Power Cord Length - Page 2

golfpro · 02-19-2012, 09:36 PM

may I make a suggestion? You haven't picked up your new TT yet so there is still time to do this. Go to the dealer and and ask for a (at Least) 10% discount for the next ten years of buying RV accessories at his store. they want you to buy from them, get what you can. Some owners are very cheap minded and they are the ones out of business or they are the ones who don't sell a lot of units per year. You did them a favor by buying from them, they can pay you back by giving you a discount. And some parts run in the hundreds of dollars.

chuckneste · 10-14-2013, 06:15 PM

Hello Y'all,

I bought a 2005 Springdale 298 BH and I have only 6 ft of shoreline cord. I can not pull it out anymore. This will be retired to a rv lot and need about 15 ft of cord. Can someone point me in the right direction as I dont know how this plugs into the converter. I will have to peek tomorrow but the cord is definitely short and not hung. This is my 2nd trailer and I dont consider myself a noob. Any thoughts?

Chuck
Atlanta, GA

Festus2 · 10-14-2013, 06:21 PM

Chuck -
It's possible that the cord, if it is stored inside a compartment, pulled out and pushed in after use, has somehow managed to tie itself in a knot. The knot may be at the point where you can't pull it out any farther and you have ended up with a much shortened shoreline cord.

I've had this happen 2 or 3 times and had to remove a panel on the inside, untangle the knot and replace the panel. It became such a nuisance, I ended up cutting it and installing a Marinco conversion (30A) kit.

You must have more than 6 feet of cord --- somewhere.

chuckneste · 10-14-2013, 06:28 PM

Hi Festus, I seen other posts that pointed me to your post. I will look tomorrow. I had the camper for about 3 weeks and I bought it at yes, an Louisiana Fema auction for 6500. The awning is a mess and was removed and will be going to a home in the North Georgia Mountains with a roof over. The rest is pretty decent with new mattresses and very clean. I will post back with my findings and may post pics as well.

ThanksChuck

**JRTJH** · 10-14-2013, 06:34 PM

The Springdale power cord enters the RV through a hole and the cord is usually stuffed into a cabinet within the RV through that hole. The cord is attached to the RV wiring inside that cabinet. There is a metal junction box mounted on the floor of the cabinet and the 10 gage (orange sheath) Romex is tied to the power cord in the junction box. The 10 gage Romex goes from that junction box to the AC power distribution panel main breaker.

If you look carefully, you should find an access panel on the inside of the RV enclosing that cabinet. On our 242, the input cable was secured to the rear trailer wall with a strain type metal banding clip.

As Festus 2 said, it's common for the cord to get tangled up within itself and not pull through the hole. Going inside to locate the access will allow you to either untangle it, or if necessary, you can go to WalMart and buy a 30 amp extension cord in the RV section. Cut off the female end and remove/replace the existing "short cable" with one that's longer. My recommendation would be to leave as much length as possible. Just because you only need 15' now doesn't mean you won't wish for 25' when conditions change.....

chuckneste · 10-14-2013, 06:38 PM

Thanks all,

Once I get this fixed, it will be permanent as I dont plan on moving the camper again. Can this cord be shortened so I will draw less amps . Will a 15 ft cord be more efficient than a 25 ft cord ?

Thanks again,

diugo · 10-14-2013, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chuckneste

Will a 15 ft cord be more efficient than a 25 ft cord?

The maximum power loss in 20ft (10ft times 2 conductors) of #10AWG at 30A is a miniscule one half of one percent.

So I too vote to keep the cord its full 25ft length.

chuckneste · 10-15-2013, 06:39 PM

Hello All,

I will get into the trailer tomorrow and remove the gremlin holding my line hostage at 6 ft.

Thanks for the feedback. I will leave the length as is.

chuckneste · 10-16-2013, 04:53 AM

Hello Again,.

We can close out this thread. I opened up the bottom bunk to show that a gremlin has stole 17 ft of my cable. There was a strain relief before the junction box with no extra cable. I will just buy a 25 ft cord and reinstall. I appreciate the help and I wish i would of found a knot. That would of been too easy. I took picture bit I see no sense of uploading as this was too obvious.

Thanks again
Chuck

Bean · 10-16-2013, 05:30 AM

There are two separate issues with extension cords.

Safety and voltage drop.

For 30A you need at least 10ga for safety (no matter then length).

Then for a given length you will have a given voltage drop.

If the voltage drops 1volt with a 25' cord, then it will drop 4volts with a 100' cord (of the same gauge).

The lower the gauge the bigger the wires and the less the voltage drop will be for a given length.

So for a 25' 30A cord 10ga is fine, but if you want to go 100' with 10ga you will still be safe, but the voltage drop will be greater.

