15 Amp Service Connection

Quote from: donc13 on December 17, 2017, 08:56:39 pm

Not really.  That breaker is designed to be inside a circuit oanel box that is NOT exposed to the elements.

LOL... maybe we build things differently... but I was planning on this being inside a weather resistant box, outside. After the 50A male plug, but before the 30A and 15A female sockets.

Quote

Your 30a shoreline is routed through the transfer s
Switch to your circuit breaker panel where BEFORE anything else, it goes thru a 30a breaker.

I have not dug into the wiring between the shore power hookup on the outside of the coach and the breaker panel. I am overdue there. I am under the impression that my 30A shorepower plugs into the pedestal, or adapter(s) attached to it.

Then it connects to the bulkhead/connector on the side of my camper. Inside, there is wiring that connects the bulkhead to the transfer switch. From the transfer switch, there is wiring leading to the breaker box in the coach. In this box is a 30A fuse that protects the wiring from the pedestal to the coach from damaging short circuits after the breaker box.

So if I am using the 50A to 30A /15A adapter, with my 30A shorepower plugged in, dont I have to have 50A (or ~6000W ) of draw before the pedestal breaker blows? HOPEFULLY having the breaker putting near twice the power in before tripping does not leave me with hot wire fire before it blows, as the wiring and equipment before the coach breaker box is designed for a 30A.

This is truly a 'belt and suspenders' scenario. If there was a HUGE problem with this, there would be many more electrical fires reported in RV's. The adapters would be banned. There is not, and they are not.

The important thing however, is that I feel MY coach is protected. And others may have the same feeling.

Imagine if you will... the adapter below -


But with small (2x4x2) accessible boxes inline with the 30 and 15 amp outlets.*  Inside each of the boxes are the appropriate breaker (15A or 30A) feeding that outlet. I am thinking small screw cover watertight boxes, as HOPEFULLY one doesnt need to reset the breakers on a regular basis.    This would be a simple and SAFE way to use a 50A adapter, and have a current protected 30A and 15A service from it.  The shore power cable, the outlet on the coach, the internal wiring, transfer switch and the supply line to the coach breaker box are now all protected properly by a 30A breaker, not a 50. The additional 15A, be it a 'cord through the window' or other configuration, is now protected by a 15A breaker, not a 50A breaker.


Aside from a minor weight gain of the adapter, I dont see a down side to this. I do see benefits.

The holiday season has me a bit slow on my projects right now, but I plan on getting the adapter, boxes and breakers soon.

As always, corrections welcome!! Please.

* Hm... maybe just one bigger box with both breakers. Might be easier to work with. As usual, at work thinking about camper projects. 





 
 

Your easiest, cheapest route is to either turn off your heater or your water heater when you use the microwave.

You are overengineering and overthinking.

Yep. We have named it 'Belt and suspenders' 

Your easiest, cheapest route is to either turn off your heater or your water heater when you use the microwave.
True. The word we were focusing on is 'safest'.

There is no such thing as a waterproof circuit breaker box.

TRULY waterproof? to depth? Not in my budget. 
An I going for any ratings/certifications/ 'UL' type listing. No. Even the 50A to 30A adapter specs say "No Certifications or Listings"
source - https://www.homedepot.com/p/Connecticut-Electric-50-30-Amp-Outlet-Adapter-CESMAD5030/202714807?cm_mmc=Shopping%7cTHD%7cG%7c0%7cG-VF-PLA-D27E-Electrical%7c&gclid=CjwKCAiAsejRBRB3EiwAZft7sP9qzioS015yWpTfpjxO2JQtjnQ20EZg6N2brzR-tiBZqb-U8r4aIxoC2OIQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CLGI0ZjimdgCFcl8wQods8AP9A

The box I sourced is rated 'IP-67'
 IP-67 is 'waterproof' for the purposes of my discussion. "" IP "" = "Ingress Protection" or "what gets in".  6 is "no" dust, and 7 is "Protected against the effects of immersion in water to depth between 15 cm and 1 meter" Water PROOF? No. Not necessary. At the point this box is even 1 foot (~.3M ) underwater, my biggest concerns will NOT be if the breakers are getting wet.
Source - http://www.resourcesupplyllc.com/PDFs/WhatDoesIP67Mean.pdf

 

Look at your home... Whatever size your main breakers are, they are smaller that ANY breaker between the power company and your main breakers. And I doubt if any of the line breakers are as high an amperage as your main breakers.    You don't worry about a 100a breaker feeding a 15a breaker do you.

No, but if you look earlier you will find advice in this thread to have a 50A breaker feeding a 15A cord.. and said cord fed through a window as some may do on a cold winter night..  with no breaker in between. This whole project is to add that protection, and now the GFCI also. An added benefit is that the 30A outlet will now be protected by a proper 30A breaker, not a 50A.
 Oh yeah..and lightning protection. I live in the lightning capitol of the US, within 'Lightning Alley'. We plan to have many in-state trips in our coach.

It's certainly your RV, do to it what you want.  I am just offering advice.

THANK YOU! For even taking the time to post. I am here seeking advice from people MUCH more versed in RV travel than I am. 

Ok, my last comment.  There is NO circuit breaker that will prevent lightning damage to your house's or your RV's wiring.

NOt a strike, but 'lightning damage' ? Home Depot seems to think differently.. ""Siemens
20 Amp 6.5 in. Whole House Surge Protected-Circuit Breaker"" source - https://www.homedepot.com/p/Siemens-20-Amp-6-5-in-Whole-House-Surge-Protected-Circuit-Breaker-QSA2020SPDP/202562776  But not really a good match for my project at all.   Thats why I am using lightning arresters. https://www.alliedelec.com/hvca-he300/70016352/  one on each leg.

First, the electrons (electricity) in lightning move at the speed of light.  Circuit breakers are mechanically open or close the circuit so by the time your breaker opens the circuit, the electricity has already entered your wiring, found a ground and jumped to it.

Good grief. You do have Google right?

1) Electrons move HOW fast? A calculation shows that the electron is traveling at about 2,200 kilometers per second. That's less than 1% of the speed of light, but it's fast enough to get it around the Earth in just over 18 seconds.   Source - https://education.jlab.org/qa/electron_01.html

2) Maybe you meant the lightning flash.. The return stroke (the current that cause the visible flash) moves upward at a speed of about 320,000,000 ft per second or about 220,000,000 miles per hour (about 1/3 the speed of light). source - http://www.maine.gov/mema/prepare/prep_display.shtml?163524




Second, the lightning just jumped across about a mile of air (an insulator), do you really think a 1/2 air gap once the breaker opens is going to stop the lightning?

No. Nothing I am aware of will stop a direct lightning strike. Like WATERPROOF, nothing is truly LIGHTNINGPROOF.  Perhaps one  should consider the source of the majority of lightning strike damages are not the strike itself, but the surrounding effects. ""Lightning can strike the air conductors directly and surge voltages, even from kilometres away, can enter into your installation. This surge voltage is then passed to ground through your equipment which can lead to damage or complete destruction of your equipment.""  Little too much info to post here, but it is from South Africa, the Lightning Capital of the WORLD, not just the USA. Well worth reading. Source - http://www.clearline.co.za/how-lightning-affects-electronics

Nuff said.

Well,  thank you for the enlightenment.  I did learn a few things from your post, hope you did the same. Please do not hesitate to keep posting.