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lostagain View Drop Down
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Posts: 2595 		Direct Link To This Post Topic: 50 or 30 amp
    Posted: 01 Feb 2019 at 6:46am
StephenH, you have a very important need for power and for you, using the 50A dogbone makes sense.  I count my blessings that so far, I don't have health issues that necessitate a consistent supply of electric power.
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Fred & Maria Kearney
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Posts: 2702 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 9:22pm
Originally posted by lostagain

Sounds reasonable to me.  If you use care in not overloading the circuit, you will probably be fine for as long as you use an RV.  But it is good to know of the issue so you can use care not to run too much stuff at the same time.
If you're going by stuff plugged into your R-pod, you will never overload the 50 amp outlet, and you will never overload the 30 amp cord because the R-pod main breaker is 30 amps. As long as the power cord and the wiring between the R-pod outside plug and the main panel are in good shape, you are as good as gold.
bp
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StephenH View Drop Down
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Posts: 6417 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 9:08pm
Originally posted by lostagain

I confess, I'm not going to go out and buy a 50A dogbone for the off chance that the 30A plug ain't working.  I'll get by with the 20A or battery and not worry about it.  It's not that I'm risk averse, but more that I'm a minimalist and don't need many electrons.

I use a CPAP machine and when the weather is cool and the furnace is running, I don't want to run on batteries alone for several days and risk running out of power. While we frequently stop and operate on batteries for a few days in mild weather, when it is really hot or cold, I would like the option of plugging in. I'm not going to go out and buy a 50A to 30A dog bone either. The one time I needed it, the RV campground supplied it. The 20A would work for cold weather. However, in hot weather, it is better for my wife and her asthma to have power for the AC. 20A would work, but if  I am plugged in and paying for it, I would prefer to run the AC and run the microwave as needed or also run our induction cooktop or my coffee maker at the same time while also running the water heater on AC. 20A just would not suffice for that.
StephenH
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lostagain View Drop Down
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Posts: 2595 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 6:41pm
Sounds reasonable to me.  If you use care in not overloading the circuit, you will probably be fine for as long as you use an RV.  But it is good to know of the issue so you can use care not to run too much stuff at the same time.  

At my advanced age, I've decided that skydiving is not in my best interest, though it may be in the interest of Dr. Orr, my orthopaedist, or the local funeral director.  On the other hand, while we're here in Colombia, there are lots of very remote places I plan to visit, though some say it's risky.  One risk I always try to avoid is getting stuck on an escalator.  It's really embarrassing.  ;--)
Never leave footprints behind.
Fred & Maria Kearney
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Posts: 3419 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 6:40pm
SH,

+1 - I agree with you, I check things also. No issues. It's about being a camper who inspects, checks and limits risk.
Mike Carter
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Posts: 3419 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 6:28pm
Lostagain,

Understand. Happy for your decision. Mine is to continue to use my adapter, which has been sold for years. I only use when necessary and have NEVER had an issue. I'll accept the risk. Like I do every other risk. If my life was about risk, I'd never get on the highway.
Mike Carter
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lostagain View Drop Down
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Posts: 2595 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 6:10pm
I confess, I'm not going to go out and buy a 50A dogbone for the off chance that the 30A plug ain't working.  I'll get by with the 20A or battery and not worry about it.  It's not that I'm risk averse, but more that I'm a minimalist and don't need many electrons.
Never leave footprints behind.
Fred & Maria Kearney
Sonoma 167RB
Our Pod 172
2019 Ford F-150 4x4 2.7 EcoBoost
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StephenH View Drop Down
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Posts: 6417 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 6:04pm
Originally posted by GlueGuy

Yah. Sometimes we get carried away. Heard a discussion  (on the radio) the other day talking about shark attacks. They are very rare. In fact, they noted that you are more likely to be hit on the head by a falling coconut than be bit by a shark. 

By the same token, the number of fires caused and/or property damaged and/or people hurt using a 50 amp to 30 amp dogbone that is not fused is most likely statistically insignificant. Maybe kind of like gas stations exploding because of lit propane refrigerators.


Why is it hard to find coconuts on trees in Hawaii? Because the public works people go around and cut the coconuts off the ones in public areas to prevent people from getting hit by a falling coconut.

We always have risks. One has to decide whether the risk is small enough to take the proposed course of action. I try to make sure my R-Pod's wiring and my power cord (plus my 30A extension cord) at home are in good shape and rated for the load. I have only had one instance where there was no 30A power outlets available. If I wanted power, I needed to use a 50A to 30A dog bone. It was either that or stay at the RV park without shore power. I judged the risk to be acceptable and used the dog bone.

Another time, we pulled into one site. I plugged in my circuit analyzer (my usual practice) to check the power and discovered the post was incorrectly wired. I changed sites to one where the circuit analyzer okayed the power. Then I plugged in my RPod. The owner was unaware there was a problem so informing him meant that it could be fixed before someone got hurt. In that case, the risk was way too high to use that site even though the outlet was the correct 30A rating.
StephenH
Happy is the man that findeth wisdom,...

ouR escaPOD mods
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Posts: 3419 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 5:12pm
Lostagain,

There is absolutely nothing that says the fire would be in the Pod, unless it had to do with your cord storage. The fire would be in the power cord, if and only if the scenario was met. There is much more risk to fire when using extension cords to power your Pod. Not denying risk, but miniscule compared to other causes of fire in RVs.

Here is challenge, find one case of a fire caused by the interweb substantiated risk, Off Grid has used?
Mike Carter
2015 178
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GlueGuy View Drop Down
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Posts: 2702 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: 31 Jan 2019 at 5:09pm
Yah. Sometimes we get carried away. Heard a discussion  (on the radio) the other day talking about shark attacks. They are very rare. In fact, they noted that you are more likely to be hit on the head by a falling coconut than be bit by a shark. 

By the same token, the number of fires caused and/or property damaged and/or people hurt using a 50 amp to 30 amp dogbone that is not fused is most likely statistically insignificant. Maybe kind of like gas stations exploding because of lit propane refrigerators.
bp
2017 R-Pod 179 Hood River
2015 Ford F150 SuperCrew 4WD 3.5L Ecoboost
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