Bean

chuckneste · 10-16-2013, 12:55 PM

Hey Bean,

I have a 10 ga shore cord ( OEM) that was cut down. A new 25 ft cord will not be an extension cord and will be corrected. This is what happenes when you buy used stuff. it has to be expected. it makes we wonder what else was " modified"

On another topic, I have not looked yet but my 95 starcraft had a fuse panel/ breakers. I did not see one in the area of the bunk/ power input area. I am assuming that the breaker on the outside power distribution box is it.

Chuck

Bob Landry · 10-16-2013, 01:16 PM

While AC cord does have a small percentage of voltage drop, AC cords are sized by the load they are going to carry. A 10 ga cord is good for 30A and for a distance of around 50' before you notice any appreciable voltage drop. Once you get to the 50' mark, a change to the next size larger cord is prudent to prevent overheating of the wire. I've never seen a campground with the power pedestal located such that a 50' cord wouldn't be more than enough, not to say that they don't exist.
Sizing wire for DC applications takes into account percentage of voltage drop because calculating wire size for a DC old figures in the length of the wire run, both on the hot and ground wires, and then the wire is sized for a 3% or a 10% voltage drop over the combined length, something that seldom if ever comes into play with AC power in campgrounds.

pjhansman · 10-16-2013, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob Landry

I've never seen a campground with the power pedestal located such that a 50' cord wouldn't be more than enough, not to say that they don't exist.

Many of the provincial parks in Northern Ontario seem to make it a contest how far away the pedestal can be. Using 75 feet of cable is not unusual. Fortunately I have 50 feet of 50 amp (6/3) cable, so only 25 feet of the 30 amp cable is required and voltage drop isn't too bad.

Bob Landry · 10-16-2013, 01:51 PM

I don't speak for Canada. I'm basing my comments on what I have actually experienced at the National, State, and COE parks here..

Little Guy · 10-16-2013, 01:53 PM

Here is a little trick if your power cord is hanging up inside the storage box behind the mouse hole.
First pull the cord all the way out...you may have to open up the storage area to untangle it. Then spray the cord with a silicone spray and let dry.
This will lube up the cord and make it much easier to pull out. Do this once a year and you should be good to go. No more knots and tangles. Works great.

**JRTJH** · 10-16-2013, 02:24 PM

chuckneste,

A 10 gage extension cord from Lowe's isn't necessarily the same as what you'll need to replace the OEM cable. If you don't have one, you can go to WalMart and in the RV section you can buy a 25' 30 amp RV extension cable. That cable has the correct ends on it to connect to the power pole and to your current cable end. You can, temporarily, just plug into the existing cable and use the extension cable to connect to your power pole 10' away. Or you can use a hack saw and cut off the "trailer end" of the new cable and hard wire it in place of the existing short cable. Don't forget to reinstall the strain clamp.

You can also go to an RV supply house/dealer to buy the same cable, but usually it will cost you $20-30 more there. Check prices if you have a CW nearby, sometimes they have them on sale for $34.99.

Hope this helps some

Bob Landry · 10-16-2013, 02:44 PM

Along with needing 10 ga cable for 30A, pay attention to what type of wire it's constructed of.There's AWG and SAE grade wire. SAE is 12-18 % smaller than the same gauge in AWG and will not conduct as well even though it is intact 10 gauge. It's not as critical used in short runs but with the length you are going to end up with using an extension cord, it could make a difference in voltage drop.

Also read the label on any kind of spray you use for lubrication. Some compounds may break down the rubber coating on the cord, so make sure it's suitable for use on rubber materials.

chuckneste · 10-16-2013, 03:51 PM

Guys, I dont know why y'all are assuming I am putting an extension cord in place of a shoreline cable. I am buying a regular RV cable/ OEM and will install it. I am fixing the last owners " modification".

I will remove the existing cable and will buy something like this

Chuck

http://www.ebay.com/itm/25-foot-30-a...item5656e1c4b3

**JRTJH** · 10-16-2013, 03:58 PM

Chuck,

Thats exactly what I was talking about in my previous post. It is a 30 amp RV extension cable. If you buy it, cut off the female end and wire it to your junction box where the existing "too short" cable is currently wired. WalMart sells the same cable in the RV department if you don't want to wait the week or so for EBay to ship to you.

As for the use of the word "extension" I never thought you were going to use it as such, but did say you could do that temporarily until you get around to using the hack saw.

chuckneste · 10-16-2013, 04:08 PM

Hello all,

Yes, I will buy a cord and cut off the end and wire. I am not taking any shortcuts, being cheap or rigging/ re engineering this. Safety comes first. The link I pasted does state its an extension cord. Thanks again as I wont be replying back as this issue has been beat down. Let me do some research on any internal breakers inside the camper.

Chuck

25 foot 30 amp RV Power Extension Cord - Brand New!!

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