New All Electric Coach Question

[rhsjwjr]

We are considering purchasing an all electric coach and were wondering how it would work if 50 amp service was not available.

Could we use 30 amp service at all? Considering all the house appliances in the coach, we are a bit hesitant about going this route.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Robert in Alabama

[hermanmullins]

Robert, 

You can operate on 30 amp but you will have to really be aware of what you run together. TV and microwave OK. AC and TV OK. AC and microwave not OK. You just have to be very careful to not run high wattage items at the same time. 

You can run your front A.C. during the day, and change to the rear to sleep.

Herman 

[kaypsmith]

Another question that will need some careful observation in the manual, not from the salesman's statements to you, does the unit come equipped with an energy management system? Intelitec does make one and I am sure there other brands available. Some of the newer coaches does have this technology and tend to work very well by making sure that you are not calling on too much current at one time. If it does not have an energy management system, you will be on your own as Herman said. Many of the newer coaches have very energy efficient appliances installed such as a residential fridge that is equipped with inverter technology, and some of AC's also have this technology, as well as many other features. An induction cooktop uses less than half of the energy as conventional cooktops. These are just a few things to consider, as well as being prepared to just be energy conservative. Where in Alabama?

[BillAdams]

"Could you use it"?  Absolutely.  I am current plugged into 30 amp with my Prevost and I am "getting by".  However, it pretty difficult.  You can't turn anything on until you think about what is already in use.  The better the wiring is going to the 30 amp plug the better your experience will be but it's hard to tell what's there.  I would not make your buying choice based upon all electric or not but it should be a check list item.  We have successfully lived in our electric coach for 20 years and sometimes we simply have to fire up our generator to get by.  If you compare how much you paid for your coach to the extra fuel you had to burn to run the generator from time to time you will discover that it is a tiny part of the cost of ownership.  If you plan to travel to Yuma, AZ in July you will learn that you cannot stop at an RV park that does not provide 50 amp service.  If you plan to travel to Detroit in the Winter the same may not be true if you also have diesel heat but your fuel bill will skyrocket!  I will never go back to a propane coach so it's really a matter of finding a coach you love, a floor plan you love and hitting the road.

[manholt]

Mine is all electric and have run it on 30A and been very comfortable.  As BillA and Herman noted, you learn to be selective at times and yes, kick in generator if your needs arise!  Aqua Hot on electric is cheap, on diesel it burns .32 gallons of fuel per hour...but, then if you can afford a new DP, your not concerned about $15 bucks extra...propane also cost $$$.

[wolfe10]

Reminder of "RV Math":

On 15 amp, you can use up to 15 amps total.

On 30 amp, you can use up to 30 amps total.

On 50 amp, you can use up to 100 AMPS TOTAL (TWO 50 AMP HOTS).

Yes, all those total numbers are ideal numbers, assuming perfect wiring and breakers on the shore power side.  Figure 10% less for sustained use.

[rickkey2]

Our coach has a EMS and have no problem when hooked up to 30A. But we also have propane that we really like having the option to use if needed. We use it for the refrigerator while driving as it uses very little gas. Can also use it for hot water if no electric or run the generator and and run everything as if on 50A. To me its just another tool that gives me more options and in our coach we hold 38 gal of propane that lasts us quite a long time. Now the furnace will consume more propane but most of our travels are not extended stays where its really cold so most of the time we can use the heat pump in the a/c units. But as Carl C said I don't plan my travels around how much fuel or propane I will use its just part of the game. As I said its nice to have the options for multiple power sources. 

[tbutler]

Look carefully at the numbers Brett has given above.  You see that 30A service gives you just 30% of the energy you get with 50A service. This is because 30A service give you one hot line on a 30A breaker.  A 50A service gives you two hot lines, each on a 50A breaker.  That means that you will have to compromise.  If you are comfortable with taking turns shifting electrical use by shutting off one appliance to allow another to run, then you will do fine.  We have functioned plugged in to a 20A outlet for an extended period of time when the weather is moderate.  So it can be done, it is just a matter of accepting some inconvenience.

We have propane on board and we use it for our water heater, furnace and cooking.  At the present time that is the only use for propane in our coach.  We do what is necessary to make it work.  It is an inconvenience at times but one that we are willing to accept.  It means shutting down an air conditioner so we can run the microwave.  It means using fans to ventilate while doing the laundry.  The big users in our coach are the air conditioners (2), the microwave/convection oven, the washer/dryer.  The Intellitec system (energy management system or EMS) manages the air conditioners, the washer/dryer and hot water heater (which we replaced with a propane only model).  It will switch these off and on to keep from tripping a breaker.  It automatically senses 30A service and can be set for 20A service.  We usually manage the electrical loads rather than having the EMS take care of that.  It is nice to have as it does once in a while prevent making a run to the power source to reset a tripped breaker.

As a practical matter, we seldom find ourselves using a 30A supply for an extended time.  Occasionally when traveling we will stay for a night or two with 30A, that is the standard service in Canada.  When we started out, we spent time at my mother's house, parked in her driveway, that was the 20A supply.  Louise's mother had a 30A RV outlet and we did short visits in Lake Havasu, AZ living on 30A.  Those were our most extreme experiences.

Your generator will be valuable to you.  In figuring the cost of running the generator, you must factor in the cost of routine maintenance and repair.  Over the 13 years that we have owned our current coach, the cost for fuel, maintenance and repair averages about $2.50 per hour.  We have more than 2100 hours on our generator.