Pulling more than 50 amps ?

[TechWriter]

Our park electrician says that some of the big rigs with 3 ACs and electric everything can sometimes draw more than 50A from a 50A pedestal.

Truth or BS?

[cavie]

50 amp 120/240 volt will trip if either leg goes over 50 amps.

[valhalla360]

TechWriter wrote:

This is the OP & that's what park electrician meant.

Moderators, please close this thread.

So did he say they can exceed 50amp @ 240v? Your original post didn't state that.

Or are you assuming that's what he meant?

[down_home]

.............

[hypoxia]

I think the thread has had a lot of great information but disrupted with some posts and perhaps egos. Overall some of us have gained knowledge which is what we are here for.

[Kpackpackkelley]

TechWriter wrote:

valhalla360 wrote:

BB_TX wrote:

valhalla360 wrote:

BB_TX wrote:

From the OP:

Our park electrician says that some of the big rigs with 3 ACs and electric everything can sometimes draw more than 50A from a 50A pedestal.

A very simple statement regardless of the intent behind it. And that simple statement is absolutely true, at least until either the park 50 amp breaker trips, or the RV 50 amp breaker trips. And the voltage being used is entirely irrelevant. Doesn't matter whether the RV has any 240 vac appliances or if they are all 120 vac.

Boggles my mind that this has turned into a 9 page (an counting) debate about an "idiot electrician" making a very simple and very true statement and everyone turning that into their own personal interpretation as if they know more about what he was referring to than the electrician himself.

Nothing in your quote states they were referring to 240v operations. Even for big rigs, 240v appliances are very rare.

240 vac has been mentioned multiple times thru the course of this thread. And your own post said the question could not be answered without knowing the voltage. And I still stand on my earlier comments that voltage is irrelevant to the discussion and an RV, whether it has any 240 vac appliances or not, can in fact draw more than 50 amps thru either of the hot legs of the park 50 amp power pedestal until that breaker or the RV 50 amp breaker trips.

Yes, people are making lots of assumptions about a conversation they were not part of and then calling the guy an idiot without the full story.

There is no evidence the electrician was speaking of 240v draws...so people jumping to the conclusion he was makes no sense. Logically since the vast majority of rigs have NO 240v draws, it would be reasonable to assume he was speaking of 120v draws and in that case, it's very easy for a rig to pull more than 50amps at 120v.

This is the OP & that's what park electrician meant.

Moderators, please close this thread.

Thank you

[pianotuna]

It was a good thread for a while Techwriter. I enjoyed most of it.

[time2roll]

OK so the pedestal provides 12,000 watts available and the RV draws over 6,000 watts.
What are we even talking about?

Tell the electrician I ran my 700 watt generator to power my 100 watt tv.

[TechWriter]

valhalla360 wrote:

BB_TX wrote:

valhalla360 wrote:

BB_TX wrote:

From the OP:

Our park electrician says that some of the big rigs with 3 ACs and electric everything can sometimes draw more than 50A from a 50A pedestal.

A very simple statement regardless of the intent behind it. And that simple statement is absolutely true, at least until either the park 50 amp breaker trips, or the RV 50 amp breaker trips. And the voltage being used is entirely irrelevant. Doesn't matter whether the RV has any 240 vac appliances or if they are all 120 vac.

Boggles my mind that this has turned into a 9 page (an counting) debate about an "idiot electrician" making a very simple and very true statement and everyone turning that into their own personal interpretation as if they know more about what he was referring to than the electrician himself.

Nothing in your quote states they were referring to 240v operations. Even for big rigs, 240v appliances are very rare.

240 vac has been mentioned multiple times thru the course of this thread. And your own post said the question could not be answered without knowing the voltage. And I still stand on my earlier comments that voltage is irrelevant to the discussion and an RV, whether it has any 240 vac appliances or not, can in fact draw more than 50 amps thru either of the hot legs of the park 50 amp power pedestal until that breaker or the RV 50 amp breaker trips.

Yes, people are making lots of assumptions about a conversation they were not part of and then calling the guy an idiot without the full story.

There is no evidence the electrician was speaking of 240v draws...so people jumping to the conclusion he was makes no sense. Logically since the vast majority of rigs have NO 240v draws, it would be reasonable to assume he was speaking of 120v draws and in that case, it's very easy for a rig to pull more than 50amps at 120v.

This is the OP & that's what park electrician meant.

Moderators, please close this thread.

[valhalla360]

BB_TX wrote:

valhalla360 wrote:

BB_TX wrote:

From the OP:

Our park electrician says that some of the big rigs with 3 ACs and electric everything can sometimes draw more than 50A from a 50A pedestal.

