Safe Home Extension Cord for Micro Minnie Prep

[Dashunde]

I usually back it up to the house a few hours before packing to get the fridge cold drive out the heat before we pack, make the bed, clean, etc..
I've been using an extension cord/adapter/shore cord that came with the RV, but the 25ft extension cord and adapter are getting too warm..

Anyone know where I can get a 50 foot 10 gauge version of this NEMA 5-15P to NEMA L5-30R adapter for pre-trip prep?
I'd rather avoid that adapter if someone sells a long version of it.

 

[Waterbug]

That NEMA 5-15P is a 15 amp plug. You don't need 10 guage wire for 15 amps at 50 foot length. For that reason NOBODY will make the extension you are looking for.

 

[Dashunde]

Ok, anyone know of a 12 gauge 50ft option?

On second thought, I'll just buy that yellow thing and a 50ft 12ga cord, that way the cord is useful for other things.

 

[creativepart]

If you have any plan on running your RV’s A/C on that 50’ extension cord you better keep looking for 10 gauge. And don’t be surprised when your 15 amp receptacle turns to charcoal.

 

[Dashunde]

Alright... my panel is near the 3rd garage door and I put a 240v receptacle for the welder right below it. I suppose I can double-tap one side of its breaker with orange Romex and put a TT-30P/R receptacle near the door and get a regular 25 foot RV extension cord that'll also be useful at the next poorly planned RV park I come across.

 

[Waterbug]

If you have room on your panel, a new breaker for the RV recepticle is how it should be done. In most jurisdictions it is against code to double tap a breaker and doing it to only one terminal on a 240 volt breaker is a double violation.

 

[Dashunde]

The panel is full. I suppose I could pull a couple of 15a and put them on a tandem then add a 30a for the trailer. I'm out in the country/county.
Either way seems better than slowly charcoaling a 15a til something maybe does go ablaze.

 

[MonkeyPunch]

I usually back it up to the house a few hours before packing to get the fridge cold drive out the heat before we pack, make the bed, clean, etc..
I've been using an extension cord/adapter/shore cord that came with the RV, but the 25ft extension cord and adapter are getting too warm..

Anyone know where I can get a 50 foot 10 gauge version of this NEMA 5-15P to NEMA L5-30R adapter for pre-trip prep?
I'd rather avoid that adapter if someone sells a long version of it.
View attachment 2488971

Lots of odd replies here. Here's my real world experience. (and I'm an electrician, btw)

I use a 12ga extension cable w/adapter to power my 2003 Brave 36M when prepping for a trip. It keeps the coach charged, cools my fridge, and on really hot days, I can even run one A/C unit some (fan on low only) to help make in comfortable enough to work in.

We don't try to use other appliances, mainly just for the fridge and battery charging.

Don't use some cheapo 16ga cable. Spend the extra and use a 12ga cable. Also, keep an eye on your ends to make sure there's been no arcing, and keep them clean.

 

[bcborn]

I would think If you only running the fridge to cool it down, you should be fine. We installed a soft start in our AC to reduce startup load. Once running on low It seems to be ok for us, but we are not running 50 feet.

Seems like a lot of expense (dedicated RV circuit) to run the AC for pretrip convenience.

Think safety first if that is your intention.

 

[Waterbug]

Lots of odd replies here. Here's my real world experience. (and I'm an electrician, btw)

I use a 12ga extension cable w/adapter to power my 2003 Brave 36M when prepping for a trip. It keeps the coach charged, cools my fridge, and on really hot days, I can even run one A/C unit some (fan on low only) to help make in comfortable enough to work in.

We don't try to use other appliances, mainly just for the fridge and battery charging.

Don't use some cheapo 16ga cable. Spend the extra and use a 12ga cable. Also, keep an eye on your ends to make sure there's been no arcing, and keep them clean.

A 12ga extension isn't adequate if th OP wants to run his AC at 50 feet.

 

[MonkeyPunch]

A 12ga extension isn't adequate if th OP wants to run his AC at 50 feet.

C'mon over my house and tell my A/C unit & 12ga extension that. Been doing it for years, and I've tested the temp of my cable, no problem.

Now would I run it endlessly, no. An hour here or there when it's really needed, yep. As I said, it's real world experience I'm speaking from. Those 13.5 A/C units are fine on this setup, fan on low.

 

[bcborn]

Anyone tested the continuous amperage draw on low speed cool of their 13500 BTU unit.

How about the draw on high speed and start up for reference.

 

[Waterbug]

C'mon over my house and tell my A/C unit & 12ga extension that. Been doing it for years, and I've tested the temp of my cable, no problem.

Now would I run it endlessly, no. An hour here or there when it's really needed, yep. As I said, it's real world experience I'm speaking from. Those 13.5 A/C units are fine on this setup, fan on low.

