Just had a weird thing happen to me. We are staying in a busy campground we used several years ago and wanted to extend our stay. We had to move. No problems there. When we go to our new site which is listed on their map as a 50 amp site and told to my wife that it was a 50 amp site and charged as a 50 amp site. It shares a pedestal with another site. The pedestal has a 30 amp and a 50 amp plug. The 50 amp is on my side and visa versa. When I go to plug in, the 30 amp guy is plugged into my 50 amp side of the pedestal. He has a 50 amp male plug on his cord. We go tell the lady (?) at the office and she says the person who gets their first has the choice even though they are clearly marked and charged differently. She then says since we are only a 33 ft class A, we can’t have a 50 amp system in our coach as they don’t start until 35 feet. Well, this gets my wife PO’ed and they end up calling the other guy and he agrees (finally) to let them switch to the correct hookup, but his adapter is locked up inside. The office lady (?) brings out the wrong adapter and tells me to change it. I try explaining male and female plugs and get nowhere, She calls her assistant, Mr. Personality, who explains the male and female plugs to her, but says we must not have a 50 amp system because we are only 33 feet and 33 ft Class A's don't have 50 amp. He also says it is standard practice for the first one there to get the best setup. I point to my 48 state filled in map and he says ,” That don’t give you the right to get the best plug.” I explain that it does let him know that I have been in hundreds of campgrounds and he doesn’t know what he is talking about. He switched the guy who paid for 30 amp to 30 amp and I put my very rare 50 amp plug into my $2.00 extra socket. It is in the 90’s today and I have been running both AC’S
We have encountered the 30/50 shared post issue a few times through the years, mostly in some smaller and older parks well off the beaten path. I have even seen a 4 poster with two 50s and two 30s for four sites. In each of them the first arrival snared the 50A and second arrival got 30. I probably would have reacted as you did, but maybe with a bit less patience. Hope the rest of your trip is better.
If the other guy paid for 30 amp, then he should not have been plugged into the 50 amp outlet. If you paid for 50 amp then you should not have had to use the 30 amp regardless of who got there first. I'm sure we would have said something to the office personnel, and how far we went would have depended on how we were treated. Aren't you glad Nancy was there to make them do the right thing? You go girl! :lol: I'm glad no one just unplugged the other guy without talking to him. That situation was reported in a thread a while back, and it was not pretty. I'm not trying to hijack the thread, but since it is titled "Weird Situation" here is one we ran into. Around noon we made a reservation for that night at an RV park on our route. When we got there they said they did not have a space for us even though there were numerous empty sites. I asked how that could be since we had made the reservation just a few hours earlier and there was room then. The desk clerk told me I had talked to the owner's wife and that she never knows how many sites are available. Well, then why does she take reservations?! We had asked for 50 amps, but at this point I said that we could get by with 30 amps if there was one of those available. The answer was still no. I asked if all the empty sites were reserved and was told yes, so I said that was fine and we would go to another place. The owner walked in at just that time and heard my last statement, so he then said to wait a minute, and he would find us a site. He then told the clerk to put us in site XX. She said, "Are you sure," to which he replied yes but to give him time to clean it up. I then said, "What's wrong with it" and he said, " Nothing. I just have to pick up a few things." We decided to stay, so we paid, and he led us to the site. We arrived at a nice site, but he told us to not pull in until he had "prepared" it. That's when I noticed that there was a sewer hose attached to the sewer on one of those slinky things; there were leveling blocks stacked up in the tire tracks; there was a large patio rug with chairs and a portable BBQ grill (home style, not table-top); and various other items lying around that made the site look lived in, minus the RV. By now the owner's wife had arrived, and they both began removing all these items. Some things he put in his golf cart while others he just stacked up at the edge of the lot. This seemed a bit strange to me, so at one point I pulled the wife aside and told her that the lot looked like someone lived there. She replied, "Oh, someone does live here. It is one of our monthly renters who has been here for several years, but they had to take their RV in for repair today and won't be back until tomorrow." So in effect we are now staying on a site that is already rented out to someone else who just isn't there that night. And also the owner has now removed all the other person's stuff. I couldn't believe it. My first inclination was to leave, but we had paid, and we were tired and did not want to go looking for another place. However, I kept wondering what would happen if the renter stopped by that evening and found someone on his site with all his stuff missing. Fortunately that did not happen. And by the way, none of those numerous empty sites were occupied that night. Strange situation in my book.
