[climbsteadi]

Hi All~

I am adding a 30amp shore power inlet to my build.
There are lots of great clean installs on this forum with great information. I plan to follow suit with using the left side bumper and routing through the trailer wire entry hole.
Below is one example of the location I plan on using (taken from Josh Cissell's thread).

I have this fancy marine grade inlet. And I am using Ancor 10/3 stranded wire.

My question: are there any measures I need to take to protect the rear of the inlet from the elements, and what might be said measures?

The back of the inlet simply has a plastic cover on the wires and a clamp for stress relief on the wire connections. Upon investigation, that bumper trim looks like precipitation would just deluge through it, leaving the back of inlet pretty exposed.

I'm not sure what my ultimate concern is other than keeping the electrical connections clean and dry... just seems like high voltage + H20 is never good. I think this inlet is really designed for a surface mount that creates a watertight seal. I would love to avoid putting the big 1.5" hole in the side of my van. But am I overthinking it?

The inlet is going to route into a 2kW inverter/charger. I'm still reading "the book" and gleaning as much info as I can. I'm really glad I have a project during these times of social distancing.

Cheers and thanks in advanced for any input.

-Stephen

 

[proeddie]

You could put it in a waterproof enclosure mounted below the bumper, like....

then use a waterproof fitting to exit the box with wire to the inside of the van.

 

[climbsteadi]

You could put it in a waterproof enclosure mounted below the bumper, like....

then use a waterproof fitting to exit the box with wire to the inside of the van.

Hey Proeddie- I've gawked at your rig plenty and I considered doing an install like this.
But is that a 20amp inlet? The inlet I bought is 30amp and seems much larger (see link in first post). The enclosure would have to be huge to use the inlet I bought.

 

[keeponvaning]

Just get a 4 x 4 or 6 x 6 plastic box instead?

 

[climbsteadi]

I was thinking a box that big would be pretty clunky to have hanging off the back, but if that's the only way to make the connection safe/secure than I'll certainly look into it.

But I'm mostly curious if others who have used this access point used a means of protecting the inlet from elements, or whether it's posed any problems/concerns not doing so.

 

[climbsteadi]

Maybe I should just return that big fancy-pants 30amp inlet I bought and get a smaller/simpler one that could more easily be installed on a waterproof box.

My original plan was always to install a 30amp inlet. I've recently been questioning whether I really need 30amp. I have the pretty big inverter so it just felt like a way to future-proof. But I'll never run an AC unit. But I'm really just itching to get this task done so I can move on!

 

[proeddie]

Yes, my inlet is rated 15A, which works out well for my installation. As KOV says, there is a variety of sizes for waterproof enclosures for the bigger unit you have, or just use a 15A inlet

Here's a variation on the one I used:
Leviton 5278-CWP Straight Blade Flanged Male Power Inlet Receptacle, 15 A, 125 V, Nylon Face, Body And Strap - Rv Receptacles - Amazon.com

All you need is an outdoor plastic or metal box... standard size.

 

[proeddie]

Or, get one of these:

Journeyman-Pro 20 Amp 125V AC Power Inlet Port Plug with Integrated 20" Extension Cord + Waterproof Cover, UL Listed, NEMA 5-20P Flanged Inlet (GCP2 Black 20A) - - Amazon.com

You could mount this where you originally planned and it is already fully waterproof. Comes in 15A and 20A.

I probably would have used this if I had seen it at the time!

 

[SteveSS]

There sure are lots of ways to do this. I installed our 30A exactly like Josh Cissell's and it's been totally fine. Since I don't plan on fording rivers, the weather-tightness seemed perfectly adequate to me. In fact, the 10-3 cabtire I used was a little too big for the hole (&$^^#!!). You could also apply some chalking, if you want.

 

[climbsteadi]

There sure are lots of ways to do this. I installed our 30A exactly like Josh Cissell's and it's been totally fine. Since I don't plan on fording rivers, the weather-tightness seemed perfectly adequate to me. In fact, the 10-3 cabtire I used was a little too big for the hole (&$^^#!!). You could also apply some chalking, if you want.

Thank you all, I think I've settled on a plan.

Side note: I always seem to find more PM forum threads on a topic by just searching google, inevitably the PM forum comes up. As opposed to just the search bar in the forum. I thought I had read them all, but after posting I found more, doh! ((forehead slap)).

 

[GapRunr]

Side note: I always seem to find more PM forum threads on a topic by just searching google, inevitably the PM forum comes up.

Google search tends to work better. If you want to search just the forum, use the 'site:' command provided in Google.

site:www.promasterforum.com "shore power".

Every result is from this forum.

 

[climbsteadi]

Did not know about the site command; thanks for sharing.

 

[Airstreamer]

I've owned travel trailers for years - both with 30 amp and 50 amp inlets. For my van build I decided against either for many reasons, one being the issue you are having. For me a 20 amp inlet was sufficient as I do not plan on powering anything actually in the van off the outlet (though I did wire so I could). My plan is only to use it to charge the batteries. I went with this:

 

[GapRunr]

That looks like the one I got. It was made by Noico, and was very well made. It has an outlet on the end of a 6 foot cord that I plugged a power bar into.

 

[MsNomer]

We have that one and it never stays closed.

 

[Airstreamer]

We have that one and it never stays closed.

I was afraid of that. Could be because the connector constantly pulls it out?

 

[keeponvaning]

Yes, same problem. A good fix would be cut the strap and use a wire tie or small chain perhaps. Some day I may get around to doing it?

 

[RDinNHandAZ]

I just use a bit of E6000 or Silicone to hold it closed as I use that thing about once every 2-3 years!

 

[MsNomer]

I don’t understand KOV's description. Our connector stays put, the flap just doesn’t stay closed.

 

[keeponvaning]

Yes that’s what I’m saying the cover won’t stay closed because of the piece that connects it to the unit itself is too stiff a thin longer flexible thingy would do the trick.