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Old 08-10-2017, 09:35 AM   #1
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Extension cord for trailer

Our travel trailer is a Jay Feather 23BHM with 30 amp electric. We have a parking area out beside our house that's big enough for our three cars and right now we have the Jayco in that parking area because we driveway camp in it sometimes and the parking area has easy access to an outdoor outlet and to a hose bib. But the camper is in the way and we have to jockey cars around it sometimes. There is no wiggle room here; our house is on the side of a hill and the four sides of the parking area are: 1. the driveway entrance; 2. the detached garage; 3. our house; and 4. a steep drop-off directly across from the garage.

We are planning on adding fill on the drop-off side and so extending the parking area out that way by 25 feet or so, then laying a cement slab, and eventually moving the garage across the parking area onto the new slab. That will make a world of difference and solve all our (parking, at least) problems.

But that hasn't happened yet, and as a temporary resting place for the Jayco I'm thinking about moving it up the driveway away from the house to a spot we now use as a turn-around. The problem is the spot is about 100 feet from the garage, which is the closest electric hook-up. I know it would be best to run some Romex from the garage and put up a little outlet post out there for the camper but, as I said, it will only be a temporary resting place and I will have no need for electric there when the permanent parking spot is built (no later than Spring - more likely before Winter). Do you folks think I could run a 100 foot 10 gauge extension cord over that distance without endangering our lives and the life of the camper? Any advice/suggestion is appreciated.

tl;dr: Is it safe to temporarily run a 100 foot 10 gauge extension cord from the trailer to the garage in order to power my 30 amp Jayco?

I'll hang up and listen.
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Old 08-10-2017, 09:54 AM   #2
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if you use 10ga at 100 feet you will be ok unless your running the ac. The ac has alot of amp draw and that would really heat up that length of cord.
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Old 08-10-2017, 09:55 AM   #3
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Extension Cord

Quote:
Originally Posted by KillerIsMe View Post
Our travel trailer is a Jay Feather 23BHM with 30 amp electric. We have a parking area out beside our house that's big enough for our three cars and right now we have the Jayco in that parking area because we driveway camp in it sometimes and the parking area has easy access to an outdoor outlet and to a hose bib. But the camper is in the way and we have to jockey cars around it sometimes. There is no wiggle room here; our house is on the side of a hill and the four sides of the parking area are: 1. the driveway entrance; 2. the detached garage; 3. our house; and 4. a steep drop-off directly across from the garage.

We are planning on adding fill on the drop-off side and so extending the parking area out that way by 25 feet or so, then laying a cement slab, and eventually moving the garage across the parking area onto the new slab. That will make a world of difference and solve all our (parking, at least) problems.

But that hasn't happened yet, and as a temporary resting place for the Jayco I'm thinking about moving it up the driveway away from the house to a spot we now use as a turn-around. The problem is the spot is about 100 feet from the garage, which is the closest electric hook-up. I know it would be best to run some Romex from the garage and put up a little outlet post out there for the camper but, as I said, it will only be a temporary resting place and I will have no need for electric there when the permanent parking spot is built (no later than Spring - more likely before Winter). Do you folks think I could run a 100 foot 10 gauge extension cord over that distance without endangering our lives and the life of the camper? Any advice/suggestion is appreciated.

tl;dr: Is it safe to temporarily run a 100 foot 10 gauge extension cord from the trailer to the garage in order to power my 30 amp Jayco?

I'll hang up and listen.
We have a similar problem but maybe 30 feet from plug.We have the 15k AC unit which would blow the GFI outside plug in maybe an hour.Purchased an outside heavy duty extension cord from Home Depot.So are next option was to plug in to the 110 plug for the dryer,30 amp breaker.Worked much better,usually plug in after sunset.Let ac run over night to cool camper and help frig out before we head camping. We are in Phoenix Arizona!
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Old 08-10-2017, 09:58 AM   #4
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I'm not an electrician nor am I an electrical engineer. That said, I used to work in construction many years ago and used a 100' 10 gauge extension cord to a junction box to power my air compressor, saws, etc. I never had any issues with tools being under powered or damaged due to low voltage. When my trailer is parked in front of my house prior to camping, it's plugged in with a 12 gauge 50' cord that will run my fridge and AC no problem. I would think you'll be ok but that's just my .02 cents
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Old 08-10-2017, 11:40 AM   #5
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Any way to install a weather tight box on the front of the home that landscaping will hide? A 100' line will get pricey, probably more than the cost to install the new box.
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Old 08-10-2017, 12:12 PM   #6
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The short answer is that you would be fine for most loads. The biggest limiting factor is the cable size and length from the electrical panel to the receptacle you plug the extension cord into.

