Oops. A 50A RV electrical service is 50A @ 240V (L1 to L2) or 100A @ 120V (L1 to N and L2 to N). The reason you don’t need a 100A capable neutral conductor is that the current in L1 and L2 is 180 degrees out of phase, so they effectively “cancel” in the neutral conductor, i.e., the current in the neutral will never exceed 50A.
2:47 Hey Nate! Small correction to that statement, it actually means you have 50A @ 240VAC. L1 and L2 are 180deg out of phase of each other, which is why the CCC of that neutral conductor is only 50A👍🏻
Being from the 🇬🇧, the terminology tickles me pink!😂😂. It is Live, Neutral and Earth. I have learnt something new though. In UK we have single phase (1x live) or three phase (3x live), not two or dual phase? You would never find 3 phase on camp site hook up though as this is for commercial buildings only really or some homes if want super fast ev charging. Enjoying the vids, well done. 👍👍
Thank you so so so much for creating this RV related content. I've been trying to pair all of the van life videos towards the RV. Would love to learn more about relocating an RV converter from by the breaker box to the pass through. I would love to also see how you rewire an RV that comes with one of those "Solar Prep" packages. I would also love to see how to wire a Multiplus 2x120 to a 50A rv.
Thanks for this video....The one thing about you two folks.That you know how to explain everything very clearly.I'm looking for a 4x4 van to do & I plan to get the wire packages from you.(thats if you have them).Your videos have really sold me on you.Are you some kind of teacher in real life when you are not doing the van life?Good Luck & stay safe,Hope to here more from you,Thanks.👍👍👍👍
Hey Nate, thanks for another nice video on a Sunday morning. I have never heard you mention van insurance. Just wondering if you had any issues finding insurance after doing your builds? This topic could even be a future video. I have never seen anyone do one on insurance. Thanks
Can I build a solar system on my land that I can drive up and plug my 30a shore plug up to it ? If so can you make an episode and show us how . (I've been in several forums asking I get 10 answers )
Thank you for the video. Nice job. I’m still confused, but that’s not your fault. I have a 2022 grand design transcend model that is a 50 amp RV. Whatever that means. When I look at the outside connector it’s a three prong, which tells me that it’s only a 30 amp but the factory says that that unit is a 50 amp 120. I have a dog bone and a cable that looks like it converts the three wire prong on the trailer outlet to a four prong for the pedestal shore power. Help me understand how this works. I do have two air conditioners and would at times like to run both at the same time. I’m going to try installing a soft start circuit as well to help with tripping the circuit breaker. Thx
A 50A shore power inlet will only have 3 'prongs'. The ground is a little plate on the side of the inlet. If you are trying to upgrade your RV electrical system w/ solar, inverters, bigger battery, etc and need a 2nd look to make sure AND you plan on purchasing from our store (shop.explorist.life) reach out for some more personalized help: shop.explorist.life/support
We are going to install shore power at home for a 30A trailer. Any downsides to installing 50A service and using a 50A-to-30A dog one to connect to our trailer? I am thinking of future growth in case we get a 50A trailer down the road.
Definitely downsides to that. Connecting a 30A trailer to 50A service means that the wire from the pedestal to the trailer is undersized. Run a 30A and a 50A circuit for future proofing.
Thanks for explaining this, I want to do a build and I want to have an electric system that can use both 30/50 Amp. I can see where a dual system is necessary for micro climates and to have an electrical system that can be used if needed for a commercial and/or business! I want a electrical system that can run power tools and also when necessary provide both the heating and cooling?
Hey Nate, could the MultiPlus-II 2x 120V be used with 240V EV charging station in order to charge your house batteries? Since there are so many EV stations now, it would be nice to have this charging option
Using an EV charging station to charge our house battery bank is a great way for parking lots to put even more restrictions on vans/RV's than there already are. Leave the EV charging stations for those trying to re-charge to get places and if you need to plug-in; book a night at a campground.
If I have a 50 amp camper, two 200AH lithium batteries and one of the victron inverters, can I even run my camper? I essentially was thinking of only running DC in my camper and run a freezer external. Idk
When I plug in my 30 amp shore power to a 15 amp outlet, it keeps tripping my GFI. I am using a step down adapter 30amp to 15 amp, and I even throttled back the amperage on the Cerbo GX to only 5 amps but it still trips . . . I tried 3 different GFI circuits. The installer said GFIs can be "finicky but I can't imagine traveling around in the winter and not be able to charge off of garage outlet. I am using the Victron Multiplus 3000 W inverter, I made sure AC is "on", 540 Watts of Rich Solar panels, and two Orion dc/dc chargers to charge my two 270ahr GC Battleborn batteries.
