As an electrician I'd add a couple things. For one don't leave extension cords coiled up while in use as the heat generated by the current and magnetic field can cause a fire. It's a common occurence. Two if you have it plugged into a 15amp circuit you are certainly safe to use a 14g extension cord. 14g conductors are rated for 15A and if the current exceeds that the breaker should trip. For 20A circuits you should use a 12g extension and as you stated 10g for 30A. Third unless your voltage is already borderline low you shouldn't have to worry about voltage drop unless you are using more than 100ft(roughly) of extension cord and in that case as you stated the larger the wire the better to negate the voltage drop. Thanks for the videos!
Electrician here as well. He didn't mention that the AC is a continuous motor, so you're also limited to 80%. I'm sure we both keep this in back of mind, but it's a very fine line, even with a 20A rated cord and circuit. It may not trip the breaker immediately, but over time you can have all kinds of issues. Even my heavy duty cord gets hot with my Mach 3 after a few hours of use. I also found that you need to be very careful with which brand dogbone adapters you buy as I've melted 2 of the cheap ones. The Camco's are generally pretty good but even that one gets warm after a while.
Thank you for all the info. I’m new to pop ups and unfortunately got swindled by a dealership. I’m fixing it up and I’ve binged watched almost all of your videos!
Thanks for the vid. I purchased one of those adapters but was hesitant in trying it out. Your video makes me more at ease in trying it out. I don't have an AC unit, only lights, fridge and outlets. I will be running it out of a 12 ft 14 guage extension cord.. so I think it would be fine. Just using it to make sure electrical system is working properly without running on the batteries. Thanks again for the vid...keep it up! 🤙
great video for the new pop up camper owners. I have a 2000 camplite camper I love it. But the AC has a specific plug to plug into.. I bought a heavy duty cord to run just run to the AC when were at electric sites. . I can use the 30 amp plug outlet as well But this allows me to run everything. But I did come close to melting the first cord I used.. Who knew it used that much power. Next summer At home Im going to install a run a direct 30 amp camper plug in the garage.
When we’re running the AC at the campsite along with another power intensive appliance (e.g., an electric griddle), we will run a separate extension cord from the power post directly to the electric griddle so that it is not running through the pop up power system. That way we can keep the pop up plugged in normally (via the 30 AMP cord) and still run the AC. This seems like it achieves the same goal as what you are doing, just reversed - lol.
@@ItsPoppin yep lol Great page by the way I enjoy your videos. A lot of the things you show I have done already but there are still a few things Im learning as well. So thank you for the site
The sound of the A/C sound puts me to sleep. And bye a 50AMP dog bone for Site use. Plug it in to 50AMP plug at site. And run cords off of it to A/C and other high amp things.
Does anyone know where i can source a replacement roof top AC power cord for a pop up? These things are like unicorns! I bought a used Pony 2100 and it was using two 6' grey extension cords. Want to replace with a single white whip but can't find a source or even a reference at all! Appreciate any info!
No melting cords... yet ... lol 😆 wanted to know maybe I'm having trouble with my propane have you experienced the regulator going bad going from tank to pop up ? Maybe a video how your lines are ran. I Also got a free pop up im learning and fixing up. Thank you for all your great content
No, we’ve never had any problems with a regulator going bag. Have you tried priming or bleeding your gas lines by lighting your stove top first before trying to start any other of the gas appliances?
My ac unit has a separate regular wall plug in. My camper also has a 30 amp connector. Can I just run a 12 guage extension cord and plug that ac unit into a house outlet?
Our A/C requires a 20 amp outlet. If your A/C only has a 15 amp plug, I don’t see why you couldn’t run it directly to a 15 amp house outlet. However, make sure the extension cord is also properly rated. It all just depends on the amperage required by your A/C.
I used a regular extension cord and the adapter. The air conditioning cam on but with in a few minutes , it shut off. Could I have damaged the ac unit? Or since the power was not sufficient, did it just shut down?
A plug and cord may be rated 20A and provide power for immediate start up, but there's also a continuous motor rule of 80% that he did not mention. Motors running continuously will eventually get the circuit hot with a heat buildup. It also draws a lot more during compressor startup each cycle. Your breaker is most likely tripping after a couple compressor cycles and getting the circuit hot. The breaker is doing its job and protecting your appliance. You should be fine, but I would look into putting it on a 30A circuit, or reconfiguring your 20A circuit by shortening the cord and making sure nothing else is on it.
Well, you can monitor your 12V battery voltage with a simple battery voltage meter, which we installed in our last video ( th-cam.com/video/h7uAkJMzWpA/w-d-xo.html ). It’s only going to tell you how charged your battery is and not how much amps/watts you’re drawing. On the other hand, I think it’s possible to purchase and install an inline electricity usage monitor both for shore power and battery power, but we’ve never installed anything like that. I would look up AC power meter or DC power meter and see what you can find.
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Not going to lie, we’ve (slightly) melted extension cords before we knew better. Has this happened to anyone else?!
Did you have them coiled up?
As an electrician I'd add a couple things. For one don't leave extension cords coiled up while in use as the heat generated by the current and magnetic field can cause a fire. It's a common occurence.
Two if you have it plugged into a 15amp circuit you are certainly safe to use a 14g extension cord. 14g conductors are rated for 15A and if the current exceeds that the breaker should trip. For 20A circuits you should use a 12g extension and as you stated 10g for 30A.
Third unless your voltage is already borderline low you shouldn't have to worry about voltage drop unless you are using more than 100ft(roughly) of extension cord and in that case as you stated the larger the wire the better to negate the voltage drop.
