DIY 30 amp service tips

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TrojanBob

TrojanBob

Member
Joined
Jan 31, 2015
Posts
6
Location
austin, tx
Putting in a 30 service at parents ranch. Father is EE, so he knows how to safely make the circuit. But, we are on an effective length. would like to go 100' from the breaker box that is in maintenance shop. Will park trailer behind shop where there is a nice view of lake and woods. Thanks for any lessons learned.
 
Make absolutely sure your father knows that an RV 30 amp TT-30 outlet is supplied with 120VAC ONLY. The breaker should be on a single leg only. And test the outlet before plugging in! At that distance, I'd suggest running 8 gauge wire to minimize any voltage drop. Over the years, the majority of miswired 30 amp RV outlets (wired for 240VAC) I've come across or heard of, have been wired by experienced, licensed, electricians that were not familiar with RV requirements, and apparently didn't notice the "120 VAC" on the outlet when installing it. DIY'ers are more likely to get the voltage right, but sometimes get the neutral and hot legs reversed.
 
Looks like 6 awg, see the following  http://www.paigewire.com/pumpWireCalc.aspx and https://www.icmag.com/modules/Tutorials/ElectricalSafety/1655.htm
 
8 AWG will work, but the voltage drop might be a percent or two more than with 6. Try running the Paige calculator with a 5% voltage drop instead of 3%. I probably should have said "8 gauge or larger."
 
If you actually have 120v at the panel where the new breaker will be installed, you should be ok with 8 gauge. If the voltage there is less, say under 115v, I would begin to get concerned about the voltage drop and consider using 6 gauge to preserve as much voltage as possible over that distance.

Of course, 6 gauge is better than 8 gauge if the price difference isn't an issue. However, we are talking about 30% more for 6/2 vs 8/2 (in Type UF for outdoor use without conduit), so it's not trivial.
 
Thanks guys. All great info and helpful. Especially thanks to weerun for posting the links. Wondering if the RV stores got the receptacles.
 
Here's one:  http://www.rvparksupplies.com/p/3020AMPSMPOWER/

For a few bucks more:  http://www.rvparksupplies.com/p/503020AMPSMPOWER/
 
Other than Burying the wire or putting it in conduit this write up on hooking up a temporay connection might help with the pictures.

http://www.rvforum.net/SMF_forum/index.php/topic,66762.msg611714.html#msg611714

Good luck
 
If I was digging 100' of ditch to bury wire and there was ANY possibility that I'd get a bigger rig sometime and want 50 amp....... I'd bite the bullet now and put in a 50 amp circuit. That assumes also that the maintenance shed has the capability to handle it.

Ken
 
Even hardware stores usually have a TT30 outlet these days. May not have the nice RV enclosures for it, but any outdoor rated enclosure box will do. Try to get one that allows the cover to be closed when the big 30A plug in in place, though. Technically the code requires that the cover be closed with the cord in, so that the box is still water resistant.
 
A good point about the cover closing, Gary. The TT-30 and box I bought at Home Depot closed okay with a standard 30 amp plug connected, but not with one of the plugs with a hand grip on it. I was able to tilt the inside panel and outlet towards the back of the box at the top enough to clear the handle on the plug. I pinned the panel in place with small sheet metal screws through the box sides. The only connection that was displaced enough to come close to the back of the metal box was the ground lug, so there was no safety issue created.
 
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