30 amp plug question

[thiefsnip3r]

Hey everyone,
I purchase my first travel trailer the other day so I'm very new to owning one and maintenance. I noticed where the plug is located on my trailer the door panel says it is a 30 amp plug 110 service. The cord is a 110 cord not a 30amp plug. I asked the person i bought it from and he said the original owner of the trailer did this.
The previous owner said he never used the AC unit (which i believe is the only reason for the 30amp plug). I was wanting to be able to use the AC. Is it as much as cutting the cord and attaching a 30amp cord end on? (it looks like this was done previously as the 110 cord has an abundance of electrical tape on the cable already in a location.

[myredracer]

It looks like a 30 amp cord could possibly get hung on the 4x4 junction when you push the cord all the way in. Maybe relocate the box to one side a bit if you have enough of the #10 romex to work with. But it's a bit hard to tell from the pics.

[dodge_guy]

Yes pick up a 30A RV cord. To make it somewhat easy you can buy a 30A RV extension cord, cut off the female end and wire it into the junction box. They sell them at most home improvement stores. I know Menards does.

[enblethen]

Looks as though some one has made a shore power cord out of a standard 15/20 amp extension cord.
You should replace as indicated by myRedracer! The cord he shows will go through the hole to the metal junction box. My 18 inch suggestion does not appear to be long enough.

[LoudRam]

After looking at the pictures I would buy a new 30 amp cord and wire it into the junction box. Someone mentioned earlier about buying an RV extension cord and cuting off the female end and using that. That's a good idea if you can't find a ready made cord and plug.

[BarabooBob]

I looked at your pictures and did not see the actual plug. Did I miss it?

[thiefsnip3r]

Okay thank you all for the reply’s here are some pictures of what I’m seeing.
https://imgur.com/gallery/jkOwaWk

[K3WE]

Warning- since a "30A plug versus 110V wire" seems new to you, Amps and Volts are two different things.

Here's the catch- a typical dryer is a 30 amp, 240 volt plug. They look a little bit alike, and people have been able to force camper plugs into drier outlets.

The 30 Amps at the drier does no harm...the 240 volts however...not good.

[Cobra21]

I would put an all new cord and plug combo on as it should be.
Brian

[enblethen]

If he does have the small compartment, it may work better to use the 18 inch cord assembly then uses a thirty amp ecxtension cord rather then try to stuff the 25 foot cord in the compartment.

[myredracer]

Do you have what's often called a "mouse hole" where you push the cord into? If so, it sounds like the PO disconnected the 30 amp cord just inside the mouse hole and reconnected a 15 amp extension cord. No problem with that electrically, but yes, not good for running an AC plus other loads.

Sounds like all you need to do is buy a 30 amp (#10 awg) RV shore power cord and and reconnect to the trailer's wiring. You should have #10 romex cable at the mouse hole running to the 120 volt 30 amp panel that you'd splice to. If the PO changed that, you'd need to install some new #10 romex to the panel.

Some RVs have a detachable cord with twist-lock connecter on it instead, but I'm guessing you have a mouse hole setup.

The new cord could be a replacement cord without female connector on it like in 1st photo, or a 30 amp extension cord like 2nd photo and you'd simply cut the female connector off. Just need to make sure it's for an RV with a NEMA TT-30P plug. Available on Amazon, ebay and RV parts vendors for around $50. Or try your local Craiglist for a deal on one.

If you're somewhere that only has a 15 or 20 amp receptacle (typically at a home), you can use a 30 to 15 amp adapter as shown below which works fine for keeping a fridge and converter going.

[enblethen]

This is what a 30 amp cord body looks like.
It should have a 3 wire #10 cord going to the rig.

[theoldwizard1]

thiefsnip3r wrote:
Is it as much as cutting the cord and attaching a 30amp cord end on? (it looks like this was done previously as the 110 cord has an abundance of electrical tape on the cable already in a location.

That is it !

The plug you want is called a NEMA 30-TT.

[dodge_guy]

Pictures would help. If they just cut the end off then yes a new 30A plug will take care of it. Are you sure they didn’t use a 30A-15A adapter and taped it together so it wouldn’t come apart?

[brant_c]

Can you post a picture?