Thanks for the videos!
Electrician here as well. He didn't mention that the AC is a continuous motor, so you're also limited to 80%. I'm sure we both keep this in back of mind, but it's a very fine line, even with a 20A rated cord and circuit. It may not trip the breaker immediately, but over time you can have all kinds of issues. Even my heavy duty cord gets hot with my Mach 3 after a few hours of use. I also found that you need to be very careful with which brand dogbone adapters you buy as I've melted 2 of the cheap ones. The Camco's are generally pretty good but even that one gets warm after a while.
Thank you for all the info. I’m new to pop ups and unfortunately got swindled by a dealership. I’m fixing it up and I’ve binged watched almost all of your videos!
Oh no, sorry to hear that!
Thanks for the vid. I purchased one of those adapters but was hesitant in trying it out. Your video makes me more at ease in trying it out. I don't have an AC unit, only lights, fridge and outlets. I will be running it out of a 12 ft 14 guage extension cord.. so I think it would be fine. Just using it to make sure electrical system is working properly without running on the batteries. Thanks again for the vid...keep it up! 🤙
Right on, you should be fine. I tested our fridge and it pulled 1.08 amps and 129.6 watts in addition to the base electrical draw.
Thankyou for answering my question this is good info
great video for the new pop up camper owners. I have a 2000 camplite camper I love it. But the AC has a specific plug to plug into.. I bought a heavy duty cord to run just run to the AC when were at electric sites. . I can use the 30 amp plug outlet as well But this allows me to run everything. But I did come close to melting the first cord I used.. Who knew it used that much power. Next summer At home Im going to install a run a direct 30 amp camper plug in the garage.
When we’re running the AC at the campsite along with another power intensive appliance (e.g., an electric griddle), we will run a separate extension cord from the power post directly to the electric griddle so that it is not running through the pop up power system. That way we can keep the pop up plugged in normally (via the 30 AMP cord) and still run the AC. This seems like it achieves the same goal as what you are doing, just reversed - lol.
@@ItsPoppin yep lol Great page by the way I enjoy your videos. A lot of the things you show I have done already but there are still a few things Im learning as well. So thank you for the site
The sound of the A/C sound puts me to sleep. And bye a 50AMP dog bone for Site use. Plug it in to 50AMP plug at site. And run cords off of it to A/C and other high amp things.
Does anyone know where i can source a replacement roof top AC power cord for a pop up? These things are like unicorns! I bought a used Pony 2100 and it was using two 6' grey extension cords. Want to replace with a single white whip but can't find a source or even a reference at all! Appreciate any info!
No melting cords... yet ... lol 😆 wanted to know maybe I'm having trouble with my propane have you experienced the regulator going bad going from tank to pop up ? Maybe a video how your lines are ran. I Also got a free pop up im learning and fixing up. Thank you for all your great content
No, we’ve never had any problems with a regulator going bag. Have you tried priming or bleeding your gas lines by lighting your stove top first before trying to start any other of the gas appliances?
@@ItsPoppin thank you I will try and bleed the lines . This is my first pop up still trying to learn all the little tricks thank you thank you
Are these applications the same when you are at a campsite that has outlets, of course, plugging in a surge protector first into their outlet?
No, not if you’re plugging into a 30 amp or 50 amp outlet at the campsite.
We are new to pop up camping too
Can you show a video about backing up into a single garage ?
What’s the best way?
Thanks
Definitely, it’s on our to-do list. The short answer is to go slow and have a spotter keeping an eye on your blind spots.
The make a hand cart with a ball on it designed for small boats. Works well if your moderately in shape and you are on a flat surface.
My ac unit has a separate regular wall plug in. My camper also has a 30 amp connector. Can I just run a 12 guage extension cord and plug that ac unit into a house outlet?
Our A/C requires a 20 amp outlet. If your A/C only has a 15 amp plug, I don’t see why you couldn’t run it directly to a 15 amp house outlet. However, make sure the extension cord is also properly rated. It all just depends on the amperage required by your A/C.
Do you have a video in how to weigh your pop up camper?
No, but I would recommend finding a truck scale - commonly a CAT scale in our area.
I used a regular extension cord and the adapter. The air conditioning cam on but with in a few minutes , it shut off. Could I have damaged the ac unit? Or since the power was not sufficient, did it just shut down?
A plug and cord may be rated 20A and provide power for immediate start up, but there's also a continuous motor rule of 80% that he did not mention. Motors running continuously will eventually get the circuit hot with a heat buildup. It also draws a lot more during compressor startup each cycle. Your breaker is most likely tripping after a couple compressor cycles and getting the circuit hot. The breaker is doing its job and protecting your appliance. You should be fine, but I would look into putting it on a 30A circuit, or reconfiguring your 20A circuit by shortening the cord and making sure nothing else is on it.
Use your 30 amp dryer outlet if its in your garage.
Is it possible to run the ac on Batteries?
No
Im new to pop ups, Is there a amp Guage I can install inside my pop up so I know what its drawing while camping?
From shore power?
Shore or battery...
Well, you can monitor your 12V battery voltage with a simple battery voltage meter, which we installed in our last video ( th-cam.com/video/h7uAkJMzWpA/w-d-xo.html ). It’s only going to tell you how charged your battery is and not how much amps/watts you’re drawing. On the other hand, I think it’s possible to purchase and install an inline electricity usage monitor both for shore power and battery power, but we’ve never installed anything like that. I would look up AC power meter or DC power meter and see what you can find.
This is surprisingly long to say… essentially nothing. Basic stuff