bbpierce Report post Posted March 31, 2014 I am brand spanking new at this and have a dumb question. I have a 50 amp RV and am going to a campground with 30 amp hookups. I have an adapter to use and am aware I have to be careful what all I use and I was wondering is there some type of meter I can buy to show me how many amps we are pulling so that I don't blow up the RV? I may not use the correct terminology because this is all so new but let me say I am loving the fifth wheel we have. I could sell everything and travel, now just have to convince my husband of that!!!! Thanks for any help. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dickandlois Report post Posted March 31, 2014 bbpierce, Thanks for you question, the forum primarily covers enclosed coaches, but many of the systems are the same. You mentioned having a 50 amp service on the 5er. So I'm thinking you have a power monitoring system that reads out you power usage, generally in watts. So when you connect to a 30 amp shore connection the biggest drawback will be that you can only run one AC unit at a time and if you happen to have an electric stove it will not work; well not quite. Should 5er be equipped with dual 100 volt inverters you would have a limited cooking time and monitoring the battery voltage levels become number one priority. 30 amp versus 50 amp limits how many items one can operate at the same time.. Hope that helps a little. Rich. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BillAdams Report post Posted March 31, 2014 Keep in mind that 30 amp service is MUCH less than 50 amp service. On a 30 amp circuit you only have a total of 30 amps available to run everything in the coach. On 50 amp service the draws are split into 2 separate circuits allowing you to draw up to 50 amps on each circuit (or close to 100 amps). That being said, you should have a meter somewhere that shows your A/C amp draw but if not you can go online to find the general ratings for various appliances. If you have a gas/elec. fridge I would set it to gas and leave it there while on a 30 amp circuit. 1 A/C is going to run around 10-15 amps as would 1 elec. heater. Your water heater may be gas/elec. as well and keeping it on gas (only on as necessary) will save you amps as well. If you have some time, there's a neat little device called a Kill-a-Watt that's available at your local home store. You plug the appliance into this device and the device into the wall and turn it on. It will tell you everything about the power usage of that device. You can't do it with your A/C (no plug) or your Water heater, but just about anything else. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolfe10 Report post Posted March 31, 2014 The good news is that if you draw too many amps, you will NOT "blow up the RV". What will happen if you exceed the 30 amp draw is that the CG breaker will trip. But, as suggested, better to write down the draws of various appliances (be sure to include the converter or battery charger). You will very quickly learn what you can use and which appliances you have to turn off to run others. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kaypsmith Report post Posted March 31, 2014 There is a clamp-on amp probe that can be purchased that clamps around an ac wire that will tell the current being at any given moment for that wire. I use a Fluke, cost around $250. these days, there are cheaper ones available, starting at about $12.00 . And as Brett said, you will not blow up your RV by connecting to a lower amperage hookup. Only trip the cg breaker. Your largest enemy is cg low voltage: below 108 very bad, also over 130, very bad, these will ruin ac appliances and electronics faster than tripping breakers. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
elkhartjim Report post Posted March 31, 2014 My 50 amp motorhome has an Energy Management System that controls loads. When I'm conneted to 30amp service it will shed loads (appliances) so as to not overload the electricl system. I've never tripped a breaker...so far. I would also suggest turning your inverter/charger off while connected to 30amp as that can be a high energy (amps) user. I'll qualify my post by saying I have very little experience and/or knowledge of 5th wheels except I know some are super high end and some not so much. Regardless, as stated before, you're not going to blow anything up. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
