50a AC wire in RV

[RoadTurtle]

What type of wire? I may or may not be able to get it behind the coreplast. What is my ideal wire going from the back to the RV to the front, distance is approximately 35'. Need 6g 4 wires, L1, L2, N, and G.

I see multiple opportunities, both ends are protected from weather

1. SOOW cable (can this be exposed and attached to the frame)?
2. Outdoor direct burial romex, (does it come in stranded?)
3. Individual wires in an outdoor rated conduit (can wires running both forward and back be in the same conduit?)
4. Any other style I've missed?

 

[BentleyJ]

1. Any other style I've missed?

1) Welding cable is super flexible if that helps.
2) 6/4 Marine cable (tin plated copper) is another choice. Its similar to SOOW cable regarding having an outer jacket.

BTW with the 6AWG wire you should be using a 50 or 60A breaker or fuse, if so then a 10AWG ground wire is all that's needed. Of course with SOOW or Marine cable its all bundled together and usually the conductors are all the same size.

 

[RoadTurtle]

1) Welding cable is super flexible if that helps.
2) 6/4 Marine cable (tin plated copper) is another choice. Its similar to SOOW cable regarding having an outer jacket.

BTW with the 6AWG wire you should be using a 50 or 60A breaker or fuse, if so then a 10AWG ground wire is all that's needed. Of course with SOOW or Marine cable its all bundled together and usually the conductors are all the same size.

Most power poles have a 50a breaker built into them.... but it just dawned on me where I'm currently parked, I didn't see a fuse or breaker. Great something else I need to deal with!

 

[K8MEJ]

1) Welding cable is super flexible if that helps.
2) 6/4 Marine cable (tin plated copper) is another choice. Its similar to SOOW cable regarding having an outer jacket.

BTW with the 6AWG wire you should be using a 50 or 60A breaker or fuse, if so then a 10AWG ground wire is all that's needed. Of course with SOOW or Marine cable its all bundled together and usually the conductors are all the same size.

Where do you get 6/4 marine cable? I have searched and searched for it. I can find 6/3 boat cable all day long. Please tell me where

 

[BentleyJ]

Here is a link to for 6/4 marine cable according to the specs although the pic seems to show 6/3 but those are not always accurate.

General Cable 646070 :: Marine Power Cable, Type P, 6/4 AWG, Unarmored, 600/1000V :: Rexel USA

Offshore & Marine Shipboard Cable, IEEE 1580 Type P MOR Polyrad XT-125 Flexible Power Cable, Unarmored, 600/1000V, 6 AWG, 4 Core, T-7874, Cat #: 646070, Mfr: General Cable

www.rexelusa.com

 

[BentleyJ]

6/4 Shore Power Cable by the Foot | West Marine

Check out our 6/4 Shore Power Cable by the Foot and more from West Marine!

www.westmarine.com

Interesting that this product is being sold by West Marine yet it doesn't have the typical tin plated conductors like true marine cable. It is the correct size though

 

[K8MEJ]

Neither of those are really any different than 6/4 SOOW cord except the one from general cable appears to be tinned. When we do 30A work we can use 8/3 boat cable. It's very flexible and easier to work with than 8/3 SOOW. For 50A service we generally use 6/4 SOOW or run individual 6AWG welding wire through flexible water-tight conduit. That's a PITA, too

Thanks for the tips, though!

 

[JimmyMac]

1) Welding cable is super flexible if that helps.
2) 6/4 Marine cable (tin plated copper) is another choice. Its similar to SOOW cable regarding having an outer jacket.

BTW with the 6AWG wire you should be using a 50 or 60A breaker or fuse, if so then a 10AWG ground wire is all that's needed. Of course with SOOW or Marine cable its all bundled together and usually the conductors are all the same size.

This post is exactly the information I was looking for. I am in the process of installing a Victron Multiplus II in my camper (12 Volt) and was looking at buying wire that is 6/3 gauge with an 8/1 ground. I was worried that the 8 gauge ground would be too small. The wire would be protected with a 50 amp breaker. I guess I need to educate myself on ground wire sizes. I can save myself close to $100 by going with the 6/3 8/1 wire vs buying 6/4 wire. Do you see any reason not to?

 

[BentleyJ]

10AWG copper is sufficient for grounding up to a 60A circuit. If the breaker is going to be 50A then you could probably save even more by down sizing the ground to 10 from the proposed 8AWG.

Nothing wrong with a separate ground wire when the installation is inside the camper electrical compartments. The shore power cable that is deployed outside the camper to plug into the pedestal would look better and be much more convenient if its a 6/4 with all the conductors contained in and protected by the outer jacket.

 

[JimmyMac]

10AWG copper is sufficient for grounding up to a 60A circuit. If the breaker is going to be 50A then you could probably save even more by down sizing the ground to 10 from the proposed 8AWG.

Nothing wrong with a separate ground wire when the installation is inside the camper electrical compartments. The shore power cable that is deployed outside the camper to plug into the pedestal would look better and be much more convenient if its a 6/4 with all the conductors contained in and protected by the outer jacket.

The wire I am buying has 3 jacketed 6awg wires and a single 8awg wire enclosed in a pretty thick jacket all together. It will run starting inside the cabinet that houses my camper's electrical distribution panel to the other end of the camper where I have the Multiplus 2 installed. The path between the two points is "enclosed" by the camper underbelly material which is coroplast material. The wire I am going to use is rated for exterior use and is a camper extension cord. Every time I try and copy the Amazon link it gives me a JavaScript error or I would post it.
Thanks for responding!!! You alleviated my worries about the ground cable size.

 

[dopeassjackson]

I wouldnt have a problem useing UFB in this situation but would put most of it in conduit to hold it tight. A bit of the UF exposed to get back into a cabinet under the RV wouldnt be that big of a deal.