This may take some more in-depth troubleshooting. If you have purchased/are purchasing from our store (shop.explorist.life) reach out for some more personalized help: shop.explorist.life/support If you've purchased/are purchasing elsewhere, reach out to your dealer for support. We'd love to have you as a shop.explorist.life customer so we can provide a bit more help in the future. 🙂
What about when you have appliances that require split-phase power, and you're plugging into 30A shore power? This is where you would need something like two MultiPlus inverters setup for split-phase operation.
Can you do one on dual MPII 2x120 vs dual MPII for a 50A RV. Advantages, disadvantages, limitations, etc. I know its a ton of wiring and j-boxes for the dual 2x120 but it would worth the cost/effort to have 6kVA usable anywhere in the panel versus a fixed 3kVA on each leg.
Read the manual on the 2x120. The second ac output only outputs 240vac when it has a 240 power supply (ie shore power or generator). So if you need 240vac to run off of battery power then you need two MP2
So using a dog bone to connect from a 30A outlet to your 50A rig will still power both hot legs of the panel (50|50) but only with a 30A capacity for both legs righ? Which in reality is only 80% of that capacity in continuous use. Right ? 24 amps of capacity for continuous use.
30A shared between both sides of the 50|50 panel; correct. Yes. As far as continuous power goes... I suppose that is up to what type of breaker is in the shore power pedestal. Most breakers/circuits are rated for their max capacity (30A for a 30A shore power service) for 3-hours (3-hours defines 'continuous use'), but what would ACTUALLY happen in a real world campground if you tried to draw exactly 30A for more than 3 hours? Tough to tell. That's one of those 'code' vs 'design-on-paper' vs 'real world' things that's tough to anticipate.
For van llifers, and those who help people build a van life, I find it odd that this is so much information on 50-amp electrical systems. I mean, a van isn't likely to have 2 AC units, let alone 3 or 4 or really exceed the (realistic) needs of a 30-amp system. More info on optimizing 30-amp systems and techniques would be much more helpful. I have a Sprinter, can't imagine a 50-amp system or any need for it on that size RV. I have a pair of older GMC 6-wheeled RVs, with 50-amp service and frankly, its a pain in the keester. Wrestling with a 50-amp power cable, finding a camp ground with a 50-amp service and paying for one even though I rarely use more than 30-amps (actually never have). In fact, I am redoing one one of the GMCs and moving to 30-amp. Love your videos, extremely informative as is your website, but van lifers, does anyone really need split phase? Not that I have an opinion or anything. Apologies for the rant, but the 30-amp crowd seems to always get the short straw, but there are a ton of 30-amp RVs out here.
We cover both 30A and 50A systems on this channel and we aren't just catering to vans. Our electrical systems are applicable to vans, rv's, trailers, 5th wheels, motorhomes, expedition rigs, and skoolie conversions; some of which will have 50A shore power.
There's no good way to answer that. It all depends on how much power you actually use, much like in a house, plus the cost of electricity per kWh in the area the RV is parked.
I think there is another problem with your description of the 30 to 50 amp converter. your feeding basic 120/110 power to both hot sides. any 220 appliances or motors are going to fail. not sure if you would have these on an RV, and not sure if such wiring is right from a code/safety perspective. 220 circuits can get really weird and dangerous when not wired right. maybe some electrician can comment.
In most RV's with 50A shore power, there are no 240v appliances. Furthermore, the breaker boxes are not even capable of delivering 240v power because the breaker boxes are set up 'side to side', if you will, (like shown in the video) and not L1 and L2 alternating busbars like you find in a normal house.
Additional context: In a normal residential breaker box from a house; a 120V load pulls from EITHER L1 or L2 and N. 240V loads get pulled from L1 AND L2. In a normal 50A RV breaker box like shown in the video, there is no physical way to pull from L1 and L2.
Which is the equivalent of 12, 20, and 32 amps at 120V. The 120/240V system in the USA seems a bit strange to folks familiar with European electrical systems, but it works well.
Oops. A 50A RV electrical service is 50A @ 240V (L1 to L2) or 100A @ 120V (L1 to N and L2 to N). The reason you don’t need a 100A capable neutral conductor is that the current in L1 and L2 is 180 degrees out of phase, so they effectively “cancel” in the neutral conductor, i.e., the current in the neutral will never exceed 50A.
Absolutely the best explanation that I've been able to find on the differences between a 30amp and 50amp RV system.
2:47 Hey Nate! Small correction to that statement, it actually means you have 50A @ 240VAC. L1 and L2 are 180deg out of phase of each other, which is why the CCC of that neutral conductor is only 50A👍🏻
Hey so does that mean that L1=25amp and L2=25amp if they share a neutral?
