# Running A/c Plugged In At Home? Help.



## campmg (Dec 24, 2005)

I posted on a recent thread regarding this topic but haven't heard anything back yet and need to figure this out quickly. I heard you should use at least a 20 amp outlet. How do you know if it's a 15 or 20 amp outlet? Someone told me the outlet for the washing machine should be 20 amp. I have closer outlets in the garage and front of house that would be easier to use. I just need to hook it up to make sure the a/c works fine. Also, does anyone know how long the power cord is that comes with the 25RSS (2006 model)?

From what I get from the other thread, get at least a 12 guage (20amp) extension cord if needed and its ok to plug it into the adaptor thing and then into the house but should find a 20 amp outlet? Am I right here?


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## NS_Bluenoser (Jun 14, 2010)

The outlet's on the outside of my house are 15amp. If you go to your fuse panel and look up outside plugs, the number on the breaker indicates amperage for that circuit. Hope this helps. You might get away with running the A/C with nothing else on in the TT. Worst case scanario is you trip the breaker in the house and you will just need to reset it by flicking it back on.


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## Gilligan (Aug 25, 2006)

Sounds like you need a Matman.
In a pinch, I have run my AC on 15A service, which is probably what most of your outlets are. I wouldn't recommend it for long term, as things may get a little hot, but since you are only checking it out, you will probably be OK. Make sure nothing else is turned on in the camper, as the AC will probably be pulling right at 15A when it starts. Yes, 20A would be better, and 30A ideal. As for the length of the cord, I think they are all the same....something like 20 foot.

Gilligan


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## Joe/GA (Aug 14, 2009)

Most modern homes have 20 amp circuits for receptacles. If your house is 30 years old or newer, there is a good chance that it is 20 amp. If you use an extension cord, make sure it is 12 gauge or larger (10, 8). I wouldn't run more than a 25 foot 12 gauge extension because of voltage drops. The longer the run, the bigger the wire needs to be. A long cord can drop so much voltage that you don't have enough available at the AC unit to safely run it. 
Hope this helps.


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## Gilligan (Aug 25, 2006)

Joe/GA said:


> Most modern homes have 20 amp circuits for receptacles.


The Minnow is pretty old. That is why I only have 15A outlets.










Gilligan


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Joe/GA said:


> Most modern homes have 20 amp circuits for receptacles.


I would have to say that is an option that few homes have except maybe in the garage. Most house are run wih #14 wire.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

CamperAndy said:


> Most modern homes have 20 amp circuits for receptacles.


I would have to say that is an option that few homes have except maybe in the garage. Most house are run wih #14 wire.
[/quote]
True enough, but that didn't keep them from putting 20A breakers on the lines to my kitchen outlets....









Other than the afore mentioned kitchen, all my outlets are 15A (house is 10 years old). I guess Michigan hasn't gone there on code yet. If they do in the future, I'm hoping they will specify 12ga wire too!


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## campmg (Dec 24, 2005)

Thanks everyone for helping so quickly. I'm going to miss my Outback and everyone here but will be back in the future.

Everyone suggests only running the a/c at best when hooked up at home for a few minutes. Is it ok to also run the fridge and test the furnace and water heater off the battery while running a/c on shore (house) power or better off not pushing it? I'm just trying to figure out how to show the buyer that everything works.

And, you're right. Where's a good matman when you need them. They came in handy running power out the beach on Diego Garcia so we could get our blenders working for margaritas, but that's another post.


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## H2oSprayer (Aug 5, 2006)

campmg said:


> Is it ok to also run the fridge and test the furnace and water heater off the battery while running a/c on shore (house) power or better off not pushing it?


If by a/c you mean power via the shoreline and not air conditioning it should be ok as you are only powering the inverter to charge the battery. But if you are talking about running those items while you are running the air conditioning off of 15 amps, you will end up (hopefully) tripping your breaker in your home.


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## Up State NY Camper (Apr 7, 2010)

I can run my ac for a good 20-30 minutes on 15 amp service with nothing else on before tripping the breaker.


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## Nathan (Jan 2, 2007)

Up State NY Camper said:


> I can run my ac for a good 20-30 minutes on 15 amp service with nothing else on before tripping the breaker.


