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adguy · 03-19-2023, 09:52 PM

I have a 2016 Tiffin Open Road with two a/c units and a residential fridge and all the usual accessories. My question, what can I run on 30 amps. The place I’m at for two weeks this summer has no 50 amp service. Is it okay to do this for a couple of weeks or should I avoid this stop.

shootist · 03-19-2023, 10:02 PM

1 ac , fridge, tv. Electric water heater will have to rotate with the ac. Remember your battery charging is going to kick on and off at will.

YC1 · 03-19-2023, 10:13 PM

Run WH on propane to keep that load off.

You probably have some sort of load shedding that will drop off certain items when the current demand gets too high.

You may be able to program your charger down to a low percentage to keep that draw light.

Had our RV on a 30 amp lot for a year on a lake. Only one AC at a time.

twinboat · 03-19-2023, 10:51 PM

You can run what a 30 amp RV can.

We have one A/C, convection microwave, converter/charger, a few TVs, fridge on A/C, coffee maker.
Water heater is gas only.

Duster73 · 03-20-2023, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by twinboat

You can run what a 30 amp RV can.

We have one A/C, convection microwave, converter/charger, a few TVs, fridge on A/C, coffee maker.
Water heater is gas only.

This is it exactly! Only thing I change is the hot water heater. I turn that on for 20 minutes before the shower and dont run the microwave at the same time everything else is on. Honestly the water will stay hot all day until you use it.

I usually camp at 30A sites even though we have a 50A trailer. So pretty much everything can be ran except the second ac unit.

Although on a couple very hot days, I ran the refrigerator and two ac units on 30A. But nothing else. (one 15k and one 13,500 btu, and the smaller ac was on low)

Also if you happen to run to much at once, it just trips the breaker. So then you know not to run that much again.

Gary RVRoamer · 03-21-2023, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adguy

I have a 2016 Tiffin Open Road with two a/c units and a residential fridge and all the usual accessories. My question, what can I run on 30 amps. The place I’m at for two weeks this summer has no 50 amp service. Is it okay to do this for a couple of weeks or should I avoid this stop.

It's OK to use it indefinitely; won't hurt anything except maybe your patience when you occasionally trip the breaker for the site's outlet. As others have said, the lesser amperage simply limits how much you can run at any one time.

Odds are your RV has some sort of 30A load management that detects when the power source is limited to 30A and monitors your power usage to keep it below 30A, thus avoiding nuisance breaker trips. It does this by switching off (shedding) one or more loads if the total gets too high. You may have a display somewhere that looks like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Intellitec-00.../dp/B072R8BTW7

YC1 · 03-21-2023, 03:06 PM

With some load shedding systems such as my Intellitec, it will monitor the current and if it runs constantly close to the 30 amp limit it will begin reducing that to around 24 amps.

I believe it is an average run of three hours.

So don't be surprised if you need to keep the load closer to 24.

Tha_Rooster · 03-22-2023, 05:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adguy

I have a 2016 Tiffin Open Road with two a/c units and a residential fridge and all the usual accessories. My question, what can I run on 30 amps. The place I’m at for two weeks this summer has no 50 amp service. Is it okay to do this for a couple of weeks or should I avoid this stop.

It is possible if not careful to melt a 50 to 30 reducer so watch your loads even if your unit sheds power.

twinboat · 03-22-2023, 07:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tha_Rooster

It is possible if not careful to melt a 50 to 30 reducer so watch your loads even if your unit sheds power.

If the adaptor melts, it's due to a bad connection and heat.

The outlet is protected with a 30 amp breaker, you can't draw more then that.

Gary RVRoamer · 03-22-2023, 01:27 PM

Many lower-cost 50/30 adapters are built to meet the minimum requirements for a 30A rating, which is 24A sustained and 30A peak for up to 30 minutes. It's not hard on a 50A RV to run at a steady 24-28 amps for a long enough time to overheat & maybe melt those adapters. And it gets worse if the contacts get worn or dirty.

The solid puck style adapters are the worst because they don't shed heat well; the pigtail type with the plug separated from the receptacle by several inches of wire is better (or at least safer).

twinboat · 03-22-2023, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

Many lower-cost 50/30 adapters are built to meet the minimum requirements for a 30A rating, which is 24A sustained and 30A peak for up to 30 minutes.

.

How do you know that ?

Besides, it's 2 hours not 30 minutes.

adguy · 03-22-2023, 07:02 PM

Thanks for the input everyone. Appreciate it.

powercat_ras · 03-22-2023, 08:44 PM

Note there are a couple things that can tip you over in particular on a 50 AMP shore cable RV ...

If you have a Norcold 1200 series in 120 VAC mode, it will cycle 5 amps on and off. Compressor refrigerator much less, only 1-2 amps.

Your typical 45 or 55 amp rated Converter Charger will draw 5-6 amps until it drops out of bulk charge mode, then 2-3 amps in boost mode and finally about 1 amp in float mode. They always start out in bulk charge mode when first powered up and typically take at least 60 seconds to drop out of bulk mode even if the batteries are above 80% state of charge.

Another consideration is that when sizing loads on a circuit it is recommended that you keep the load at or below 80% of the circuit breaker and wire size rating. The wire and circuit breaker are sized so that nothing overheats at 100% load. I have a 30A RV and deal with this all the time and find that the max continuous load to stay below so that a breaker does not nuisance trip is about 26 or 27 amps (90 %).

DuaneMiller · 03-23-2023, 11:10 AM

I keep my all electric 50A coach parked as a home base all summer in a mostly 30A campground, and have no issues. I do have to keep an eye on what I try to use (or start) at once. I know I can't run all 3 a/c's at once, or use the microwave while using a hair dryer, but as others have mentioned, you can run what you can on any other 30A coach.

Chances are, if you stray over the line, the breaker at the post will trip before the coach will... In other words, you'll be fine...