Broken prong on the cord to the fuse box

[C&G in FL]

Wenonah,
That cord looks rather big to me. Is there any writing or numbers molded into the covering, such as 10-2 or 12-2, or somehing like 12 AWG?

[SilverGhost]

Yeah, that looks like a cord that would come on a camper with 20A or 30A hook up. I would consider a larger rating plug that will probably fit that cord better.

Of course that means plugging into larger service at the campground or at home. Or using the 30A to 15A adapter and being cautious of what load you us.

Funny thought just occurred to me - a 15A plug on a 30A cable is like a dripper nozzle on a fire hose.

Jason

[Byron Kinnaman]

Originally Posted by Wenonah

The plugs that can accommodate the cord aren't 15 amp. Therein lies the problem...

Try another store

[Roy in TO]

Originally Posted by CPW

Wenonah,
That cord looks rather big to me.

In days gone by these cords had a thicker coating to stand up to the abuse of being outside. It had nothing to do with what size wires were on the inside.

Two possible solutions - take a sharp utensil and shave down the coating on the end where the clamp goes or make the hole larger.

And yes, I would cut the paper off.

[Raspy]

Its amazing how simple things get complicated. As I suggested in post 40, he can fix the clamp for the large cable. It might have been simpler to just buy a #12 extension cord, cut off the female end and wire it into his trailer.
Then he'd have a factory molded male end.
But the new plug end he bought should wprk fine.

[k corbin]

It is just a heavier wire gauge than one might typically see on 15 amp. I use that heavier gauge when I have long cords and am running a power tool on it. Under those circumstances it is the appropriate gauge of cord. It does no harm to have heavier wire even though he might need to obtain a different plug. I rarely go to Home Depot for things like plug ends. Instead I head to one of the standby hardware store chains, Ace, True Value or my favorite "Do-It-Best".

I recently built extension 15 amp cords for my Campster using the heavier gauge wire as I needed a 35' long cord.

[Civilguy]

170608Wenona

Originally Posted by Wenonah

This is where I am at. I have attached the wires in the appropriate receptacle. Green to green, white to silver and black to brass. However I can't close the replacement plug at the bottom because the cord is too thick. Should I get a longer screws or does this mean that the replacement plug won't work with that cord. It is a 15 amp replacement plug. I replaced like for like...Also, what is the paper between the colored wires for and can I cut them off? This is a 1989 Scamp. Perhaps things were different then?

Wenona,

In the third and fourth photos it looks like the wires are connected to the correct prongs, which is great.

In the second picture it looks like there is a small black piece that could be removed from the clamp so the clamp can fit different diameter cables. However, it looks like removing this may not be enough to attain an ideal fit. Perhaps with the black piece removed, and perhaps also longer screws, this might serve as an interim arrangement. But, it's not ideal.

The third photo shows that the jacket (the black outermost covering) is very thick. Different cable types and particularly older cables have thicker jackets. More modern jackets tend to be much thinner, though perhaps not actually "better" than the old rubber style.

This was why you cut an inch of cable with the plug, so you can look at how it might work with the plugs offered at the store. I'm sorry I wasn't more specific about this.

Yes, the exposed fiber / paper filler should be removed. Shaving the jacket down to fit the plug would require some pretty precise whittling and might weaken the jacket so that the clamp is not effective. I don't think that's the best approach here.

It may be a challenge to find a plug that will offer a good fit. You may have to try a different store. An electrical supply house serving the electrical trade might be able to help you. What matters is that the plug has the same style blades; two straight and one round, in the same arrangement with the two straight blades parallel.

The instruction sheet on this one (linked below) says it will fit up to a 0.655-inch jacket. That's just over 5/8's of an inch and might be enough; you'll have to measure the outside diameter of the cable. I am estimating from the photos that it’s about ½-inch, so the plug I linked might work.

https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-515PR.../dp/B000FKBZ7M

515PR

An alternative would be to replace the whole cord. It sounds like the existing cord is attached to the trailer, correct? If so, you could buy an extension cord, cut off the female plug and make new connections inside the load center. However, this might be a more challenging installation. It would also cost much more as copper is so expensive anymore. You might also find challenges getting a new cord to fit the clamp at the load center end. So, there are a lot of unknowns there. If you went this route, I am guessing you would want about a 14 gauge cord, but maybe others will chime in on that.

