explaining it to Chuck Lasley and PJ, and they (Firefly) have begun to work with Magnum Energy to work thru the issues of working with less than 50amp shore power.

Just for your understanding of the issue, the inverter/charger is preset to look at the batteries state of charge, and if they are less than fully charged, it opens the gate and pushes as much power to the batteries as fast as possible (bulk charging), regardless of any other demands in the system. When we manually dial back shore power, we limit how much power goes to charging, giving us more power for cooling, lights, refer, microwave, etc.

I discovered these limitations as soon as I brought the coach home, and discovered there is absolutely NO mechanism for controlling charging. I have confidence this issue WILL be rectified, and the 2017's will receive an update. This system (Vegatouch) was sold to us with the understanding that the coach would do everything the 2016's could do, and more. That simply isn't true. But I have every confidence they will get it figured out, and make it right.

Pat


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