Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - Printable Version
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+--- Thread: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row (/showthread.php?tid=5065)
Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - Richard - 07-06-2019
Shortly after plugging in at the last three campgrounds we have tripped the pedestal breaker. We were pulling about 30 amps on each leg (translation....AC's on high).
The dead giveaway that the breaker is the problem is to put your hand on the breaker. If you can't hold on finger on it because it is too hot to touch, then the problem is theirs. Luckily I have not had to argue with any of the campgrounds about replacing them.
RE: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - bikestuff - 07-06-2019
Funny story....
I was at the super nice campground at Disneyworld. Hot day. I have all four basement airs cranking and remember that I have an additional air on the roof.
I pull in and the breaker trips immediately. (I am pulling 40-45 amps on each leg). Make a phone call to maintenance and they come out quickly in a tricked out golf cart to replace breaker.
I am chatting with him and he says that the park was never designed for these huge RVs that have three sometimes four AC units.
I could not admit to him that I was running five!!!!
RE: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - Joe Galowitch - 07-06-2019
Bike Stuff you are my wife’s new Idol 5 ac. Units it must be as cold as a well digger in Siberia.
RE: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - folivier - 07-06-2019
Yep, living in the south you can never have too much A/C!
But what the heck? In Alaska they're setting records, the rivers are rising due to the snow melt. But next week looks to be cooler.
RE: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - pairodice - 07-07-2019
Should the campground 50amp breaker trip with all four A/Cs on? Assuming nothing else of import is on at the time... We never run more than 3 A/Cs due to the 50 amp limit and I don’t want to get to close to it. Is it detrimental to the 3 or 4th A/C to not run for a while? Maybe I should run the front two and then the back two for a couple hours each week just to stretch their legs...
RE: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - encantotom - 07-07-2019
i am running all 4 ac's with no issue. we can use the microwave as well.
tom
RE: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - encantotom - 07-07-2019
today i was taking a nice nap and i woke up to one of my missionary neighbors who is in the private rv park with us standing over me....his power to his rv had gone off and would not come back on.
he had a breaker that would not reset after tripping. we plugged him into the other pedestal at his spot and everything was good.
i took the breaker out and it was dead on one leg.
i took a breaker out of the unused pedestal that i have my enclosed car hauler with the rzr in it and all was good.
the breaker just plain went bad quickly.
tom
RE: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - Richard - 07-07-2019
With all four AC’s running, I pull about 32 amps on each of the hot legs. That’s 18 amps under the rating of the breaker. However, if Rhonda is going to dry her hair, we will turn the AC’s to low until she is finished.
Also, with all four AC’s running, the convection oven going, the big water pump will take leg one over 50, and sometimes trip a breaker.
RE: Pedestal Breakers, three in a row - Richard - 05-29-2020
So, after I made this post, I heard an offhand comment by a RV park tech that made all the sense in the world. He wasn't even talking to me, I just overheard him talking to another tech.
What he said was "these breakers are not meant to be on off switches". He is right. We are all taught to flip the 50 amp off before plugging in, and flip it back on after plugging in. That is just fine and dandy if you are the person that kills all the loads inside such as AC before plugging in.
But we see it all the time, dude kills the gennie killing the ACs. Then plugs in, flips breaker and all AC's come to life. That has to be a tremendous rush of current through the partially closed contacts in the breaker in the microseconds before it completely closes. The breaker is will not stand up to that, and think about how many times in a season that happens.
It was a big a ha moment for me as to why so many 50 amp breakers in RV parks are faulty.
Can you tell the Covid shut in has me a little stir crazy?