I think the best approach would be to find a plug that will work and I think there is such a thing. I'm sorry this is turning out so difficult.

[Raspy]

Originally Posted by Raspy

Look carefully at the clamping part. It likely has a removable piece that makes it fit a larger cord like yours. I can see it in the picture you posted. It looks like it is under your thumb in the second picture you posted between the white part and the cord.

If it almost fits, but is still tight, squeeze it together with pliers to get the screws started. If it is too tight with the spacer removed, just file the clamp's opening out to where it is a snug fit, but closes all the way. The plastic clamps can be modified without a problem.

Originally Posted by Civilguy

170608Wenona

In the second picture it looks like there is a small black piece that could be removed from the clamp so the clamp can fit different diameter cables. However, it looks like removing this may not be enough to attain an ideal fit. Perhaps with the black piece removed, and perhaps also longer screws, this might serve as an interim arrangement. But, it's not ideal.

Looks like we're on the same page. I wonder what he ended up with.

[Wenonah]

Thank you to all for your suggestions! I removed the place piece and it fit well, however, there is no electricity getting to the Scamp when I plug it into the garage. I did check the outlet in the garage and it has power as the fan I plugged in to the same outlet ran...I flipped the switch on the fuse box in the Scamp and it didn't help. Does anyone know where I may begin to find the problem area. I know that it worked when I got it as I slept in the first night I bought it and it did have electrical power. Any suggestions? This is a 1989 Scamp 13'

[Civilguy]

Originally Posted by Wenonah

Thank you to all for your suggestions! I removed the place piece and it fit well, however, there is no electricity getting to the Scamp when I plug it into the garage. I did check the outlet in the garage and it has power as the fan I plugged in to the same outlet ran...I flipped the switch on the fuse box in the Scamp and it didn't help. Does anyone know where I may begin to find the problem area. I know that it worked when I got it as I slept in the first night I bought it and it did have electrical power. Any suggestions? This is a 1989 Scamp 13'

Wenona,

The first place I would start is where I have been working on something. I figure if it worked before I touched it, I look where I touched it. I think this is the best place to start.

Remove the plug from the wall receptacle and triple check that the white, black and green wires all have the insulation stripped the proper length and that each conductor (wire) is properly and securely fastened to the plug.

Before you do that you may want to confirm that there is no power whatsoever getting to the trailer.

After that, it gets more difficult to help without looking. Take these first steps and I'll try to think on this a bit. Maybe someone else will have an idea too.

[Raspy]

An inductive tester is your friend in this case. Simply hold it near the wire and it lights up if there is power. It might mean another trip to the store, but this is a very useful tool, about the size of a pen, and cheap. I can't over emphasize how easy it makes troubleshooting.

With that tool I would look first where the wire comes into the trailer and connects. If you have no power there, on the terminals it connects to, your problem is with the plug or the receptacle. Since the fan ran, it would have to be the plug.

Hard to go any further at this point. It's also hard to imagine you got the wiring wrong in the plug. Maybe one of the wires slipped out of it's clamp.

[Wenonah]

The answer was so simple that it is ridiculous. I don't know why this happened because I did check the box and flip the switch up and down, but when I did it again it worked and power was restored. Thank you so much! I wouldn't have done that if not for your suggestion to check everything that I touched, Raspy.

[Civilguy]

All right, is it time to get packed and go camping now?

[Raspy]

Whew! That took a while. Now, as Mike said, it's time to go camping. Have fun! Wish I was going, but we're stuck for another month.

[Civilguy]

Originally Posted by Wenonah

The answer was so simple that it is ridiculous. I don't know why this happened because I did check the box and flip the switch up and down, but when I did it again it worked and power was restored. Thank you so much! I wouldn't have done that if not for your suggestion to check everything that I touched, Raspy.

Wenona,

By the way, if the switch was a circuit breaker, they have a middle position between on and off. This middle position is also "off".

When restoring power after they trip due to overload, or when turning them off and on, you have to be sure to press them all the way off, and then back to the on position.

Maybe that information will help some day.

[Wenonah]

Yes, time to go now. Today should be the day, yesterday I had to replace the lift on the front of the trailer! That being done (by me, I may add) we can go now. Probably won't go until tomorrow though, still have to pack. Thanks again for all you help (everyone). What a community.

Will be doing a second round of updates in July when we return from our trip up the Atlantic Coast.

Enjoy your summers!