@@Justaguy0420
L1 and L2 are both 50A. Think double pole breaker, each one is 50A. Across the hots is 240, but L1 to neutral only shows 120.
Being from the 🇬🇧, the terminology tickles me pink!😂😂. It is Live, Neutral and Earth. I have learnt something new though. In UK we have single phase (1x live) or three phase (3x live), not two or dual phase? You would never find 3 phase on camp site hook up though as this is for commercial buildings only really or some homes if want super fast ev charging. Enjoying the vids, well done. 👍👍
Thank you so so so much for creating this RV related content. I've been trying to pair all of the van life videos towards the RV. Would love to learn more about relocating an RV converter from by the breaker box to the pass through. I would love to also see how you rewire an RV that comes with one of those "Solar Prep" packages. I would also love to see how to wire a Multiplus 2x120 to a 50A rv.
Nate is a natural teacher. Great video.
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for this video....The one thing about you two folks.That you know how to explain everything very clearly.I'm looking for a 4x4 van to do & I plan to get the wire packages from you.(thats if you have them).Your videos have really sold me on you.Are you some kind of teacher in real life when you are not doing the van life?Good Luck & stay safe,Hope to here more from you,Thanks.👍👍👍👍
Hey Nate, thanks for another nice video on a Sunday morning.
I have never heard you mention van insurance. Just wondering if you had any issues finding insurance after doing your builds? This topic could even be a future video. I have never seen anyone do one on insurance.
Thanks
Great information as always. Thanks Don
Can I build a solar system on my land that I can drive up and plug my 30a shore plug up to it ? If so can you make an episode and show us how .
(I've been in several forums asking I get 10 answers )
I purchased multiplus II 2×120 inverter. Will it work with 30amp connection instead of using 50 amp cable?
Great videos. Can you do a video on how to convert a 30amp motorhome/rv to a 50 amp?
Anyway to bridge the inverter for 240v ? Cause I'm wondering if I should do that so when I send my vehicle to the states I could just revert to 120v
Thank you for the video. Nice job. I’m still confused, but that’s not your fault. I have a 2022 grand design transcend model that is a 50 amp RV. Whatever that means. When I look at the outside connector it’s a three prong, which tells me that it’s only a 30 amp but the factory says that that unit is a 50 amp 120. I have a dog bone and a cable that looks like it converts the three wire prong on the trailer outlet to a four prong for the pedestal shore power. Help me understand how this works. I do have two air conditioners and would at times like to run both at the same time. I’m going to try installing a soft start circuit as well to help with tripping the circuit breaker. Thx
A 50A shore power inlet will only have 3 'prongs'. The ground is a little plate on the side of the inlet. If you are trying to upgrade your RV electrical system w/ solar, inverters, bigger battery, etc and need a 2nd look to make sure AND you plan on purchasing from our store (shop.explorist.life) reach out for some more personalized help: shop.explorist.life/support
Soft start is awesome! Run my 15k BTU AC on a 2000W inverter generator.
Does it make sense then to install a 50amp plug on a DIY class B van?
We are going to install shore power at home for a 30A trailer. Any downsides to installing 50A service and using a 50A-to-30A dog one to connect to our trailer? I am thinking of future growth in case we get a 50A trailer down the road.
Definitely downsides to that. Connecting a 30A trailer to 50A service means that the wire from the pedestal to the trailer is undersized. Run a 30A and a 50A circuit for future proofing.
Thanks for explaining this, I want to do a build and I want to have an electric system that can use both 30/50 Amp. I can see where a dual system is necessary for micro climates and to have an electrical system that can be used if needed for a commercial and/or business!
I want a electrical system that can run power tools and also when necessary provide both the heating and cooling?
So... any 50A RV can use 30A shore power... there will just be less of that power available from the shore power pedestal.
Hey Nate, could the MultiPlus-II 2x 120V be used with 240V EV charging station in order to charge your house batteries?
Since there are so many EV stations now, it would be nice to have this charging option
Using an EV charging station to charge our house battery bank is a great way for parking lots to put even more restrictions on vans/RV's than there already are. Leave the EV charging stations for those trying to re-charge to get places and if you need to plug-in; book a night at a campground.
If I have a 50 amp camper, two 200AH lithium batteries and one of the victron inverters, can I even run my camper?
I essentially was thinking of only running DC in my camper and run a freezer external. Idk
When I plug in my 30 amp shore power to a 15 amp outlet, it keeps tripping my GFI. I am using a step down adapter 30amp to 15 amp, and I even throttled back the amperage on the Cerbo GX to only 5 amps but it still trips . . . I tried 3 different GFI circuits. The installer said GFIs can be "finicky but I can't imagine traveling around in the winter and not be able to charge off of garage outlet. I am using the Victron Multiplus 3000 W inverter, I made sure AC is "on", 540 Watts of Rich Solar panels, and two Orion dc/dc chargers to charge my two 270ahr GC Battleborn batteries.