Yes, startup will draw a little over 15A but if nothing else is on the breaker doesn't trip for me. I set the Fridge to gas and make sure the battery is charged. Then flip on the A/C. My outdoor outlet is a GFCI and it has popped on occasion but usually does just fine.


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## Joe/GA (Aug 14, 2009)

Wow! I'm surprised. I'm a former Electrician and we've been wiring homes down here in S.E. GA since the 80's with 20 amp receptacle circuits. And, that means #12 wire. A lot of older Electricians liked the 15 amp circuits because they could wire a whole home (except the bigger loads) with 14 gauge wire. They would wire lights and receptacles together for simplicity. I always ran #14 for lighting and #12 for receptacles. That way, if you trip a breaker on a receptacle, the room doesn't go dark!
Anyway, I would find a 20 amp receptacle to run the Air Conditioning for a potential buyer. If you can't do that and it will start on a 15 amp circuit, I would make sure everything else is turned off so the AC can use all of the power that is available.


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## Up State NY Camper (Apr 7, 2010)

Nathan said:


> I can run my ac for a good 20-30 minutes on 15 amp service with nothing else on before tripping the breaker.


Yes, startup will draw a little over 15A but if nothing else is on the breaker doesn't trip for me. I set the Fridge to gas and make sure the battery is charged. Then flip on the A/C. My outdoor outlet is a GFCI and it has popped on occasion but usually does just fine.
[/quote]

How does making sure the battery is fully charged help not trip the breaker? Mine is always plugged in so it's charged. But I will still flip the breaker or the GFCI once and a while.


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Up State NY Camper said:


> I can run my ac for a good 20-30 minutes on 15 amp service with nothing else on before tripping the breaker.


Yes, startup will draw a little over 15A but if nothing else is on the breaker doesn't trip for me. I set the Fridge to gas and make sure the battery is charged. Then flip on the A/C. My outdoor outlet is a GFCI and it has popped on occasion but usually does just fine.
[/quote]

How does making sure the battery is fully charged help not trip the breaker? Mine is always plugged in so it's charged. But I will still flip the breaker or the GFCI once and a while.
[/quote]

The issue is due to the current draw capability of the converter. If the battery is low the converter will draw 5 amps. That would be 1/3 of that 15 amp circuit.


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## Tangooutback (Apr 16, 2010)

Most likely your RV 13500 BTU a/c will kick on when plugged into home 15 amps outlet given that is the only appliance being turned on. The negative side of it is the silent damage inflicted on the compressor in the long run. When the a/c fan and compressor start up they require an in-rush current, which exceeds 15 amps for as long as 10 seconds. If less than 15 amps current is available, it may or may not shut down, but for sure it would shorten compressor life cycle. Once the in-rush current is over, steady state current is about 10 to 12 amps.

One thing you can do if you have to use home outlet power. Turn on the a/c fan first and let it run for a minute before turning on the compressor. That would allow for a little more amps available to the compressor when it kicks in.

Another option is to install a soft start capacitor, which would reduce in-rush current requirement and gives the compressor a break. This soft start capacitor costs about $25.


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## letscamp (Jan 22, 2010)

Tangooutback said:


> Most likely your RV 13500 BTU a/c will kick on when plugged into home 15 amps outlet given that is the only appliance being turned on. The negative side of it is the silent damage inflicted on the compressor in the long run. When the a/c fan and compressor start up they require an in-rush current, which exceeds 15 amps for as long as 10 seconds. If less than 15 amps current is available, it may or may not shut down, but for sure it would shorten compressor life cycle. Once the in-rush current is over, steady state current is about 10 to 12 amps.
> 
> One thing you can do if you have to use home outlet power. Turn on the a/c fan first and let it run for a minute before turning on the compressor. That would allow for a little more amps available to the compressor when it kicks in.
> 
> Another option is to install a soft start capacitor, which would reduce in-rush current requirement and gives the compressor a break. This soft start capacitor costs about $25.


x2 run the fan for a few than turn it to cool. Mine has only popped once and that because the wife turned the fridge on at the same time all with a 15 amp outlet.


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