Guest wbottomley Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 Well... since I'm banned from Planet Christmas, I will only share this here.It's my new portable power panel. It has 50 amps @ 240 volts or 100 @ 120 volts.I used a Square D 3R outdoor 100 amp panel, 50 amp rv cord, treated 2x4's and 6 GFCI's, 20 amp.Now, to connect this monster, I will mount a 50 amp RV outlet on my house, run #6 to my panel and put it on a 50 amp breaker.During the off season, you'll only see the RV outlet on the house which is a 5x5 box.Below are pictures of this thing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evan.a Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 bill, thats a really nice setup. how are you plugging it into your house. I see the plug your using, but thats used for a dryer or stove. or did you forget to tell your wife she not cooking for a whole month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wbottomley Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 I can't tell her to stop cooking, the pots and pans will begin to rust. Here's the outlet I'm using on the house: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MIDWEST-50-AMPS-RV-Outdoor-Power-Outlet-w-Cover-UO54P_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ50073QQihZ007QQitemZ170198418963QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Balch Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 Most sub-panels are supposed to have the grounds & neutrals on a separate bussAnd the Neutral should not be bonded to the caseI also notice you are sharing the Neutral to each set of outletsMake sure the breakers are on opposite phases (seems like they are)I think 2008 code requires a multi-branch circuit like this to be on a double pole breakerNot sure what issues this could cause Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wbottomley Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 Dave... I know when I was a commercial electrician years ago, all neutrals and grounds were not bonded until it reached the switch gear. Have wired a few 3,000 amp ones.With residential and commercial being so different, I can't remember much anymore.I know the local inspector (next door neighbor) loves them bonded.Their's two more code violations in the pictures above. Anyone know what they are?EDIT: Brain fart hit me and the neutral/ground problem has been corrected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paullawrence Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 Where's your 'earth'?Mountainwxman wrote: Their's two more code violations in the pictures above. Anyone know what they are? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Balch Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 I like the conduit bends. I should have done that on some of my runs instead of buying the curves. Did you stuff them with sand before heating?Looks like clear PVC cement instead of grey So far I haven't needed a portable subBut when I ran my pool sub the 1st thing the Inspector saw that I missed was that the ground was not bonded to the case. I had removed the green screw & bar between neutral & ground buss. But didn't realize (and should have) this also removed the bond to the case. Easy fixNice 6 circuit setupI've been running buried circuits to where I need them. Ad adding circuits on each side of the house Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taybrynn Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 It looks nice to me. nice work!It seems like this should be as safe as any RV panel ... right?So with a 50A cable, you actually able to get 100A at 120 ?So you can safely do 15A per breaker, and maybe a little more as needed?Thats a pretty sweet setup, IMHO ... and the cost of a 50A cable will save you plenty by getting things a lot closer to the action, it seems.I was always thinking that a 50A RV cable was 50A @ 120 ...So do you connect to a double pole 50A breaker?I'd love to see you 50A outlet panel connections in more detail.Thx,Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wbottomley Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 Dave... you caught me on that one. Forgot about that.I didn't put sand in the pvc before heating, but the burn marks are a NO, NO.It's funny how each inspector has their own little peave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Balch Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 I actually used clear cement at one point, nopt thinking just hurryingI thne went back & ran a little bit of grey around it to cover upYes, results can vary from one guy to the nextWhen I started telling them what I ws doing they started to tell me I couldn't do it exactly the way I wanted. I then started to Quote the NEC 2005 sections I was going by & asked for clarification on what I was doing wrongThey said they'd have to look it up & get back to me We ended up meeting in the middle on what to do :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wbottomley Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 The neutral/ground problem has been corrected.Jeff & Dave have brought a potential problem to my attention. Instead of frying my lights, I would be frying my buns. Anyway, I haven't worked in electricity since 1995 and forgotten a lot of stuff.Jeff & Dave... thank you for keeping my buns raw and the lights burning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Balch Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 I'm wondering if neutral & ground are bonded on a sub if it could cause a GFCI to kickout?I've spent the past 10 years working on 2 houses upgrading electric systemsLast house who-ever did it was a hackLive wires all over, one behind a baseboard covered!!This house not bad, just updating & wiring for the display Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texan78 Posted December 8, 2008 Share Posted December 8, 2008 Bill, so it is ok to use the 50a cable from the sub to a 50a outlet even though it's a 100a? Is this 100a @ 240 right?I think I am going to go this route as well a do something similar. I wonder if I could use a 50a twist lock outlet with 50a cord to plug in and power the sub? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wbottomley Posted December 8, 2008 Share Posted December 8, 2008 It's really 55 amps at 240V or 110 amps at 120V.It's sitting on a 50 or 55 amp double pole breaker. I can't remember which one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texan78 Posted December 8, 2008 Share Posted December 8, 2008 Ah gotcha, that makes more since now. I think I was getting confused because I was going to use 100a double pole to feed my sub to give me 200a @ 120v. So the plug and cable you are using is rated for 50a @ 240v correct?Really all I need though is 100a sub but I need to find a panel that can accommodate 8-10 circuits. I really only need 5, but would like the extra for expansion. I was thinking of using a twist lock outlet though instead of of a 3 prong RV connection.So if I went this route I could use 50a @ 240v and that would give me 100a @ 120v. Then I could use a 50a twist lock receptacle to feed the sub panel at 100a @ 120? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 william,looks good... I do something similar except I use a 30 amp rv circuit since it is available already (that is where we plug our rv in) allows me 60 more amps on a dedicated circuit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wbottomley Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 Greg... minie's an rv outlet/cord too.I don't have an rv, but it works flawless.Here's the cord I used: http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=m38.l1313&_nkw=50+amp+rv+cord&_sacat=See-All-CategoriesMake sure it's the 50 amp cord.Here's the outlet mounted on side of the house: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/50-Amp-Waterproof-Power-Outlet-for-RV-Camper-New_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp3286Q2em20Q2el1116QQitemZ140065338745QQptZMotorsQ5fRVQ5fTrailerQ5fCamperQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWSanta Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 MMM More plugs is always a good thing. That setup looks pretty good to me. The only thing I'd be worried with is Copper thieves. With something like that the thieves around here might be a little more interested in it...-Evan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Push Eject Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 Jeff Millard wrote:My opinion FWIW... Sticky this! Change the name to "Portable Power Panel..." "...that we all worked together to make safe!" so it can be viewed for a long time!Seconded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 Mountainwxman wrote: Greg... minie's an rv outlet/cord too.I don't have an rv, but it works flawless.Here's the cord I used: http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=m38.l1313&_nkw=50+amp+rv+cord&_sacat=See-All-CategoriesMake sure it's the 50 amp cord.Here's the outlet mounted on side of the house: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/50-Amp-Waterproof-Power-Outlet-for-RV-Camper-New_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp3286Q2em20Q2el1116QQitemZ140065338745QQptZMotorsQ5fRVQ5fTrailerQ5fCamperQ5fPartsQ5fAccessoriesI used a 30 amp, we have a smaller rv that is set up for 30 amps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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