installing electrical hook ups at home

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
GeorgeandTheBear said:
Since this thread depicts exactly what I want to do, I thought I would resurrect this zombie instead of starting a new one.

I have a 150A panel in my house. I have an unattached garage with power run from the house panel. Total length of run from panel to panel is no more than 75'. The garage is fed with 2 wires from a 50A breaker in the house panel. I can't see the size on the wire, but I think it is AWG-2 (about the diameter of a Sharpee). My RV cord (30 Amp) will reach all the way to the panel in the garage. I just want to put a RV receptacle right under the panel, or possibly attach it right to the bottom of the box itself. Since the wire run will be virtually nothing, what size wire and breaker should I use?

Just to verify, this wires like a household 120V outlet? One HOT, one NEUTRAL, and GROUND?
Ten gauge wire will work, 30 amp breaker, one hot, one neutral and one ground.
 
yarnkitty....like you my RV is stored next to my house and the house panel is about 75 feet from my RV outlet. This is what I put in:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/GE-100-Amp-3-Space-3-Circuit-240-Volt-Unmetered-RV-Outlet-Box-with-50-30-20-Amp-GCFI-Circuit-Protected-Receptacles-GE1LU532SS/203393689 

I can connect any RV connector made to that outlet. The electrician ran metal conduit on the outside wall of my house and connected the heavy gauge 4 conducter wires to a double pole 50 amp breaker. 

I'd guess it'd be about $500 total depending on how much wire has to be purchased.  4 conductor wire is expensive!
 
These are the issues that make my home inspections hell. If you don't understand how to do electrical hire someone. The ones that think they have some knowledge are even far worse than someone who has no understanding. Bonding and grounding has not even been addressed. We never got by the part of hooking the feeds up correctly. Please call someone
 
Interesting thread. Our RV uses 30 or 50, so for parking beside shop in backyard installed only 30 amp outlet. Have dehumidifier running in hot damp months, small elect. heater in mild winters. Have background in industrial wiring so easy as pie. Found violations of NEC after we bought home, there is the good ole boy network down here and anything went in 98. Plumbers and electricians would have faced serious charges where we're from. RV will function fine on 30 as long as don't use microwave with AC on, LOL....
 
Ghostman said:
These are the issues that make my home inspections hell. If you don't understand how to do electrical hire someone. The ones that think they have some knowledge are even far worse than someone who has no understanding. Bonding and grounding has not even been addressed. We never got by the part of hooking the feeds up correctly. Please call someone

What issues are those, Ghost? George is working with an existing sub-panel that's presumably installed per code with no neutral/ground bond as it should be. As long as he installs a single 30 amp breaker and makes the correct hot, neutral, safety ground connections with at least 10 ga wire to a correctly housed TT-30 receptacle, there are no issues that I can see without being there. What are you seeing?
 
I installed a RV 50 amp outlet but only had 40 amps available. I installed the outlet with a 40 amp breaker. I've never tripped the breaker but if it does - it's done it's job. This is probably not according to our local electrical code.
In a properly installed 30 amp outlet for an RV you should get 120 volts when testing the hot and neutral or hot and ground. If you get 240 volts testing any combination of contacts in the outlet, it is wired as a residential dryer or stove outlet not an RV outlet.
 
NY_Dutch said:
What issues are those, Ghost? George is working with an existing sub-panel that's presumably installed per code with no neutral/ground bond as it should be. As long as he installs a single 30 amp breaker and makes the correct hot, neutral, safety ground connections with at least 10 ga wire to a correctly housed TT-30 receptacle, there are no issues that I can see without being there. What are you seeing?

I was making a general statement as to different scenarios not just to his. If they are having to ask how most generally they should not be doing it. As for sub panel we don't know is it connected by conudit or romex. The grounding and bonding are totally different in the two systems. We are not required to have conduit in our area. We give advice on our areas to where there's may not be the same. In general there are alot if different possibilities. Are we just adding a outlet through breaker? Which in this case would be pretty simple. Or are we adding sub panel with breakers feeding plugs? Is it outside rated or inside? Just saying there is more to it than just hooking up a couple wires.
 
NY_Dutch said:
Ok, you were being much broader than the scenario George described called for, so I was a bit confused by your post.

I.used to be the one when I was younger that thought I knew what I was doing. So I speak from experience. Lol
 
I installed a RV 50 amp outlet but only had 40 amps available. I installed the outlet with a 40 amp breaker. I've never tripped the breaker but if it does - it's done it's job. This is probably not according to our local electrical code.
No worries.  Nothing in the NEC prohibits using a breaker that is more restrictive than the wire  & outlet capacity,  and nothing says that a 50A capable outlet has to be wired to provide a full 50A. In fact, it is quite normal that an outlet cannot physically deliver as many amps as it is rated for.
 
I went to Home Depot and got the stuff and had it working yesterday afternoon, without any magic smoke leaking out. It is inside my garage, about a foot below the subpanel. You don't realize how much time it takes until it's about 110 in the shade, with humidity even higher, and you can't even run a fan because you have the power off. Oh well, it's done now.
 

Latest posts

Forum statistics

Threads
132,038
Posts
1,389,432
Members
137,770
Latest member
stevieg0205
Back
Top Bottom