Electrical question?? - Montana Owners Club

Wiarton William · 03-12-2008, 01:12 PM

Plugged the trailer in today for the first time this winter......I removed the batteries in the fall....when I flipped the light switch for the 12v light there was a noticable delay in the power On to the Light On.....now that didnt bother me much as I thought it may be a dampness thing....but then I bought a fireplace/heater unit and also plugged that in......I had tested it in the house and it worked fine and seemed ok....when I plugged it in the trailer (two different plugs) I noticed that it seemed as if it wasnt getting enough amperage to run it properly on the 750 watt setting.. the fan was working but not as fast as it should although I was getting heat from the heater unit, the "turbo " button which basically boosts the heater to 1500 watts didnt do anything...I noticed that the light behind the flames dimmed substantially when I flipped the switch to 1500 watts........ the garage circuit is on a 20 amp breaker and the polarity tester shows all lines are connected properly... any ideas???? If you have please remember,, I can understand it if its not tooooo technical...thx

waldo238 · 03-12-2008, 01:35 PM

I would assume you may need a minimum of 30 amp circuit going to the trailer. Other things are probably on like the battery charger. Just a thought.

OntMont · 03-12-2008, 02:09 PM

You did not say how you are connected to that 20 amp outlet. My guess is that there is something between the outlet and the trailer that is not allowing sufficient amps to reach your trailer. Could be corrosion on a plug, a thin (16 gauge) or very long extension cord, some kind of adapter fitting that you are using. Something of that sort anyway.

If you are not tripping the breaker on that 20 amp supply, it is not being overloaded.

Wiarton William · 03-12-2008, 02:25 PM

OK...I am using a regular extension cord from the garage to the adapter and then to 50/30 amp bone into the trailer..in all I would guess its a 20 ft cord with 3 connections cord/adapter....adapter/30 amp..and then the 50 amp connection into the trailer.....I can see the power loss now....I have a 30 amp cord but its about 30 ft long....my other trailer worked well on this circuit but it was a only a 30 amp unit...OK... I wont do much with this until the spring when I can move all the proper lines into place....thanks..

kdeiss · 03-12-2008, 02:56 PM

Check Voltage at the plug than plug inside trailer if not 100/120 that is your problem

Waynem · 03-12-2008, 04:01 PM

A regular extension cord is typically 14 gauge. I purposely bought a 12 guage and 10 would be better. You could be losing it in the extension cord. I don't understand all those adapters. I use one adapter when hooked to the 20amp at the stick house. It is a 50 to 115v adapter. I run the front airconditioner with no problem unless I plug something else in the stick house into the same breaker. Coffee pot for example. A heater may pull more, but I don't think a 1500 watt heater would pull, at peak, 15 amps.

Wiarton William · 03-13-2008, 12:51 AM

Its and old garage with antiquated wiring.....the house service is all updated... I dont want to push that draw for now... I will hool up the 30 amp extension cord and see it that makes a difference, if not then when the weather breaks I will check things better....I have an ohm meter??? I will try and figure it out.......wont be the first time I got myself zapped while playing electrician.....

Ozz · 03-13-2008, 02:48 AM

Waynem is on target with the extension cord, 12 gage is best, as short as possible. If the garage is old you may be coming off of a 14 gage wire circuit. (Very light duty wire) It would be super if you could wire in a dedicated 12 gage circuit right at the breaker box, with it's own breaker.

Wiarton William · 03-13-2008, 05:44 AM

I have the room in the breaker panel now for that...but I have plans on rebuilding the garage too...as it comes down to money choices.....RGV..garage?..RGV..garage?....RGV....g one!.... The plug is about 10 ft from the trailer but the extension cords are of course much longer...

Merv · 03-13-2008, 07:42 AM

It could also be how much wire is between the garage and the house. I plug mine into the garage but the garage is wired to the breaker in the house. The distance form the house to the garage is about 75 feet. Then add the length of an extension cord and the cord of the camper and its about a 150 foot total run. Thats quite a bit for the gage wire I use.
I can not run the air because the unit will run slow. (not enough power)
If I plug the camper directly into the house instead of through the garage then I can run anything.
Merv

5ER · 03-13-2008, 10:54 AM

You are supposed to have 240/120vac at the Panel where it enters your home but after your 120v circuit wire runs from the Panel to your Garage and out to the trailer with an extension you may be down to 105vac or less because of voltage drop on such a high amp device. The more amps used the higher the voltage drop. You probably need bigger wire or less amps used. You could also run a subfeed from your existing Panel to a small Panel in your garage when you rebuild.

Wiarton William · 03-13-2008, 12:21 PM

Ok.. thanks to all...I will get this set up soon and alleviate the problem...I can do most of it myslef and will call the Electricain to do the panel....

Wiarton William · 03-17-2008, 01:59 AM

Picked up a 25 ft, 30 amp extension cord for the trailer....checked the breaker panel and I have a 20 amp breaker in that circuit..Routed the cord overhead to the trailer..(no ground level stuff,,,snowblowers make a real mess of extension cords)....and u guessed it,,,18" too short.. so I used a heavy duty 15 amp cord which was about 35 ft long and plugged the heater in...there is an improvement in performance but its not right yet...I have to install an new water pressure system in the spring and will need the electrician to do some stuff...so I will get him to do me a dedicated 30 amp circuit........

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