EHU To Household 3 Pin 13amp Socket
We've been motorhoming since March 2017 so still a few things I haven't got my head round.
I'm planning to stay on a friends farm where I will plug in our EHU cable to his bog standard outside 13amp household socket. I've got the adaptor.
Should I be adjusting the motorhome panel from 16amps to 13amps? to match their house output? Anything else I should be aware of?
Silly question I know but like most things when you've done it once all becomes clear. Thanks.
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I'm not aware of any such adjustment......
However you will need an adaptor lead (blue caravan type socket to 13A plug). You could make one yourself or buy them on ebay or from your local caravan shop....
Just be careful what you use, but 13A should be more than plenty in a M/H.....
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We have a similar arrangement at home and I have never made any adjustment, even if I knew how. We have a few times at Christmas stayed in the van in our back garden when we have had a house full of guests and never experienced any issues. The only things we have tended not to use in such circumstances is the TV and low wattage kettle. The heating, hot water and fridge have all been on.
David
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We have also used caravan when we have had house guests. We have a double bed in spare room, our double bed and in the study a sofa bed that can also be a double. When we have had two couples and a singleton staying or three couples we have used the caravan. 13 amp gives about 3kw as opposed to 3.5 or so for 16 amp (round figures). As we also run a freezer in the garage where we plug into on the same gang socket I set heating to 1kw and carry on as normal.
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On many foreign sites you may only get 3, 6 or 10 amps and there is no need to change anything on a control panel (even if there was such an adjustment) its just that you will not be able to run as much at once and as ET says above your max power will be around 3kw.
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Thanks to one and all for replies. When we on a site that uses less than 16 amp I adjust the control panel to the same ampage. That way if I accidently overload the MH the site trip box trips rather than the MH.
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That is nice to be able to adjust the trip in the caravan. I have never heard of such a device, but it would be wise to use it as an overload on site merely means resetting a trip somewhere, whereas an overload on a 13 ampere household plug means dismantling to replace the fusible link.
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Remind me not to share a bollard with you!
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We use at home from time to time and will use a heater now and again from Garage. The only extra I use is a Circuit breaker on the 13am plug. May be just as well to use circuit breaker if using Farm electrics from outbuildings - Farmers not the best maintenance people. Best known for their use of Binder twine!!
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So I guess the answer is set the van slightly below, if possible, the rating of that domestic socket it is plugged into. That way you will hopefully not trip the house socket or circuit. Wouldn't be too good in the middle of the night to go knocking apologising for their loss of lecky too ! You really shouldn't have a problem mind on a domestic circuit.
On site, if you set it to trip in the van first you will not inconvenience your neighbors using the same bollard if all the sockets in this are on the same trip switch.
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Slightly off topic but I have found it very handy to have the reverse of the plug under discussion - i.e blue plug with a 13amp trailing adaptor.
If you appear to have no electric in your van after coupling, you can start at the bollard with this adaptor and (say) a hairdryer and work your way towards the van checking all connections and establishing where the fault lies.
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With regard to the trailing adapter (extension lead) ,,there has just been a serious warning put out by fire brigades ,with concerns about the wattage capacity of heaters/fires etc which have overloaded the leads causing them to melt and catch fire.Much like the EHU on a reel if not unwound !!.No doubt a good solution for checking out a circuit,,,but not to use for powering up such equipment !!
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The control panel on my 2016 Swift Bolero has the AC limit function. The incoming AC current is monitored and if the set limit is reached then the heating element is temporarily turned off until the current falls below the set level.
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So if the limit is reached without the heating using the power, what happens?
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Sorry chaps - mine is 60 feet long and with a MCB and four sockets on the far end.
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Take a fire extinguisher with you then........
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Just flick the switch up on the bollard. Anyway I've got all the gin and tonic so sharing a bollard with me seems to be popular
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A peedee says, the Alde system has a current limiter but it has to be enabled. It will adjust the heating element so the total current does not exceed the limit. We always used to set ours to 6 amps on the continent. Sounds that the Swift panel does the same thing which is a nice feature to have.
Tripping the bollard overseas then trying to find the site manager can be a pain although many sites (especially Italian ones!) don’t seem to lock the panel. I carry a tool which will fit many panels and sometimes a screwdriver works but have only needed it a handful of times and mainly when the trip was over sensitive to the microwave oven.
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Yes. I always carry a hammer and if that doesn't work i get my other tool out....a bigger hammer. Only joking.
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Hope you've now got you're head around the questions you needed help with and have a better understanding of things, Paolo. Don't worry about asking what you may think are those 'silly questions' as many on here are more than willing to help, we were all newbies once!
Cheers!🍸1
