Info on electrical cord

[bevans6]

If this is temporary then I'd get some 8 gauge single core wire in red and black. I'd run it through plastic conduit, buried underground about 6 inches as far as Your Bus. Then I'd install a TT30 on a length of steel driven into the ground with the steel acting as the earth. I'd then put a short 30A cord between the Bus and Your socket. It's pretty much what I've done here except I didn't bother burying the cable - I slipped it under a trailer and under some decking.


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Has never been legal for simply two hot conductors and a local ground, to my knowledge.  Three wire (hot, hot, neutral) with a local ground was outlawed in 2008 by NEC, when a separate Equipment Grounding Conductor (could be a fourth wire or metallic conduit) was mandated.  For 120 volt service implied by the TT-30 (which is a 120 volt 30 amp outlet) white and black wires with a metallic conduit or a separate green or bare ground wire would suffice, with bonding at the source panel and GFCI breaker.  PVC conduit must be trenched at least 18".  Three wires and local ground/bonding is allowed if the sub panel is in a totally separate building.  So the advice above is pretty bogus.

[Zephod]

Ah. My error... I was thinking live, neutral and a local ground. I didn't realise he was putting in a 250V service.

When I put my TT30 in, I went from the main box where I wired live and neutral (via a 30a breaker I put in) to the TT30. I made the mistake of buying 10/3 and found there was nothing to connect the earth to at the box. As my TT30 was mounted on a steel bar that I'd driven 6 feet into the sandy soil with a sledge, I used the steel bar as my ground.

That's for a 30A 120v Service


While I was in the main box, I found the two live bars and saw a bare wire that made me wonder if it was an earthing bar. Turned out that the guy that put the air conditioner in a few years previously had used a 3 sure cable instead of a 4 wire cable and had used an unshielded earth wire as a second live wire. I left that well alone!


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[B_K]

Zephod just because you've done it ILLEGALLY & UNSAFE doesn't mean you should be publicly advising others to do the same!
Electricity is not something to fool around with, it's not as safe as d cell battery banks.
  BK   

[bevans6]

For Zephod - your home air conditioner is probably wired correctly.  Most home air conditioners use a 240 volt feed with three wires total.  They use two hot conductor (red and black) and a bare grounding conductor.  They don't have a grounded (AKA neutral) conductor.  

I'd learn some basic electricity.  Colors matter, nomenclature matters, details matter.  Your TT-30 outlet is totally not code compliant.  Local grounding is not allowed for an outlet, there must be a grounding conductor (although an additional ground rod is allowed).  Any ground rod must be 8 feet long and 8 feet in the ground and should have a UL approval rating stamped on the last foot of the rod.  The breaker or the outlet must be GFCI for any outside outlet.  10/3 cable has three insulated conductors, black, red and white, and a bare grounding conductor, so if you used 10/3 cable you should have had ample conductors to wire it properly.  Laying wire on the ground to a permanent structure (your post and outlet) is never allowed.  Cable in direct contact with the ground should be UF rated, ratings for extension cords are different.  All this is paraphrasing of the NEC, national/federal code in the USA.  Some local codes vary a tiny bit, as does Canada/Provincial code, but some things are common everywhere.

Part of (most of) the point is to be responsible about advice given in a public forum.  If you don't know, don't post.  Edited for clarity.

[richard5933]

I'm not sure about home a/c units in your area, but that's not what we're talking about here. The OP is trying to connect an RV system, not an a/c.

Again, I'm not an electrician but in my research I've found the following with regard to installing a connection for standard RV hookups.

30-amp

This is a 120v circuit. Need one hot (L1), neutral, and ground. You'll have 30 amps 120v on this system.

50-amp

This is a 120v/240v circuit (it's possible to access both 120v and 240v). Need two hot conductors (L1 & L2), neutral, and ground. You'll have 50 amps at 120v on each L1 & L2. It's possible to draw 100 amps total from this setup.

The OP was calculating a draw of about 30 amps. That might be possible on the 30-amp 120v setup, but it would be at its maximum capacity. Once loss is introduced into the system for the long length of the lines, then the max available might be less. If it was me and the coach was wired for a 50-amp connection I'd be going that route.

Might be worth having an electrician come out to do an estimate, if for no other reason than to get their opinion on what's required.

YMMV

Richard

[DoubleEagle]

Zephod just because you've done it ILLEGALLY & UNSAFE doesn't mean you should be publicly advising others to do the same!
Electricity is not something to fool around with, it's not as safe as d cell battery banks.
  BK   

I'm surprised that Zephod is only ignored by nine members, but that still might be the record. 

[B_K]

I'm surprised that Zephod is only ignored by nine members, but that still might be the record.  

I'd be surprised if I weren't ignored by more than that! Don't know how to find out who ignores who or when or why, and don't care. If people don't like what I say, that is their business/problem and again I could care less.
I know I'm an asshole a lot of the time, but I'm a good asshole and that is all that really matters because my parents always told me "I don't care what you grow up to be or do, just be or do it the best that you can!"
 BK  

[luvrbus]

I am having a tough time following this,he was asking about extension cord for temporary power wasn't he ? if he is good at the starting point (plug) he should be good to end shouldn't he without all the ground rods and breakers.
I do it all the time to supply power to friends buses with 4-50ft thirty amp RV cords even running their AC units it hasn't been a problem over the years very seldom does it even flip a breaker on a 150ft to 200ft run  

[bevans6]

The discussion definitely took a turn for the worse.  Chased it's tail in a circle and caught up with its self...    Just making up an extension cord would be fine, it's what I do too.  You just buy the right wire, the right size, put UL approved ends on and boom, done.

[Zephod]

I'm surprised that Zephod is only ignored by nine members, but that still might be the record. 

Honestly, I couldn't care less who ignores whom on this board. I've pretty much had it with people who deliberately misconstrue what I say, jump down my throat about everything and so on. Those that ignore me probably realise I don't give a rat's @$# about them and their comments. In fact, I'm feeling pretty much having seen all the crap aimed at me over the last week or two that I don't give a rat's @$# about this board or its members.

I have my bus and it's mostly converted. I don't need anybody's input as to what they think of my bus. I don't need anybody's input as to what they think of my design or construction skills. Nor do I need anybody's input over what they think of the way I have wired the external electrical system.

Incidentally, I notice that I was targeted for criticism over my (safe) addition to the main breaker panel while the absurdly dangerous wiring I mentioned (with a bare live wire) put in by the air conditioner engineer was ignored.

I have come to the conclusion that the vast majority of commenters on this board might be more sensible if they first remove their heads from their rectums. But I'm not going to be bothering to check back.

[luvrbus]

  hum why not tell us how you really feel

[Nick Badame Refrig/ACC]

Hi Folks,  locked down for review!   

[Nick Badame Refrig/ACC]

See if this helps!                              http://www.busconversions.com/bbs/index.php?topic=5097.0

[Nick Badame Refrig/ACC]

Unlocked for updates.

Lets keep this thread friendly!

Nick-

[chessie4905]

He was up to twelve the other day.

Is this for a temporary short term use or permanent. What is planned to run in the coach while connected?