Posted: 6/30/2016 7:00:39 PM EDT
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Is it hard on a 220 volt generator to pull a lot of amps off one leg and none on the other ?
I rigged up a cord to power my camper ( standard 110 volt / 30 amp service ) with my 5500 watt / 220 volt generator. I know that they sell adapters that serve this exact function. I just don't want to damage my generator. Thanks |
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Quoted:
Is it hard on a 220 volt generator to pull a lot of amps off one leg and none on the other ? I rigged up a cord to power my camper ( standard 110 volt / 30 amp service ) with my 5500 watt / 220 volt generator. I know that they sell adapters that serve this exact function. I just don't want to damage my generator. Thanks Say more. The 220V / 30A circuit will give you a max of 30A on either leg. Each leg will be 110V @ 30A max. |
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I had a similar question about my generator. It has a 220V 30a L14 plug, and two regular 110v 15a outlets.
When I finally found the wiring diagram for my generator (google helped a lot), I found out that there are 2- 110v lines that go through 30 amp fuses and then to each side of the L14 outlet. From there, one leg goes through a 15a fuse to one of the 110v 15a outlets, and the other leg goes through another 15a fuse and then to the other outlet. So, to run my 110v 26a motor I got an L14 plug, wired the hot to the X prong, and wired the neutral to the W prong. This motor is so old that there is no ground, so I left the Y prong empty and the G prong empty. This setup gave me 110V 30a service, and I haven't seen any problems with the setup. By the way, in the diagram I also found out that the neutral and ground are bonded together in the generator. That's why I grounded my generator and felt comfortable running the saw without trying to jimmy up an aftermarket ground. |
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Quoted:
What makes you think it will pull more amps on one leg? If the camper was wired right then the loads should be balanced in the panel on both legs. Sounds like his camper is wired to accept 110V / 30A service. So I think he's hoping that rather than use what is typically the 2 110V / 15A circuits that would run standard extension cords, that he can use an adapter to essentially just use 1 leg of the 220v / 30A circuit to give him 110V / 30A. OP, you could definitely do this if you are moderately competent and capable in basic wiring. Just make sure you have the right size wire and plugs for not just the amps you want to pull, but account for the total run of wire. |
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Pulling significantly more load off one set of the balanced windings IMO doesn't do the genny head any good, from a mechanical standpoint.
That's one of the reasons I ran 240 from the Wacker light tower to an auto-transformer and converted down to 120 vac. There is still access to 240vac. And the loads are shared equally between both sides/winding sets and there should be no adverse effects. It can supply ~6000 watts @120 vac from the transformer on one circuit if necessary. |
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Most genny heads will allow you to parallel the two 120 windings so unbalanced loading of the winding sets is no longer an issue.
Although you will no longer be able to power 240vac devices without a step up transformer... Check the schematic for your genny for re-wiring info. |
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Quoted:
Pulling significantly more load off one set of the balanced windings IMO doesn't do the genny head any good, from a mechanical standpoint. That's one of the reasons I ran 240 from the Wacker light tower to an auto-transformer and converted down to 120 vac. There is still access to 240vac. And the loads are shared equally between both sides/winding sets and there should be no adverse effects. It can supply ~6000 watts @120 vac if necessary. That is a very good point and something I hadn't thought about. |
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Quoted:
Most genny heads will allow you to parallel the two 120 windings so unbalanced loading of the winding sets is no longer an issue. Although you will no longer be able to power 240vac devices without a step up transformer... Check the schematic for your genny for re-wiring info. The main advantage to paralleling two windings is that it increases the maximum wattage available at one 120 volt outlet. Some generators (example: Generac EXL series) use much thicker wire for one of the two 120 volt legs instead, so that the generator's full rated wattage can be supplied through that leg - no switch-flipping or re-wiring required. The other leg is completely unloaded when this happening, and it doesn't seem to harm the generator one bit. |