QUOTE(Lindsay Richards @ Jun 23 2011, 02:39 PM) [snapback]26584[/snapback] Just had a weird thing happen to me. We are staying in a busy campground we used several years ago and wanted to extend our stay. We had to move. No problems there. When we go to our new site which is listed on their map as a 50 amp site and told to my wife that it was a 50 amp site and charged as a 50 amp site. It shares a pedestal with another site. The pedestal has a 30 amp and a 50 amp plug. The 50 amp is on my side and visa versa. When I go to plug in, the 30 amp guy is plugged into my 50 amp side of the pedestal. He has a 50 amp male plug on his cord. We go tell the lady (?) at the office and she says the person who gets their first has the choice even though they are clearly marked and charged differently. She then says since we are only a 33 ft class A, we can’t have a 50 amp system in our coach as they don’t start until 35 feet. Well, this gets my wife PO’ed and they end up calling the other guy and he agrees (finally) to let them switch to the correct hookup, but his adapter is locked up inside. The office lady (?) brings out the wrong adapter and tells me to change it. I try explaining male and female plugs and get nowhere, She calls her assistant, Mr. Personality, who explains the male and female plugs to her, but says we must not have a 50 amp system because we are only 33 feet and 33 ft Class A's don't have 50 amp. He also says it is standard practice for the first one there to get the best setup. I point to my 48 state filled in map and he says ,” That don’t give you the right to get the best plug.” I explain that it does let him know that I have been in hundreds of campgrounds and he doesn’t know what he is talking about. He switched the guy who paid for 30 amp to 30 amp and I put my very rare 50 amp plug into my $2.00 extra socket. It is in the 90’s today and I have been running both AC’S gee, it sound like Mexico !!!! Question, if you do have a unit using 30 AMPS can you use the 50 MPS, with an adapter without damaging your circuits ?
Hi Galli, Yes, it is quite safe to use a 50 to 30 amp adapter. I had a special one made up that gives me a 30 amp on one "leg" and twin 20 amp on the other "leg" with circuit breakers. QUOTE(Galli @ Jun 23 2011, 08:19 PM) [snapback]26590[/snapback] gee, it sound like Mexico !!!! Question, if you do have a unit using 30 AMPS can you use the 50 MPS, with an adapter without damaging your circuits ?
Wow Iguess both of you 2 have some reviews to write tonite. QUOTE(Lindsay Richards @ Jun 23 2011, 05:39 PM) [snapback]26584[/snapback] It is in the 90’s today and I have been running both AC’S Right there tells me you have 50 amp. you sould have told them to look at the top of your RV as you drove off to another campground
We are a 32 foot Class A (2006/7) with 50 amps. These folks are behind the times. The quick reference guide, as MCRAIN has noted: two AC units = 50amps. In fact, the RV industry was pumping out 2 AC, 50 amp units as fast as they could (before the economy crash), on anything (regardless of length) with sufficient roof space! I am just amazed at the lack of customer service on many of the reviews posted in the last couple weeks. "Gee, I have a paying customer calling me to stay for the evening. Let's see: how can I drive them... AWAY ???"
QUOTE(pianotuna @ Jun 23 2011, 08:55 PM) [snapback]26595[/snapback] Hi Galli, Yes, it is quite safe to use a 50 to 30 amp adapter. I had a special one made up that gives me a 30 amp on one "leg" and twin 20 amp on the other "leg" with circuit breakers. Those adapters do not work if the 20 amp plug is a GFCI. They also may not not work with power management systems since many of them measure the voltage across two legs and they would see 120 volts and assume a 20 or 30 amp connection and manage the power accordingly. Just an FYI.
