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Old 11-13-2021, 07:24 AM   #1
KathyAnn
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30 AMP Plug replacement

Thank you for reading my post.

A person told me there was no problem plugging in a RV 30 amp into a 50 amp pedestal. Well, now I know you need to get the adapter and surge protector.

While there was some melting on the plug, the trailer had only a little flicker of lights when I shut off the power. The computers and monitors were on fine.

I believe I only need to replace the plug, not the cord, and, of course, now use the adapter and surge protector.

I wondering if anyone who has real knowledge agrees with my belief or not.

Thank you in advance.
Kathy
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Old 11-13-2021, 07:28 AM   #2
chuckster57
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You actually tried to plug a 30A RV cord into a 50A RV receptacle?

You MIGHT get lucky replacing just the end, but I might be inclined to replace the whole cord since there is no way to inspect the entire length. You may have hidden damage and if that the case just replacing the end you might have bigger issues.
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Old 11-13-2021, 08:02 AM   #3
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Thank you for the information.


I know you can't give me a real quote, yet I'm hoping you can give me a ball park of what you think it would cost to replace the whole cord.


Thank you again for the info.
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Old 11-13-2021, 08:55 AM   #4
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Forget my other question. I find the end of the power cord attached to the trailer. Now I just need to find where to buy one like it.


Thanks again for you time and knowledge.
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Old 11-13-2021, 09:28 AM   #5
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If you have a "permanently attached RV shore power cord" you can buy an RV extension cord at any RV store or even at WalMart, cut off the female end and directly wire that to the terminal box inside your "mouse hole/cord storage compartment"...

If you have a "detachable RV shore power cord" you'll need to take that cord with you (or have it handy) so you can identify the "trailer end" of the cord to assure you buy a matching power cord. There are 3 or 4 different types of "trailer ends" that connect to various brands of "trailer plugs"... All are not interchangeable with each other, so you'll need to identify what you have and buy one that's the same....

While you're inspecting your trailer to see "what the trailer end looks like" be sure to "critically inspect those connectors as well"... If you melted the plug end of your power cord, you also might have melted the trailer end, so make sure the entire system is undamaged, don't just plug a new cord into a shorted out/melted/burned out trailer receptacle.....

Inspect the ENTIRE system before powering on the trailer.....
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Old 11-13-2021, 10:06 AM   #6
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You can expect to pay about $2.00 a foot for a 30 amp RV trailer cord. Doing a Google searching and comparing prices (which do vary from vendor to vendor).

As stated above, if yours is hard wired to a junction box inside the camper, you can get a regular cord with plugs on both ends, and cut the end that wires into the junction box.

If you do get a surge protector / EMS system, you'll need to get a 30 amp, not the 50. With the correct adaptors, you can run an adaptor from a 50 amp pedistal, to the 30 amp protector, and then to your camper. You do not want to get a 50 amp protector for a 30 amp camper.

I have both, a 30 amp Hughes Autofoamer, and a 50 amp Progressive EMS (portable) as mine is a 50 amp camper, and a bunch of adapters and different kinds of pig tails to step up and step down from 50 amp down to 15, .. and 15 up to 50.... like the boy scouts ... always be prepared).
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Old 11-13-2021, 10:31 AM   #7
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Thank you for the detailed and extremely helpful information.


Kathy
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Old 11-13-2021, 10:33 AM   #8
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Is the cable detachable at both ends? If so you can get replacement 30A cables on Amazon or at a RV store in varying lengths. If it is hardwired you need to check out what kind of connections are on the trailer end - would definitely replace it.

I don't know how you plugged a 30A cable into a 50A receptacle but if you did make sure you check everything that was plugged into those outlets, all the appliances and the wiring in general. The two are very different and you could have sustained unseen damage.

Posting the info about your trailer; ;make, model and year would be greatly beneficial when trying to answer questions. Just go to the user CP in the upper left corner and fill out your signature with that information.
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Old 11-13-2021, 11:01 AM   #9
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Thank you for responding.



I ordered a 30 amp surge protector, 50 amp to 30 amp rv adapter and 25 ft 30 amp extension cord.
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Old 11-13-2021, 11:23 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KathyAnn View Post
Thank you for responding.



I ordered a 30 amp surge protector, 50 amp to 30 amp rv adapter and 25 ft 30 amp extension cord.
A surge protector is a waste of money. The vast amoubt of damage to RV electrical systems are not caused by surges. An EMS (electrical managment system) will protect against the issues that do create damage such as a pedestal that wired incorreftly, excessively high voltage and low voltage.

If you somehow plugged your 30 amp plug into a 50 smp receptical I'd strongly urge you to get an electrician or an RV tech to check out the electrical system in your RV. That activity typically will do serious damage inside the camper.
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Old 11-13-2021, 12:16 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KathyAnn View Post
Thank you for reading my post.

A person told me there was no problem plugging in a RV 30 amp into a 50 amp pedestal. Well, now I know you need to get the adapter and surge protector.