A very simple statement regardless of the intent behind it. And that simple statement is absolutely true, at least until either the park 50 amp breaker trips, or the RV 50 amp breaker trips. And the voltage being used is entirely irrelevant. Doesn't matter whether the RV has any 240 vac appliances or if they are all 120 vac.

Boggles my mind that this has turned into a 9 page (an counting) debate about an "idiot electrician" making a very simple and very true statement and everyone turning that into their own personal interpretation as if they know more about what he was referring to than the electrician himself.

Nothing in your quote states they were referring to 240v operations. Even for big rigs, 240v appliances are very rare.

240 vac has been mentioned multiple times thru the course of this thread. And your own post said the question could not be answered without knowing the voltage. And I still stand on my earlier comments that voltage is irrelevant to the discussion and an RV, whether it has any 240 vac appliances or not, can in fact draw more than 50 amps thru either of the hot legs of the park 50 amp power pedestal until that breaker or the RV 50 amp breaker trips.

Yes, people are making lots of assumptions about a conversation they were not part of and then calling the guy an idiot without the full story.

There is no evidence the electrician was speaking of 240v draws...so people jumping to the conclusion he was makes no sense. Logically since the vast majority of rigs have NO 240v draws, it would be reasonable to assume he was speaking of 120v draws and in that case, it's very easy for a rig to pull more than 50amps at 120v.

[MrWizard]

a lot of talk and a lot of opinions along with the facts

the simple truth is : "there is no perfectly 'electrically' balanced RV"
if an RV has (3) A/Cs then one leg has (2) of them

even if it has only (2) A/C's, one on each leg
they will never be pulling exactly the same amount of power on each leg
the converter/charger will be on adding to one leg, other appliances will be used or cycled, so yes its possible to trip the 50amp breaker
IF load management is NOT engaged, manually by human brain or automatically by the RV systems

iirc one member posted here about re-distributing his circuit breaker loads
because it came from the factory with the most used items all on the same leg
somebody at the factory blew it, not properly spreading the load, when they installed the breakers

[BB_TX]

valhalla360 wrote:

BB_TX wrote:

From the OP:

Our park electrician says that some of the big rigs with 3 ACs and electric everything can sometimes draw more than 50A from a 50A pedestal.

A very simple statement regardless of the intent behind it. And that simple statement is absolutely true, at least until either the park 50 amp breaker trips, or the RV 50 amp breaker trips. And the voltage being used is entirely irrelevant. Doesn't matter whether the RV has any 240 vac appliances or if they are all 120 vac.

Boggles my mind that this has turned into a 9 page (an counting) debate about an "idiot electrician" making a very simple and very true statement and everyone turning that into their own personal interpretation as if they know more about what he was referring to than the electrician himself.

Nothing in your quote states they were referring to 240v operations. Even for big rigs, 240v appliances are very rare.

240 vac has been mentioned multiple times thru the course of this thread. And your own post said the question could not be answered without knowing the voltage. And I still stand on my earlier comments that voltage is irrelevant to the discussion and an RV, whether it has any 240 vac appliances or not, can in fact draw more than 50 amps thru either of the hot legs of the park 50 amp power pedestal until that breaker or the RV 50 amp breaker trips.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Connect an ammeter and see how long the huge draw on hot restart lasts.

[wa8yxm]

Gdetrailer wrote:
Y park which has a 50A 120/240 socket could have connected only ONE hot to both L1 and L2 terminals in the box and have been "legal". That would have had to be an pirate connection, I think you have been told a few "tall tales" from folks who don't understand how the mysteries of electric work.

Actually max power draw on my rig is under 60 amps total both legs combined unless I do some modifications.

But now we are getting to the "I fully agree" part of this discussion

There is NO WAY they can do it and be legal. on this we fully agree.

I was a police dispatcher for over a quarter century if not for Illegal I'd not have had a job.

Side note... My ONAN 5500 has two 30 amp breakers and only one phase the two legs are basically the same, it is a 120 volt only generator.

(That's where I get the 60 amps figure from)

[valhalla360]

BB_TX wrote:

From the OP:

Our park electrician says that some of the big rigs with 3 ACs and electric everything can sometimes draw more than 50A from a 50A pedestal.

A very simple statement regardless of the intent behind it. And that simple statement is absolutely true, at least until either the park 50 amp breaker trips, or the RV 50 amp breaker trips. And the voltage being used is entirely irrelevant. Doesn't matter whether the RV has any 240 vac appliances or if they are all 120 vac.

Boggles my mind that this has turned into a 9 page (an counting) debate about an "idiot electrician" making a very simple and very true statement and everyone turning that into their own personal interpretation as if they know more about what he was referring to than the electrician himself.

Nothing in your quote states they were referring to 240v operations. Even for big rigs, 240v appliances are very rare.