Electrical Question

[TallPaul]

I put a small generator in my motorhome (not the kind made for a motorhome) to run the air conditioner. But running the land line to the generator doesen't work. It overloads and kicks the circuit breaker on the generator. The land line includes a power center that charges the two house batteries and runs 12 v lighting, etc. (The power center runs the 12 v items off the house batteries and then when the land line is plugged in to 110 v, it switches to charging the house batteries, runs the 110 outlets in the motorhome, and converts 110 to 12v to run the 12 v items.)

I am thinking a direct hookup to the air conditioner, bypassing the power center, may reduce the load by 2 or 3 amps and make it work. But I need a way to switch it so that at a campground the air will run off the land line hookup.

Here is my idea. I will splice the neutral and ground leads from the generator into the neutral and ground of the air conditioner and use a 20 amp (sufficient for my air con) three way light switch on the hot lead so I can switch from the generator to the land line. The neutral and ground should not matter being hooked to both the generator and power center since with the switch only allowing one or the other, there would only be a complete circuit for the power source that is in use. Right?

Or would there be back feed along the neutral?

(I know with my fridge on an inverter I had to isolate all three lines with three three-way switches (modular ganged in one wall plate).)

 

[thooks]

I say get a GOOD electrician to help you.

 

[TheTanSedan]

TallPaul, try the RV boards, you can't be the first to want to do this.

 

[Papa Bear]

TallPaul. Make sure you have your fireproof jockey shorts on before you plug that puppy in !!

P.B.

 

[brianl703]

I think you want a transfer switch.

Here's a "furnace transfer switch" that can handle a single 15 or 20 amp circuit.

http://electricgeneratorsdirect.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=271&source=froogle

Here's another one:

http://www.shop.com/op/~Reliance_Co...ch_TF151W-prod-23355769-31368546?sourceid=298

 

[labman]

$100 for a 20 amp switch?

 

[TallPaul]

Yeah, that's what my local electrical store said when I wanted such a switch for the fridge. I built my own for about $10 - $15.

 

[brianl703]

Call me a wimp, but I'll spend the extra $80 instead of trying to rig something up that may be unsafe.

Think of it as cheap insurance.