If you reread the original post, you will see that his 25 foot extension is over heating and he wants to go to 50 feet. He is the one who determined that he needs a 10ga extension, not me. Obviously his unit is different than yours.

 

[Goodspike]

I usually back it up to the house a few hours before packing to get the fridge cold drive out the heat before we pack, make the bed, clean, etc..
I've been using an extension cord/adapter/shore cord that came with the RV, but the 25ft extension cord and adapter are getting too warm..

Anyone know where I can get a 50 foot 10 gauge version of this NEMA 5-15P to NEMA L5-30R adapter for pre-trip prep?
I'd rather avoid that adapter if someone sells a long version of it.
View attachment 2488971

Just buy the bulk cable of the exact length and gauge you want and then buy the two connectors for the ends. That's how I did my generator to house inlet box cord when I couldn't find one premade that was the gauge I wanted. One advantage of that is you won't have to get 50' if you only need 40'

Also, turn off your converter when plugged in at home if your battery is already close to fully charged. That will save you about 400 watts of draw at times.

 

[Dashunde]

I'll clarify..
I had my trusty 14ga 25ft extension cord plugged into a standard 15a outlet, then to a Camco TT30 adapter that attached to the shore power cord that came with the trailer. After 3+ hours of running the A/C wide open that Camco adapter got hot enough that its plastics got mushy. The cord was cool, its plug at the wall was warm (not hot).
I figured I should change what I was doing, and started this thread..

I'm in southern Idaho and through the summer months its a proper desert here with 99% sun and temps 90-105 til September. Part of the trip prep has been to run the A/C several hours before leaving to cool the fridge and drive the heat out of the guts of the trailer, the mattresses, etc.

We often boondock up in the mountains where its notably cooler and I use a Honda 2200 when needed, but its not cool enough soon enough to arrive with a deeply heated trailer or else the Honda has to run for hours.
(For those wondering, I installed the Softstartrv unit back in 2024 and it allows the Honda to power the A/C running full blast indefinitely.)

Anyway... I bought all the stuff needed to put a TT30 receptacle just below the panel near the 3rd garage door. I'll be pulling 2 standard 15a breakers and combining them onto a single tandem breaker to make room for a new 30a breaker for the trailer. The new TT30 receptacle will be ~2 foot below the panel.

Regarding the length needed...
The nearest regular receptacle is on the inside wall of the 30 foot deep garage, so it required the extension cord plus the regular shore cord, which is why I was asking about a 50 foot cord to avoid using the shore cord and instead go straight to the left rear of the trailer.
Because the new TT30 receptacle and 3rd garage door are on the passenger's side of the trailer when backed in I'll still need an extension cord so we're not stepping out of the trailer and down a hill into the yard, but this extension cord is a proper TT30 that'll also be useful at a poorly designed campground or handy for getting the Honda further away behind the truck or whatever.

 

[Goodspike]

Anyway... I bought all the stuff needed to put a TT30 receptacle just below the panel near the 3rd garage door. I'll be pulling 2 standard 15a breakers and combining them onto a single tandem breaker to make room for a new 30a breaker for the trailer. The new TT30 will be ~2 foot below the panel.

Just to be clear: I think you are saying this, but the TT30 is a 110v outlet, you do not want to use a tandem breaker for that outlet (as opposed to two existing circuits). That would create a 220v outlet, a mistake some electricians have reportedly made.

One advantage of the make it yourself cord is you could put a 15 or 20a plug on the house end now and you could change the plug when you change the outlet, using the same cord.

 

[Dashunde]

Correct, the new 30a is a single 110v breaker for the TT30 receptacle.

Using that frees up a slot in the panel for the new 30a breaker.

 

[Waterbug]

Correct, the new 30a is a single 110v breaker for the TT30 receptacle.

View attachment 2491613

Using that frees up a slot in the panel for the new 30a breaker.

I did a simular install, except my RV has 50 amp service, which is actually two 50 amp 120 volt circuits. I installed a 50 amp RV receptical, but ran 10ga wire and installed a dual 30 amp breaker in my panel. True 50 amp service would require 6ga wiring. The RV thinks it has 50 amp service but it is really dual 30 amp service. Since I am only running AC and refrigerator, I'll never overload the breaker in the panel. My RV has a monitor that shows how much current I am drawing and I have NEVER seen it draw over 30 amps. (But I don't sit there and watch it.) When it approaches the service it is connected to it shuts down certain circuits. That function won't work when connected to my home receptical

 

[Goodspike]

Correct, the new 30a is a single 110v breaker for the TT30 receptacle.

Great, I just wanted to be clear on what you were actually doing--I'm familiar with the various devices. I was just unclear on your plans.