I use a setup much like Charlie, but only use it when I am NOT using our Air Conditioners or other major appliances. We have a residential refrigerator, so I have to have power to it all the time to keep food from spoiling. If we park our 5th wheel in a driveway, or someone's yard while visiting, sometimes the only outlet available to me is a 110. I plug a heavy duty extension cord into the 110 outlet, then plug my 50amp into that with an adapter. The only appliance using the power in our RV is the refrigerator, so I felt that I was ok. Am I not?
What you’re doing is perfectly safe from an overcurrent meltdown. That’s because the outlet you’re plugging into is limited to 15 or 20-amps of current. But Charlie’s setup looked like he was plugged into a 50-amp outlet, so 50-amps of load current on a 30-amp extension cord was possible.
However, in all cases you need to be sure that whatever you plug into is properly grounded. A missing ground on a garage outlet is very common, and that’s what can cause a hot-skin voltage on your RV or Motorhome.
Mike,
I use a setup much like Charlie, but only use it when I am NOT using our Air Conditioners or other major appliances. We have a residential refrigerator, so I have to have power to it all the time to keep food from spoiling. If we park our 5th wheel in a driveway, or someone's yard while visiting, sometimes the only outlet available to me is a 110. I plug a heavy duty extension cord into the 110 outlet, then plug my 50amp into that with an adapter. The only appliance using the power in our RV is the refrigerator, so I felt that I was ok. Am I not?
- Jef Boutin
Jef,
What you’re doing is perfectly safe from an overcurrent meltdown. That’s because the outlet you’re plugging into is limited to 15 or 20-amps of current. But Charlie’s setup looked like he was plugged into a 50-amp outlet, so 50-amps of load current on a 30-amp extension cord was possible.
However, in all cases you need to be sure that whatever you plug into is properly grounded. A missing ground on a garage outlet is very common, and that’s what can cause a hot-skin voltage on your RV or Motorhome.