Charging at Campgrounds and RV Parks

[TEG]

No - I don't think so.

Unless you plug a load into the socket it shouldn't do anything to the breaker(s).

You just end up with:

Hot<-15amp->Neutral<-30amp->Hot

So the RV takes Neutral+15ampHot for one circuit, and Neutral+30ampHot for the other circuit.

If the two legs are the same phase then the two hots are 0V.
If the two legs are split phase then the Hot to Hot is 240V, but you have a mismatched 15amp+30amp breaker in-between. I don't think that gives you 45 amps to draw. I think the 15 amp breaker would probably trip quite easily if you tried to draw the ~30amps the Roadster would want.

I could be wrong though... Like I said, I never tried this.

 

[TEG]

I was on a bit of a 'road trip' this past weekend, including a stop in Redding at Need2Speed for some laps in their electric karts.

The Hotel in Red Bluff had 12 RV parking spots with full campground style hookups. These had 240V@50A (40) NEMA 14-50, 120V@30A (24) NEMA TT-30, and 120V@15A (12) NEMA5-15 sockets just like they use at campgrounds. This was just a block away from the highway 5 freeway so it would be rather easy to stop there if you needed an overnight charge and didn't want to stay in a campground.




With 12 spots available it wouldn't be a bad place for a Roadster convoy to stop if there was some sort of "FarNorCal" gathering someday.

 

[Tdave]

The Hotel in Red Bluff had 12 RV parking spots with full campground style hookups....

OMG, that's the future we're waiting for! Wouldn't it be great to have exactly what we see here at all major hotels across the country!

Now what made them put those in? Do you know?

 

[vfx]

Wow. great find TEG. All the details and location particulars should appear on the various charging site maps.

I see billboards for those indoor electric cart raceways here in LA. Are they done right with high power to weight ratio and killer electric torque, or are they more like lawnmower speed go-karts with golf cart motors?

Wonder if they would allow a Roadster (timed) race after closing?

 

[TEG]

Now what made them put those in? Do you know?

There were no RVs using them when I stayed there.
Perhaps they overestimated how many RVers want to stay at a hotel?
(The picturesque campgrounds I saw on other parts of my trip did tend to be full up with RVs)
Maybe they occasional get RV caravans (say a band and all their crew) coming in groups occasionally?

I really don't know why they installed so many.

 

[TEG]

Are they done right with high power to weight ratio and killer electric torque, or are they more like lawnmower speed go-karts with golf cart motors?
Wonder if they would allow a Roadster (timed) race after closing?

The performance of those karts felt on par with the gas powered indoor ones I had driven before. They max out at only about 45mph, and the acceleration is nothing to impress a Tesla owner. Karting is all about tight cornering, low to the ground getting your line and shifting your weight around. Your forearms get more of a workout than they would from a brisk Roadster drive. Unless you work up a serious sweat and squeal the tires through corners you aren't trying hard enough. It is great fun, but a completely different experience from driving a Roadster. They are small one person karts, and the course is too small to think of putting a full sized vehicle onto the track.

These are not "lawnmower" speed, but these are not professional track vehicles vehicles either. They are designed for indoor buildings. Anyone can walk in off the street and quickly don a helmet and start driving. The really fun part is that you are racing side by side with other drivers, and passing is encouraged. Some of the lesser "grand prix" cars don't let you pass another car.

---

By the way, the electric carts are much nicer than the gas powered ones. No smell, less noise, and more linear acceleration.
Also they seem to have remote control of power output for the cars. The younger drivers go in the same cars but get remotely detuned. When you pass the checkered flag they cut the power on your car so that you can creep back to the pits, but can't race anymore.

I wish they would adjust power based on the driver's weight though... Lighter drivers have the advantage when they don't...

 

[vfx]

I wish they would adjust power based on the driver's weight though...

Sigh. :frown: Me too...

 

[vfx]

More on the Powerhouse RV station shown in TEH's pic.

Powerhouse

New model ...in stainless.

Electrical - Eaton Canada | RV Campground Power

 

[dsm363]

Do most RV parks use the NEMA 14-50 plug? I sent one an e-mail since they said they have 30 and 50 Amp outlets for use and they replied saying the 50A outlets look like a NEMA 14-50 outlet but wasn't sure. I sent a picture of a 14-50 plug to them to verify and that was their reply. I'm trying to find a place on my way to Houston to recharge for an hour to make sure I make it there. Thanks.