Hi kcmodedoe, You are correct for 30/20 to 50 amp "cheater" adapters. But my adapter is "the other way around" from 50 to 30 on one leg and twin 20 amp outlets on the other leg. All my thirty amp RV would "see" is the thirty amps. That leaves me with a 20 for my block heater, and a further 20 for just my converter (as I have a separate shore power cord for it). GFCI should work just fine with my "home brew" unit. QUOTE(kcmoedoe @ Jun 24 2011, 09:31 PM) [snapback]26613[/snapback] Those adapters do not work if the 20 amp plug is a GFCI. They also may not not work with power management systems since many of them measure the voltage across two legs and they would see 120 volts and assume a 20 or 30 amp connection and manage the power accordingly. Just an FYI.
QUOTE(pianotuna @ Jun 24 2011, 11:30 PM) [snapback]26614[/snapback] Hi kcmodedoe, You are correct for 30/20 to 50 amp "cheater" adapters. But my adapter is "the other way around" from 50 to 30 on one leg and twin 20 amp outlets on the other leg. All my thirty amp RV would "see" is the thirty amps. That leaves me with a 20 for my block heater, and a further 20 for just my converter (as I have a separate shore power cord for it). GFCI should work just fine with my "home brew" unit. Interesting, I was the one asking the question because I didn't know and now I am perfectly confused. Let me clarify, I don't know a thing about electricity, I have a 30 AMPS 5th W. and my question was if there is an adapter to hook it up on a 50 AMPS and second if that action would not damage the circuit. :unsure: Now I am receiving messages from knowledgeable people that talks about GFC, cheater adapter, 20 – 30 …etc… :blink: You make me feel very, very useless ! h34r: I would appreciate a translation of your conversation for a benefit of a dummy he,he,he. Please be understandable with a poor mortal.
QUOTE(Galli @ Jun 25 2011, 08:42 AM) [snapback]26616[/snapback] Interesting, I was the one asking the question because I didn't know and now I am perfectly confused. Let me clarify, I don't know a thing about electricity, I have a 30 AMPS 5th W. and my question was if there is an adapter to hook it up on a 50 AMPS and second if that action would not damage the circuit. :unsure: Now I am receiving messages from knowledgeable people that talks about GFC, cheater adapter, 20 – 30 …etc… :blink: You make me feel very, very useless ! h34r: I would appreciate a translation of your conversation for a benefit of a dummy he,he,he. Please be understandable with a poor mortal. Try this from one electrical dummy to another. There are simple 30/50 adapters available (sometimes called a dogbone) that will allow you to hook to a 50 A plug with no damage to your unit -essentially you can only pull 30 A through the adapter. They are readily available (Wal-Mart, Camping World, etc. and are pretty low cost). One female end plugs into your 30 Amp cord and the male end plugs into the 50 Amp plug on the pedestal. Here are examples Adapters at Amazon There are so called "cheater boxes" available that supposedly will allow a 50 Amp unit to combine a 30 Amp circuit and a 30 Amp so that a 50 Amp rv can use an electrical pedestal with a 30 Amp and 20 Amp plug to run 2 air conditioners. If your unit is only 30 Amp you do not even need to worry about them.
Our previous coach (1997 Rexhall) had 30 amp service and we sometimes stayed at a campground that only had 50 amp pedestals. With my new coach, we have 50 amp service and have an adapter to go from a 50 amp male plug like on my connector to a 30 amp male plug that will fit into the pedestal socket.. The lady (?) at the office gave me a 50 amp male socket with a 30 amp female plug that wouldn't fit. She had no clue about the set ups. I don't even think she knew sewage ran downhill on the sewage line. I have basement AC . We had two roof AC's on our old coach. My new coach has power management system that will allow me to alternate units. It is less than 30 amps with two on except at start up. We leave in a couple of days and I can't wait to write the review.
QUOTE(Lindsay Richards @ Jun 25 2011, 03:44 PM) [snapback]26619[/snapback] ...and I can't wait to write the review. We can't wait to read it ! :lol: Stay clear of the floods, fires and tornados !
