I Got the Power! November 16, 2023, 11:43:35 am This was long on my wish list when we lived in Tehachapi but the meter was too far away. No problems here in Paso! 4 Likes
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #1 – November 16, 2023, 12:28:03 pm I notice that your panel has two 30 A breakers. Make sure you're not getting 220VAC at the receptacle. Use a meter across the outside contacts. There should only be one 30 A leg to the recepticle. This is a common mistake that could ruin your day. Ron
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #2 – November 16, 2023, 12:36:38 pm Thanks for the caution, Ron! I won't have Nocona here until tomorrow but will be sure to check that before plugging in. The electrician who installed it (I don't trust myself) has experience with RV outlets so hopefully it's right but I'll double-check!
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #3 – November 16, 2023, 04:39:30 pm "This was long on my wish list when we lived in Tehachapi... No problems here in Paso!"Your lashup is identical to mine with one exception; My breaker box is on the opposite side of the house from my RV power outlet. I've had shore power for the Lazy Bones several years now with great results! 2 Likes
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #4 – November 17, 2023, 12:27:46 am Quote from: terrasailor2000 - November 16, 2023, 12:28:03 pmThere should only be one 30 A leg to the recepticle. This is a common mistake that could ruin your day. RonGood eyes Ron.That definitely is a 240 volt breaker. The electrician may have familiar with installing 50 amp service. It’s worth checking out.Larry
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #5 – November 17, 2023, 02:41:24 am I agree with Ron and Larry. Good catch. The socket is the right one, a TT-30R for a 30A hookup. I'd feel better if there were another socket there, a Nema 14-50R, for a 50A hookup. (Someday you might have a rig with more power required.) I would want an additional 20A standard duplex socket, like in a campground, in case you wanted to run additional tools like an air compressor or for other external power needs. If your electrician wrote the ink markings I would be very concerned that he put in two 30A breakers for what should be just one 110vAC 30A connection. If you did plug in to 220V with a miswired plug it could blow out almost every 110V piece of equipment you have and be very expensive! (thousands of dollars!) I'm betting it is wired with 220VAC. RonB
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #6 – November 17, 2023, 11:36:30 am It sure look's to me like you are wired 220V. Should be 30 amp single pole breaker and a neutral.Jon
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #7 – November 17, 2023, 06:59:44 pm I took off the plate on the electrical panel and took a photo of the wiring. Does this confirm that it is wired correctly?
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #8 – November 17, 2023, 07:50:38 pm Greg, yes, the wiring from the breaker panel is correct. The only other thing to check is which lug on the 30amp socket the positive black wire connects to. The positive lug is usually brass colored and the negative white wire lug is colored silver. The center lug is for the ground wire. On the issue of your changing all the fluids I have been advised by a trusted Ford technician that the transmission fluid should be replaced at 60,000 miles as it is a specific synthetic oil. The rear differential oil is also synthetic and can go a long time. The radiator fluid is the yellow 5-year type and does need changing every five years. I wouldn’t worry about the front king pins lubricant. Even at 116,000 miles my Monty had no play in the joints. At around 70,000 miles you should change out the serpentine fan belt. It’s good to carry a spare belt. The spark plugs and coils are good for around 90,000 miles. Brake fluid should be flushed every 2-3 years. Front brake pads should be checked around 60,000 miles. The rear brake pads should go longer. I’m sure others may have a different opinion on this but that’s why this forum is so valuable. Welcome to your new home 🏡. Mike C 3 Likes
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #9 – November 17, 2023, 10:08:53 pm Thanks for the confirmation, Mike, as well as the information on the fluids. I did plug in my portable surge protector and confirmed that the voltage was correct. I haven’t plugged in the RV yet, but that’s the next step.Ron B, there are also two duplex 110V outlets spaced along the exterior wall of the house near the RV but not sure if they are 20 amp. How can you tell?👍👍
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #10 – November 17, 2023, 10:09:22 pm Thanks for checking Greg now I can sleep tonight. A single pole breaker would be best to eliminate future doubt. If you wanted 230v in the future for something else it would be easy to do. You are always limited to 30 amps or less because of wire size.Jon 1 Likes
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #11 – November 17, 2023, 10:14:46 pm Hi, Jon. I think my electrician just used an existing breaker that was in the panel but I’m not sure about that. Sleep well! 😊