 

[donauker]

Do most RV parks use the NEMA 14-50 plug? I sent one an e-mail since they said they have 30 and 50 Amp outlets for use and they replied saying the 50A outlets look like a NEMA 14-50 outlet but wasn't sure. I sent a picture of a 14-50 plug to them to verify and that was their reply. I'm trying to find a place on my way to Houston to recharge for an hour to make sure I make it there. Thanks.

If an RV park has 50 amp sites as opposed to 30 amp only, the sites will have a NEMA 14-50 connector. Any RV owner that paid for a 50 amp site and then found no 14-50 would be rather upset at having paid extra for something they couldn't use.

 

[TEG]

Yeah, and I think a fair amount of RVers and park owners may not even ever use the "NEMA14-50" name, but just say "50 amp service".
It is just a given that the NEMA14-50 plug is the 50 amp RV plug.

For instance, searching on eBay for "50 amp RV" returns all sorts of NEMA14-50 equipment that doesn't mention NEMA anywhere.

 

[kgb]

@dsm

In a pinch, you can charge up 50A at my place in Houston. ;-)

I am curious though... when you call the camp grounds, do you have to reserve a whole day? Or do you ask if you can come by for a picnic and a 4 hr charge?

 

[tomsax]

Most RV park operators are totally ignorant about the basic technical details of they electrical hook-ups. Chad shared some helpful insight after his road trip from Seattle to San Diego and back. RV park operators only talk about the amperage. If you ask about 240V, they may give you wrong info. They think the 120V/30A NEMA TT-30 outlets are 240V. They may not realize their 50A NEMA 14-50s are 240V. So, if you ask about voltage it can go wrong both ways: they might say they have it when the don't and they might say they don't when they do.

So, the vocabulary for talking to RV parks is: ask about 50A service to determine if they have NEMA 14-50. Ask the question any other way and you're likely to get a wrong answer.

30A service is trickier. On the west coast, 30A means 120V/30A NEMA TT-30. I'm not sure that's true in other regions of the country.

I got a 240V/30A NEMA 10-30 pig tail with my RFMC, but I've never seen one of those outlets. I assume they are available somewhere, but I have no idea how to ask about them.

 

[donauker]

On the west coast, 30A means 120V/30A NEMA TT-30. I'm not sure that's true in other regions of the country.

I got a 240V/30A NEMA 10-30 pig tail with my RFMC, but I've never seen one of those outlets. I assume they are available somewhere, but I have no idea how to ask about them.

The 120V/30A NEMA TT-30 is the only 30 amp connector used on RVs and in campgrounds in my 30+ years of camping experience.

NEMA 10-30 is old style electric dryer
NEMA 14-30 is new style electric dryer
NEMA 10-50 is old style electric range
NEMA 14-50 is new style electric range as well as RV

 

[TEG]

...They may not realize their 50A NEMA 14-50s are 240V...

Part of the reason is that a lot of the RVs just plug in a "dogbone adapter" and get 120V from the NEMA14-50.
The RV may not actually have any 240V equipment inside. Those dogbone adapters have NEMA14-50 on one side but are listed as 120V since they only connect to one leg of the split phase.

 

[dsm363]

@dsm

In a pinch, you can charge up 50A at my place in Houston. ;-)

I am curious though... when you call the camp grounds, do you have to reserve a whole day? Or do you ask if you can come by for a picnic and a 4 hr charge?

Thanks! One of the managers at The Four Seasons Hotel in Houston has been great and offered to install a NEMA 14-50 50Amp outlet for me and others so that's another option for people visiting Houston if they do it.

I'm more worried about making it to Houston on a single charge which is my I'm looking at taking an hour break somewhere. The people at the Columbus RV park in Texas didn't really have an answer for how much they'd charge since no one had ever asked before. I asked so they're looking into it. I'll let you know.

 

[vfx]

If they don't know it's best to put it in their head. "The other campground just charged me a flat $5 fee". That may slow down ignorantly outrageous numbers like $40 for an hour of plugging in.

 

[dsm363]

They asked if $2 an hour sounded reasonable. It's a 240V 50A outlet so I guess that sounds ok.

 

[Doug_G]

It's a lot better than being charged the regular $75 overnight fee, which happened to Hans when he came to Ottawa.

 

[kgb]

They asked if $2 an hour sounded reasonable. It's a 240V 50A outlet so I guess that sounds ok.

Thanks for the info. That's perfect if I should ever want to go to Austin or San Antonio.

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