Club 80-90 Forums

ok..this is prolly a stupid question but im gonna ask anyway
what is the maximum wattage/ampage devices you can use on a hook up on site,or isnt there one?
i have a 2kw heater ,would this be ok to run plus tv etc...i dont know much about camp site limits(if there is any)or would my unit trip before theirs ?
....cheers dave.

most uk sites are 10amp, so a 2kw heater will be too much. Some are 6amp, some are 15amp.
the rcd in your camper will also be a deciding factor, most are 10amp.

so if you took it as all sites were 6 amp what would be the max wattage you could use....i dunno the conversion coz i is a bit tick

watts = volts x amps. so a 2000watt heater uses 8 amps (8 amps x 250volts = 2000 watts)
so you are sailing close to the limit with a 2000w heater on a 10amp supply on its own, without the tv , lighting ect.

cheers Mocki...your da man

get it loaded up, that's what the safety trips are for! on a more serious note you'll be able to see what wattage each appliance has on a sticker on it's base or the back. it's always worth keeping check on what you've got plugged in and work out what you can't have on at the same time as something else, because if you blow the post out, it might not be just you that's disconnected!

its mainly the heating side of it..we aint really bin out in it so far.we did a few nights in derbyshire in september and enjoyed it but at the time we only had the rings and the bed as id stripped the old interior out.this winter im refurbing it and we are going to use a plug in heater for now untill we see how we go with the van.
i think itll be great in summer but if we really get into camping then we will be fed up if we are at home when its cold and everyone else is out there having a great time.this summer will be the deciding point and then after i might go for an eber heater

We have a small fan heater bought from a caravan shop (if you're paying for electric you might as well use it being the theory). It's rated at 1200w max but has 2 settings. To be honest we've only ever used it on the low 600w speed and it warms the van up superbly. It cost about 12 quid and we've definately had our moneys worth from it. It also blows cold air for those hot days by the Med !!
I now have it on a timer, plugged into the van sockets, whilst hooked up at home on the drive, to run for a couple of hours a day to keep the inside warm & hopefully damp free. Makes a big difference when driving in the mornings at the moment
Andi

i have a 2kw heater ,would this be ok

jeez you'd be down to your grundies in no time.

1Kw is ample

there's a table of electricals with their respective amperage somewhere... take a look on the wiki

120 watts
17" CRT monitor

40 watts
17" LCD monitor

45 watts
Laptop computer

Other

60-100 watts
Regular light bulb

4-165 watts
Video game (While playing game, 30W for PS2, 70W for XBox, and 165W for XBox 360.

My van (and the previous one) has a 40A 30mA rated incoming RCD with the current demand being limited by the outgoing circuit breakers of 10A and 6A. The 10A one supplies the van socket for heaters / general use and the 6A one is for the socket in the cupboard specifically for the fridge. The fridge takes next to nothing on 240v anyway. IF I ever want hook-up on site I always ask what rating it is and if it's not 10A minimum I don't bother. I won't pay a couple of quid extra per night for something that won't power a heater / kettle etc.

I am almost as tight as Mocki............

HEY! im not tight, just carefull.......

M0cki's that tight he's been know to take unused eleccy home with him in a carrier bag

To date, I've never had any problems with my oil heater being used the same time when my g/f straightens her hair or boils the kettle for a cuppa.

thanks for all the info,your right about the 2kw blower ,it dus melt ya face off a bit but it has a lower setting,the only problem is our lass is a girl and every girl ive ever met is always cold.as long as we cant see our breath im fine(dunno what she would add to that ,but there ya go).i think once we get out a few times ill get to know what works and what dont

bought a new battery today £60

thanks again...dave

One thing to note about power (as in the number of Watts) using alternating voltages (eg. the mains) is that Volts * Amps does not always equal Watts.

With alternating voltages (often referred to as AC voltages), Volts * Amps = VA. Power (when using AC voltages) = Volts * Amps * Power Factor (this will be less than 1). The power factor is the cosine of the phase angle between the resistive and the inductive impedances, which is a complex number (eg. Resistance is on the real number axis and the reactance of the inductive part of the fan heater is on the imaginary axis). The actual formula is the following:-

P = V * I * cos ø (for completeness)

Simply put, a typical 2kW fan heater's efficiency is usually about 70%, hence the power factor will be about 0.7. The current going through the fan heater will therefore be the following:-

Current (I) = Power / (Voltage * Power Factor)

Volts = 240 V (assumption, this actually varies from 230V to 250V)

Power = 2kW

therefore:-

Current = 2000 / (240 * 0.7)

= 2000 / 168

= 11.91 Amps (to 2 decimal places)


This will hopefully show that other factors should be taken into account when deciding what could be powered from (for example) an electrical hookup at a campsite. (I also hope that made some sort of sense)