Tripping the GFI of the house I am plugged into.
This may take some more in-depth troubleshooting. If you have purchased/are purchasing from our store (shop.explorist.life) reach out for some more personalized help: shop.explorist.life/support
If you've purchased/are purchasing elsewhere, reach out to your dealer for support. We'd love to have you as a shop.explorist.life customer so we can provide a bit more help in the future. 🙂
Thank you very much
What about when you have appliances that require split-phase power, and you're plugging into 30A shore power? This is where you would need something like two MultiPlus inverters setup for split-phase operation.
Can you do one on dual MPII 2x120 vs dual MPII for a 50A RV. Advantages, disadvantages, limitations, etc. I know its a ton of wiring and j-boxes for the dual 2x120 but it would worth the cost/effort to have 6kVA usable anywhere in the panel versus a fixed 3kVA on each leg.
Read the manual on the 2x120. The second ac output only outputs 240vac when it has a 240 power supply (ie shore power or generator). So if you need 240vac to run off of battery power then you need two MP2
@@Justaguy0420 not what I was asking
So using a dog bone to connect from a 30A outlet to your 50A rig will still power both hot legs of the panel (50|50) but only with a 30A capacity for both legs righ? Which in reality is only 80% of that capacity in continuous use. Right ? 24 amps of capacity for continuous use.
30A shared between both sides of the 50|50 panel; correct. Yes.
As far as continuous power goes... I suppose that is up to what type of breaker is in the shore power pedestal. Most breakers/circuits are rated for their max capacity (30A for a 30A shore power service) for 3-hours (3-hours defines 'continuous use'), but what would ACTUALLY happen in a real world campground if you tried to draw exactly 30A for more than 3 hours? Tough to tell. That's one of those 'code' vs 'design-on-paper' vs 'real world' things that's tough to anticipate.
For van llifers, and those who help people build a van life, I find it odd that this is so much information on 50-amp electrical systems. I mean, a van isn't likely to have 2 AC units, let alone 3 or 4 or really exceed the (realistic) needs of a 30-amp system. More info on optimizing 30-amp systems and techniques would be much more helpful. I have a Sprinter, can't imagine a 50-amp system or any need for it on that size RV. I have a pair of older GMC 6-wheeled RVs, with 50-amp service and frankly, its a pain in the keester. Wrestling with a 50-amp power cable, finding a camp ground with a 50-amp service and paying for one even though I rarely use more than 30-amps (actually never have). In fact, I am redoing one one of the GMCs and moving to 30-amp. Love your videos, extremely informative as is your website, but van lifers, does anyone really need split phase? Not that I have an opinion or anything. Apologies for the rant, but the 30-amp crowd seems to always get the short straw, but there are a ton of 30-amp RVs out here.
We cover both 30A and 50A systems on this channel and we aren't just catering to vans. Our electrical systems are applicable to vans, rv's, trailers, 5th wheels, motorhomes, expedition rigs, and skoolie conversions; some of which will have 50A shore power.
This time nothing interesting for me ( EU citizens) but I stayed till the end for the algorithm. Cheers✌
How much a month would a 30amp trailer cost in elec??
There's no good way to answer that. It all depends on how much power you actually use, much like in a house, plus the cost of electricity per kWh in the area the RV is parked.
I think there is another problem with your description of the 30 to 50 amp converter. your feeding basic 120/110 power to both hot sides. any 220 appliances or motors are going to fail. not sure if you would have these on an RV, and not sure if such wiring is right from a code/safety perspective. 220 circuits can get really weird and dangerous when not wired right. maybe some electrician can comment.
In most RV's with 50A shore power, there are no 240v appliances. Furthermore, the breaker boxes are not even capable of delivering 240v power because the breaker boxes are set up 'side to side', if you will, (like shown in the video) and not L1 and L2 alternating busbars like you find in a normal house.
Additional context: In a normal residential breaker box from a house; a 120V load pulls from EITHER L1 or L2 and N. 240V loads get pulled from L1 AND L2. In a normal 50A RV breaker box like shown in the video, there is no physical way to pull from L1 and L2.
We LOVE MORE POWER, HEHEHE
As an European viewer I am just amazed as we have like 6A, 10A and 16A max. in one phase 240V 😂
Which is the equivalent of 12, 20, and 32 amps at 120V. The 120/240V system in the USA seems a bit strange to folks familiar with European electrical systems, but it works well.