CAUTION: Dryers Plugs are 240 Volts – RVs are 120 Volts
WARNING:
If you Own / Operate an RV with a 30 Amp Service plug –
do NOT try to plug it into a “Dryer Socket”
DAMAGE will most likely occur. WHY?
Clothes Dryers (I assume it’s clothes we’re talking about and not money laundering), anyway, dryers are powered by Household Electricity. ALL houses, apartments and dwellings with electricity from the Power Company have 240 Volts at the MAIN Electric Panel (with the circuit breakers, etc). This “box” is where the 240 volts is divided into 3 circuit feeds –
- 240 volts for Range and Dryer
- 120 volts for toaster, some lights and wall plugs
- 120 volt GFI circuit that shuts off ALL electricity when you drop a toaster into the bathtub
Most household electrical consumption involves 120 volts AC – things like lights, toasters, wall chargers, etc. NOT the Electric Range or the Clothes Dryer – these each require 240 volts. To keep “us” mere mortals from accidentally plugging a toaster into a 240 volt outlet, the power people designed a LARGE Plug and Socket that ONLY a dryer or electric range can “use”. Fixed it.
These 240 volt plugs and receptacles are WAY bigger than a regular plug-in end – there is NO mistake as to what it will and WON’T work with. So, 240 volt electrical stuff CAN’T get mixed up with 120 volt things. Great THEORY…
RV rigs, that are equipped with 30 Amp Service use 120 volts at a relatively high 30 Amp Rating. In order to keep the RV from plugging into a receptacle that is unable to provide 120 volts at such a hight Amp Rating – a LARGE Plug and Socket that ONLY an RV can “use” is installed. Fixed it.
TWO Special, Oversized Plugs and Receptacles? But one is for 240 volts – the other is 120 volts?
Just because two things are roughly the same size and have the same number of wires does NOT mean they are the same – Mastiff dog is about the same size as a Panther, both black, must be the same. Ridiculous? Well, if you know electricity (or have paid any attention to this stuff), then the TWO different uses for similarly large electrical plugs are NOT THE SAME.
P.S. Class A (50 Amp) “rigs” are 240 volt, 50 Amp electrical systems. So they COULD be plugged into a dryer receptacle – COULD, not should… Your House Panel may not provide that much draw.
This article is a summation presented by the most senior Ray, of the Senior staff.