While there was some melting on the plug, the trailer had only a little flicker of lights when I shut off the power. The computers and monitors were on fine.

I believe I only need to replace the plug, not the cord, and, of course, now use the adapter and surge protector.

I wondering if anyone who has real knowledge agrees with my belief or not.

Thank you in advance.
Kathy
A 30 amp plug will not fit into a 50 amp receptacle unless you use an adapter. Are you saying you connected to a 30 amp plug on a pedestal that has both a 30 and 50 amp receptacle? If so that is not what xaused your problem.
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Old 11-13-2021, 12:46 PM   #12
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A side note -- I've found that buying lengths of RV power cord untipped is actually more expensive than buying them pre-tipped with plugs and attachments. Often it's cheaper to buy a pretipped power cord and then cut the RV end off to wire into your mousehole (assuming that's what you need), than it is to buy a raw cable and add a pedestal-end plug. It's also safer overall to use the factory-installed pedestal end.
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Old 11-13-2021, 02:28 PM   #13
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My plan is to hire an RV electrician. I can return the surge protector.



How I happened to plug my 30 amp plug into a 50 amp pedestal was me telling the person at the RV park that my trailer needed a 30 amp pedestal and him saying 'no it doesn't; it's just fine to plug a 30 amp RV into a 50 amp pedestal and I completely believed him. Have not yet had the pleasure to educate him so in the future he doesn't say that to a person again.


Thanks again for your time.
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Old 11-13-2021, 02:49 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KathyAnn View Post
How I happened to plug my 30 amp plug into a 50 amp pedestal was me telling the person at the RV park that my trailer needed a 30 amp pedestal and him saying 'no it doesn't; it's just fine to plug a 30 amp RV into a 50 amp pedestal and I completely believed him. Have not yet had the pleasure to educate him so in the future he doesn't say that to a person again.
I suspect you're new at this and you're still not understanding the question.

A 30A plug and a 50A socket have nowhere near the same prong configuration (photo 2). It is physically impossible to plug a 30A plug into a 50A socket (unless you want to get really jiggy with the Vise-Grips).

The proper way to do this is with an adapter that has a male 50A and a female 30A (photo 1). These are used by thousands of RVers every day, are 100% within code, and work just fine, as long as they are good quality and wired by a trustworthy company (*cough*notChina*cough*).†

If your campground had a 30A socket with 50A wired to it, they're violating electrical code (and blowing up other people's RVs). If they had you use a 50A-30A adapter and your plug ended up like this, the adapter was miswired.

As long as you'll be hiring an RV electrician, consider buying a wired-in EMS and having him install it. Popular brands include Hughes and Progressive. They're not cheap, but they're much cheaper than rewiring your RV because some campground hired a shade-tree electrician.

†Actually, many trustworthy US brands like Camco have much of their stuff fabbed in China. I'm talking about the cut-rate cords you find on Amazon, sold by companies that named themselves after a handful of thrown Scrabble dice.
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Old 11-13-2021, 03:11 PM   #15
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OMG. So, at the pole where all the lots' electric goes; I mean the pole that has the round glass things that show each lot usage, when I open the place that contains the breaker for my lot it shows 50; I guess that's a fuse?. Does this mean this lot gets sent 50 amps to the 30 amp pedestal?



Once again it shows how clueless the guy was because he should have told me the pedestal was 30 amp and explained why it said 50 amps at the pole. I thought he knew and really he's was clueless as me.



I eagerly await your reply. You're are really saving me with your knowledge.
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Old 11-13-2021, 03:25 PM   #16
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Many campgrounds have 50A or more going to all their pedestals, and offer a box that looks like the attached photo. The 50A breaker serves the 50A socket, the 30A breaker serves the 30A socket, and the 15/20A breaker serves the 15/20A socket. This is the ideal service pedestal, and is perfectly safe if wired properly.

Some campgrounds have spaces dedicated to 30A only or 50A only, with only one socket in the pedestal. Less convenient, but still safe, as long as the breaker matches the socket and it is wired properly.

What might help us all is to see a clear photo of the pedestal you used, if you're still there. Ideally with no cables plugged into it so we can see the outlets.
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Old 11-13-2021, 04:59 PM   #17
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This picture may not be clear enough. Let me know if it needs to be better and I'll use another camera.



My disabled son and I live in our RV full time; it's out tiny home.


Thanks again for your time. I so appreciate this.
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Old 11-13-2021, 05:02 PM   #18
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Bad pic, but bigger.
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Old 11-13-2021, 05:04 PM   #19
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That sure looks like an RV 30A plug. There are 3 wire 220V plugs, but the blade layout is different.

At this point I would question the outlet wiring.
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Old 11-13-2021, 05:18 PM   #20
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Some background, something, of the RV you have, age, what you've done etc. would go a long way to being able to answer your questions accurately.

The park receptacle is either wired wrong, wore out or your cable/receptacle is miswired. Your pic is of a 30A RV plug and the burned male plug is right for the receptacle barring any other "malfunctions" somehow.
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