The longer answer... Electrical code is no more than 3% voltage drop on a branch circuit which is the entire length from your main panel to the connected load.

A 10A load, which would allow for your AC unit, a couple small parasitic loads and nothing else would give a 2.1% voltage drop on #10 wire over 100ft. Add in 25ft of #14 from your house electrical panel to the receptacle, 30ft of #6 shore power cord and 10ft of #14 from your TT power panel to the AC unit and you jump to a 4.2% voltage drop without accounting for any loss across all the connection and splice points in the circuit.
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Old 08-11-2017, 07:54 AM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wabirch View Post
Any way to install a weather tight box on the front of the home that landscaping will hide? A 100' line will get pricey, probably more than the cost to install the new box.
Not sure what you mean Birch. I can run a line underground to a post out where I want to park the camper (about 80 feet from the garage) and put an outlet on that post, like you would do if you had horses and wanted to run electric out to the pasture for your fence. I wouldn't have to hide it though because of where we live. If you mean putting a breaker box out on the garage I could do that too - again, I wouldn't have to hide it - but right now the camper is plugged into a GFI outlet on a 20 amp circuit on the house and running everything including the 15K AC. I'm not so worried about getting enough power to the Jayco as I am about overheating a 100' extension cord.
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Old 08-11-2017, 08:05 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BCK View Post
The short answer is that you would be fine for most loads. The biggest limiting factor is the cable size and length from the electrical panel to the receptacle you plug the extension cord into.

The longer answer... Electrical code is no more than 3% voltage drop on a branch circuit which is the entire length from your main panel to the connected load.

A 10A load, which would allow for your AC unit, a couple small parasitic loads and nothing else would give a 2.1% voltage drop on #10 wire over 100ft. Add in 25ft of #14 from your house electrical panel to the receptacle, 30ft of #6 shore power cord and 10ft of #14 from your TT power panel to the AC unit and you jump to a 4.2% voltage drop without accounting for any loss across all the connection and splice points in the circuit.

The garage is on its own separate 20 amp circuit. The distances you mentioned are all about spot-on, with the exceptions of the shore power cord being 25ft and the distance from the garage panel to the receptacle being closer 35ft. The AC in our Jayco is a 15K unit and right now, plugged into an outdoor GFI outlet on the house using only the shore power cord everything in the trailer runs fine with no tripping. I haven't tried the microwave with the AC on though, but have no need to ever do that.
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Old 08-11-2017, 08:19 AM   #9
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I keep my trailer plugged in with a 12ga 100' outdoor extension cord plugged into a GFCI outlet on the outside of my house. I never draw more than 5amps through it, more just to keep my batteries topped off and cool the fridge before trips. Never had a problem. Long term plan is an underground 30amp line to a post beside the trailer.
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Old 09-08-2017, 05:57 AM   #10
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Originally Posted by KillerIsMe View Post
Not sure what you mean Birch. I can run a line underground to a post out where I want to park the camper (about 80 feet from the garage) and put an outlet on that post, like you would do if you had horses and wanted to run electric out to the pasture for your fence. I wouldn't have to hide it though because of where we live. If you mean putting a breaker box out on the garage I could do that too - again, I wouldn't have to hide it - but right now the camper is plugged into a GFI outlet on a 20 amp circuit on the house and running everything including the 15K AC. I'm not so worried about getting enough power to the Jayco as I am about overheating a 100' extension cord.
My reference to hiding is to support a mounting location that other household opinions would raise objections. We're on the same approach bringing an installed line to your rig,
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Old 09-08-2017, 09:00 AM   #11
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10 gauge is definitely heavy enough. I still would not run the AC for long as it is being feed from a 20 amp out let (12 gauge feeder).

I have a similar issue. with about a 50 foot distance. I should use a heavier extension cord than I am, but I do not, as the cord has to go under a garage door.

I am using a 50 foot 14 gauge cord. I try not to run the AC. But I do for short periods (maybe up to 30 minutes) some times. I check the cord adapter and it has never been hot yet. Voltage drop is minimal. Basically all my cord is doing is keeping the battery charged, run a few lights once in a while, and periodically before we leave, runs the refrigerator for a few days each month.
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