Pedestal Police!

[Madmax07]

We are camping at a NP in Manitoba. The site we have only has 30 amp service at the pedestal. Yesterday, the breaker at the pedestal tripped multiple times.
I was running my 15,000 BTU A/C, the electric water heater and my fridge. What kind of draw would be expected from running these 3 items? I would think a 30amp service should be able to handle it? Could the breaker be bad at the post or could there be some other potential problem?

[jimcol]

You are probably getting close to 30 amps. I'd switch the water heater and if possible the refrig, over to gas and see if the breaker holds.

[Rotnjonny]

Agreed. I would suspect the “in rush” that occurs when the a/c compressor kicks in and/or when the refrig compressor kicks in is tripping the breaker. The initial start up cycle is what is creating the issue.

[mlh]

Your AC is pulling at least 1400 watts running. This doesn’t include start up which is much more. The refrigerator uses again at least 400 watts. My small refrigerator uses 400 watts and is much smaller than yours. I don’t know how much the water heater pull but you are very likely close to 30 watts. Turn something off and try again.
Lynwood

[bshgto]

You need to ad in your converter it can draw 4 to 8 amps at any given time. I've probed mine at 10 amps with the batteries a little low and the lights on.

[rwtw2024]

Wattage divided by Voltage equals amps.

400W fridge on 110 equals 3.63 amp.

1400W AC unit on 110 equals 12.72 Difference here is to look at unit labels to see if surge amps equal or exceed that.

As said previously the startup is generally the problem. With the formula above you do some quick napkin math to see where you are. And while it is a 30 amp breaker there will be a tolerance factor plus or minus, plus age/usage factor of breaker, wind direction, day of month, etc, where your milage may vary. If you feel you are within the 30 try a different nearby pedestal to see if may its just a worn out breaker.

[Foldbak]

Had the same problem recently. switched the fridge and water heater to gas and I could run both AC's but nothing else.

[Madmax07]

Originally Posted by Rotnjonny

Agreed. I would suspect the “in rush” that occurs when the a/c compressor kicks in and/or when the refrig compressor kicks in is tripping the breaker. The initial start up cycle is what is creating the issue.

I do have soft start on the ac but I agree that when I add up all of the things that are drawing power, I would be close to 30. I also suspect the breaker is old.
I switched the water heater to propane and the breaker hasn’t tripped since. I’ll manage my power usage and make it work. Thanks for all the help!

[DutchmenSport]

We are on a 50 amp service. But it doesn't matter where we are camping at, when we run the following combinations of "things" the breaker at the pole always pops.

2 AC running, electric cloths dryer running, water heater running, residential refrigerator running, microwave running, and an electric griddle running .... all is well.

But.... now plug in the toaster or the coffee pot and attempt to make toast or start a pot of coffee and! POP! Every time!

[AZ Traveler]

A hybrid inverter really helps when on 30 amp or a genny. Need another 10 amps to start the a/c? Your inverter adds extra power to shore power to prevent the breaker from tripping. Several of the inverter companies sell hybrid models.

[BB_TX]

Water heater is probably 12 amps.
A/C between 13 and 15 amps depending on model.
Converter around 7-8 amps.
Fridge 4-5 amps.
That totals 35 amps or more.

Water on gas will get you below that.

[Madmax07]

Originally Posted by BB_TX

Water heater is probably 12 amps.
A/C between 13 and 15 amps depending on model.
Converter around 7-8 amps.
Fridge 4-5 amps.
That totals 35 amps or more.

Water on gas will get you below that.

Makes sense. Thanks for the info!

[dbrandon44]

Had same problem it was a bad breaker at the post

[laverdur]

Switching fridge and water heater to gas will solve the problem unless the breaker on the pedestal is defective.