Hi Galli, The simple answer. If you have 30 amp RV and use a 50 to 30 adapter it is safe to do so. If you have a 30 amp RV (as I do) it is possible to have a special 50 to 30 and 20 adapter made up. I got fancy and added circuit breakers and two 20 amp plugs. This will let me run the 30 amp RV and the block heater for the engine. If you have a 50 amp rv and use a 30 to 50 adapter it is safe to do so, but it won't be possible to run everything at once. If you have a 50 amp RV and use a "cheater" adapter that combines a 30 and 20 amp outlet it may work "sometimes" and when it does it will provide more power than the simple 30 to 50 adapter. It won't work with a GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter). My personal opinion is that such a device is not of much use. I hope this helps.
I found out today that the guy I thought was the handyman (Mr. Personality) and was nasty to me at the site was actually the owner. I was really surprised that an owner would be nasty to a guest especially when he was so wrong. He also stated that no RV's under 35 feet had 50 amp systems and the first come first serve was normal for a campground. We love this area and will definitely be back. I have found a new campground and will be mentioning it also in my review. Evidently this owner has had other problems being nasty to guests. I guess if it wasn't for those pesky campers, his life would be much easier.
QUOTE(pianotuna @ Jun 26 2011, 12:45 AM) [snapback]26621[/snapback] If you have a 30 amp RV (as I do) it is possible to have a special 50 to 30 and 20 adapter made up. I got fancy and added circuit breakers and two 20 amp plugs. This will let me run the 30 amp RV and the block heater for the engine. Our best friends have a 1984 Airstream motorhome. It has 30 amp service, with two air conditioners, but it was wired from the factory such that the rear AC runs only from the generator, not from shore power. The power cable from the rear AC plugs into a dedicated outlet in the generator compartment. He made up an adapter like yours so when he has 50 amp power available he can run the rear AC from the pedestal, rather than from the genset. He unplugs the AC from the outlet in the generator compartment and plugs it into one leg of his handmade adapter.
My actual review. I saw that somebody else had trouble with this guy and his wife. We stayed in this park several years ago and had a successful time. It has a great location close to the Amish area It has no bathrooms or showers or any ammonites. We had to move sites to remain here due to a full Friday night. We got and paid for a 50 amp site as it was hot and we could use both AC’s. When we got to our new site, it had a shared pedestal with another site, 1 site was 30 amp, 1 site was 50 amp. We been promised and paid for the 50 amp site. It was also indicated on the map that our site was 50 amp and the site next door was 30 amp. The pedestal was clearly marked. The people in the 30 amp site were plugged into our 50 amp plug and not their own clearly marked plug. We went to the office and informed them. The lady (?) said we couldn’t have a 50 amp system in our RV as no RV’s under 35 feet had 50 amp systems (DUH). They also said that it was standard practice for the first one at the site to get their choice of hookups even if they were labeled per site. My wife told them to get an adapter and change the other folks out. They called the other guy and he admitted his switching over and agreed to be switched back to his 30 amp plug. The lady (?) gave me an adapter they had and told me to switch it. The adapter was a 30 amp to 50 amp and wouldn’t work. I could not make her understand the difference. She called another employee (Mr. Personality) and he straightened her out on the adapter and I asked him to change it as I didn’t want to change somebody else’s rig. He was nasty and said we should have just let first come first serve as that was standard in campgrounds. I pointed out my 48 state Brag Map and said I had camped all over and you got what you paid for. He said. “That don’t get you no special privilege here.”. He did change it and we had no problems. I did find out later that he was not just another employee, but the owner. Strange idea of customer service. WiFi worked well. Berlin, OH is a wonderful place to RV and we will be back, but not staying here. A new campground is going up several miles West of Berlin (Berlin Campground). We will be staying there.
very interesting conversation! Lindsay, I wish you just added the CG info right into your post since the review portion of this site does not identify the "poster". By the way, I have a 31ft A year 2000 with one AC with 50amp service.
""""By the way, I have a 31ft A year 2000 with one AC with 50amp service.""" I thought that was impossible. The campground was in Berlin, OH one of our favorite spots in the whole US.
QUOTE(vincee @ Jun 30 2011, 12:54 PM) [snapback]26650[/snapback] very interesting conversation! Lindsay, I wish you just added the CG info right into your post since the review portion of this site does not identify the "poster". By the way, I have a 31ft A year 2000 with one AC with 50amp service. Our first fulltiming rig was a 35' fiver with one AC and 50 amp service. It was a 1997 model.
