Power at home

[Lainey]

Hi all, I have a bit of a lame question.... When I am having my garage wired I would like to make sure I have ample & proper power supply at the trailer.

Anyone have any thought or recommendations? Do I need anything out of the ordinary? Thanks

[Pete Dumbleton]

Actually, yes. Be SURE the electrician understands that the 30Amp outlet is for an RV and will be 120VAC, NOT!!! 240VAC.

I have read several times of folks winding up with an over-voltaged and severely damaged RV, aka Fried Egg, because of this kind of error. In one case, the guy did his own and he was an electrician

They are too accustomed to installing 30A@240VAC for a dryer and the hardware looks similar (plug and socket are almost mirror images).

[Paul from NWOnt]

Inform the electrician that you need a single circuit/outlet capable of handling a 30amp load. As mentioned, make sure it's understood that it's a 120 volt circuit, NOT a 220.

One way to double check is you will likely end up with wire marked 12/2nmd instead of the usual 14/2nmd.

[james kent]

I went to a local electrician and told him how far it was from my main fuse pannel to the garage and he sold me the proper guage cable so I could run it through the house and underground to the garage. I now have a breaker panel in the garage as well as the main pannel in the house and two separate circuits so that I can use the garage as a shop too. [one for lighting and one for outlets] I then had the electrician make the final connections so that I knew it was right. I also bought a book called "Doing your own household wiring" and it told me most of what I needed to keep things at code. Between the two they were a big help. Plan on an outlet or a separate circuit for a future door opener too. Once you have power out there you will probably want one.

[Alf S.]

I went to a local electrician and told him how far it was from my main fuse pannel to the garage and he sold me the proper guage cable so I could run it through the house and underground to the garage. I now have a breaker panel in the garage as well as the main pannel in the house and two separate circuits so that I can use the garage as a shop too. [one for lighting and one for outlets] I then had the electrician make the final connections so that I knew it was right. I also bought a book called "Doing your own household wiring" and it told me most of what I needed to keep things at code. Between the two they were a big help. Plan on an outlet or a separate circuit for a future door opener too. Once you have power out there you will probably want one.

Hi: Jim... How deep underground did you have to go? Did you find any oil deposits, or natural gas, or even gold???LoL. I am thinking I might put in a 30 AMP. currant bush beside the driveway for the new "Maiden". I am going to have our panel up graded to circuit breakers any hoo!!!
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[Orlen Wolf]

Inform the electrician that you need a single circuit/outlet capable of handling a 30amp load. As mentioned, make sure it's understood that it's a 120 volt circuit, NOT a 220.

One way to double check is you will likely end up with wire marked 12/2nmd instead of the usual 14/2nmd.

For a 30A circuit you should use at least 10ga, not 12ga, according to the NEC. Depending on the total length of the run, you might have to go higher.

[Darwin Maring]

I used a really big gauge of direct burry wire from the house to the garage AC Panel and it is fused in the house on a 50 amp breaker.

The wire is inside conduit to prevent it from being accidentally cut by someone in the future. The wire size for 50 amp service and the Conduit meets the national electrecal code.

I did the 50amp service incase I might want to use a welder someday in the garage.

I use a 12 Gauge extension cord to connect to the egg.

[Lainey]

Thanks everyone for the responses. I guess it wasn't that lame of a question after all.
Now I've got some sort of idea what to tell the electrician.


Since I started a thread about lame electrical questions, I have another:

What type of equipment would I be best to get set up with in the extensions cords, adapters, etc. department for camping with full hook ups? (I'm used to boondocking so this power thing is still new to me.)

[Pete Dumbleton]

Darwin, be sure your garage panel, which is now a sub-main distribution panel (aka sub-boxes) has the ground and neutral wires on separate, isolated, bars. They should NOT be on the same bar; the neutrals must be isolated from ground per NEC.

I just did some research on this for a friend; pro electricians installed both his well and dock panels incorrectly.

Also, current code calls for two separate ground rods near the sub-box if it is not in same building as main box.

Here's a good, understandable summary:

http://ths.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/wiring/...5726007600.html