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #12 – November 18, 2023, 02:34:43 am Hi Greg; Yes you should be safe. The electrician should have removed the double breaker handle link, but if he was using a spare, at least you don't have to guess which 30A breaker it is. The lower one is connected to the internal 'hot' buss bar. But with no wire attached to the output terminal of the breaker, it is ok. It can only be 110V AC. As for Jon that looks like 10 gauge to me, and and is suitable for the 30 A breaker. You would need a 50A double breaker for something like a diesel pusher. At that time you could upgrade the wire and change to a 50 A outlet (4 wire). Mike is right you should test the socket installation for correct wiring. Plugging in your surge protector tested that. A 20A 110v outlet has a 'T' shaped hole for the neutral blade. Equipment that has to have 20A will have a matching 'T' blade on the plug. Lower current requiring equipment will still plug in with the plug you are used to seeing. Or you could turn off breakers until those outlets go off, and the number on the breaker handle will indicate the amperage rating. Outside outlets are required to have GFCI somewhere, so usually the breaker will have a test button. Those outlets may be in common with bathroom and kitchen outlets inside the house. I always use outlets inside that are individually GFCI protected, so a whole string doesn't go dead at once. You know which one to reset because it's the only one with the green light off. RonB 2 Likes
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #13 – November 18, 2023, 02:51:25 pm Quote from: RonB - November 18, 2023, 02:34:43 am Outside outlets are required to have GFCI somewhere, so usually the breaker will have a test button. When I installed our home RV 30-amp outlet 29 years ago, 30-amp GFIC breakers were not available. Checking now, they are available and are recommended. I need to upgrade our outlet.30-AMP GFIC CIRCUIT BREAKER at DuckDuckGoLarry
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #14 – November 18, 2023, 05:15:44 pm Long ago I plugged the motorhome into a GFI protected RV outlet and it wouldn't allow connection. Some electrical component in the coach triggered the GFI even though all the electrical systems worked flawlessly when plugged in a non protected outlet. If there was a serious problem in the coach my built in surge guard would have shut the system down but that didn't happen on the non protected outlet. Possibly the GFI was too sensitive or defective, there was no way of knowing. I have five 50-amp RV outlets and two 30-amp outlets (all unprotected) on our property and have never had anyone have a ground fault problem using them. This is just my observation.Mike C 2 Likes
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #15 – November 19, 2023, 09:31:45 am Quote from: Larry W - November 18, 2023, 02:51:25 pmWhen I installed our home RV 30-amp outlet 29 years ago, 30-amp GFIC breakers were not available. Checking now, they are available and are recommended. I need to upgrade our outlet.30-AMP GFIC CIRCUIT BREAKER at DuckDuckGoLarryI wouldn't want a GFCI breaker. I got lucky here. I bought the parts to install a 30A outlet in the shed near the RV and was going to reuse a single pole 30A breaker in the sub panel. When I went to get started I noticed there already was an RV outlet installed. Been using it for years now.
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #16 – November 19, 2023, 10:18:38 am Quote from: Mike Coachman - November 18, 2023, 05:15:44 pmLong ago I plugged the motorhome into a GFI protected RV outlet and it wouldn't allow connection. Some electrical component in the coach triggered the GFI even though all the electrical systems worked flawlessly when plugged in a non protected outlet. If there was a serious problem in the coach my built in surge guard would have shut the system down but that didn't happen on the non protected outlet. Possibly the GFI was too sensitive or defective, there was no way of knowing.Years ago, I plugged in at friend's home while visiting him. The GFI breaker popped; plugging into a standard breaker and everything functioned well. I eventually traced the cause to one of those small, plug-in circuit testers I carried in the motorhome to test campground circuits before plugging into them.EOHELGRO Outlet Tester, Socket Tester for GFCI/Standard North American AC...I'd left it plugged into a socket on the motorhome; somehow, it had developed enough leakage to trip a GFI breaker, even though the tester still worked otherwise. Oh, the irony of a circuit tester causing a problem it was supposed to test for! I didn't have built-in AC line protection on that motorhome, but I suspect it would not have detected a problem in the motorhome. 1 Likes As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #17 – November 19, 2023, 04:59:48 pm Finally got around to plugging in to test everything. All is well!
Re: I Got the Power! Reply #18 – November 19, 2023, 05:44:24 pm "Finally got around to plugging [it] in..."GregLike your usage of the "Kill A Watt" device as a power monitor! They also come in handy to determine the load on a singular appliance. ;D ;) Here's what I've been using since the Last Supper!Amazon.com: Prime Products 12-4056 AC Voltage Line Meter : Tools & Home... 1 Likes As an Amazon Associate Lazy Daze Owners' Group earns from qualifying purchases.
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