Using Air Conditioner when connected to house.

[jac3i]

We just picked up our new 321RES travel trailer yesterday. The trailer has 50 amp service. We have step down plugs a 30 to 50 amp and a 15 to 30 amp. Can the air conditioner be run off household current?

[Johnnyfry]

If you plan on using the unit at home for guests etc, the 15 amp will come up short. If you can get a 30 amp outlet installed you should be fine unless you plan on running the microwave and coffeemaker simultaneously.

A 15 amp circuit with nothing else on it might start the AC in moderate weather, but if it is hot outside the refrigerant pressure will be higher and the circuit will trip out. If it does run you will be able to run very litte else, if anything, in the trailer.

John

[GMcKenzie]

If it does run you will be able to run very litte else, if anything, in the trailer.


This includes you battery charger, which you really can't shut off. I've managed to run my old one on a 20 amp circuit I have for a small welder I use, but even that is pushing it.

[dave67]

Spend the $100 or so and have a 30 amp put in you will love it.I put one in this Spring and with the outlet and box and Wire it was around $100 and I did the install.

[jac3i]

Wife and I discussed adding 30 amp service out of the house, This is the route we are going to go. Wife is calling the electrician tomorrow. Thanks for the help.

[jerseyphil]

I just purchased a Progressive brand Cheater Box from Tweetys.com.
You plug your 50 Amp cord into the cheater box. Coming out the other side of the box is TWO cables that can be plugged into two circuits consolidating the power from both circuits into your 50 Amp cable.

It is marketed as consolidating one 30 Amp circuit and one 20 Amp circuit giving a combined 50 Amps. The Cheater Box comes with an adapter on the 30 Amp side converting it to a 20 Amp plug.

I haven't used it yet, but will be testing it out soon when I try two 15 Amp circuits to see if it will give me 30 Amps. I think it will work.

Anyone out there try this yet?

[Johnnyfry]

Well ----sort of. The 50 amp circuit brings in both sides of the 120/240 volt line so that you can pull 50 X 240 = 12,000 watts even though you do not have any actual 240 volt circuits. Using a 30 amp adapter you can pull 30 X 120 = 3,600 watts. In theory you can use the cheater box to pull 6,000 watts
( 120 X 30 = 3,600 W plus 120 X 20 = 2,400 w for a total of 6.000 w)

Unfortunately it doesn't usually work out that way in some situations. Many campgrounds have a GFCI outlet on the 20 amp side which will usual trip out when connected in this way.

It is worth a try to see if you can get some extra juice when you need it, but don't be surprised if you run into the above mentioned problem.

John

[jerseyphil]

Well ----sort of. The 50 amp circuit brings in both sides of the 120/240 volt line so that you can pull 50 X 240 = 12,000 watts even though you do not have any actual 240 volt circuits. Using a 30 amp adapter you can pull 30 X 120 = 3,600 watts. In theory you can use the cheater box to pull 6,000 watts
( 120 X 30 = 3,600 W plus 120 X 20 = 2,400 w for a total of 6.000 w)

Unfortunately it doesn't usually work out that way in some situations. Many campgrounds have a GFCI outlet on the 20 amp side which will usual trip out when connected in this way.

It is worth a try to see if you can get some extra juice when you need it, but don't be surprised if you run into the above mentioned problem.

John

The instructions with my box says it doesn't work with GFCI. I have two non-GFCI 15 Amp circuits I will be trying it with.

[mikell]

We lost an air conditioner to a low voltage campground a couple of years ago. Now we keep a power meter plugged in at all times to watch whats going on. If your going to have a 30 amp installed you might as well pay a little more and do the 50 you'll never regret it probably less than $30 more just another wire and a larger breaker. At home i put a box with a 50 and 2 20 ampers on the side of the barn and used it all the time. trailer was always plugged in and had 120 outlets to do other things or lighting.

I also put a dump station in at home and just called it a cleanout. Every time i came home would stop by the house for a day to unload and dump the tank at the same time. I had asked the township if I could put a dump in and it turned out to be such a nightmare I just put a cleanout in. Same thing different name and no inspector or permit?????