Shore power electrical circuit breaker panel

Adding sleeping and shore power capability to our 2010 passenger. Shore power will include an external 30-amp 120 VAC jack. Inside will include a circuit breaker panel and 3 duplex outlets.

Do others recommend using a residential 4 to 6 breaker panel or a marine 4 to 6 breaker panel?

Seems like most RVs use residential AC power panels, but the marine units are smaller and have more functionality built in.

Am considering the marine since it comes with a source select - shore or inverter/generator.

73/gus

gklott said:

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, but the marine units are smaller and have more functionality built in.

Am considering the marine since it comes with a source select - shore or inverter/generator.

73/gus

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I would think the marine type panel is the better choice partly for the reasons you mentioned. I'm certain cost influences RV manufacturers in their choice of residential products.

There are quite a few threads about wiring your Sprinter if you are interested. They can be found using the search function in the blue bar above. Have fun. vic

I bought a IOTA combination AC and DC distribution panel. Wiring was difficult due to so much wiring in such a small space. I would have separate AC distribution and DC distribution if I ever build another van. A AC distribution with a selector switch would have worked great for my application where I have two sources of AC power. One from shore and one from a second sine wave inverter powered by the Sprinter electrical system.

I looked at the Iota panels but went with Blue Sea components instead.

Pix is of master ac circuit breaker on left, 3 ac circuit breakers in the middle, 3 dc fused circuits on the right.

I'll note that there is also a spendy dc circuit breaker between the SurePower 1315 iso/combiner switch and the battery bank. Most of my kw-hrs come from the alternator and wanted a cb there instead of a fuse to help recover from a short.

My Prosine 2000w inverter/charger has a smart auto transfer switch. If you're hooked up to shore or gen power it will pass loads through but will also charge the bank if there is leftover wattage. Particularly good if you've got a whole-house set up like me. I also consider its remote display panel essential. And really quick bank charging with a temperature sensor.

I used a very small residential sub panel - mostly because it's about 100 x cheaper. Really - what do those Blue Sea panels add in functionality - other than giving you something cool to look at? It's just a breaker, and you probably only need 2-3 of them.

NBB said:

I used a very small residential sub panel - mostly because it's about 100 x cheaper. Really - what do those Blue Sea panels add in functionality - other than giving you something cool to look at? It's just a breaker, and you probably only need 2-3 of them.

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I think that is a good solution as well. I carry a lot of wet gear and must have been attracted to the marine use.

Dan

NBB said:

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about 100 x cheaper. Really - what do those Blue Sea panels add in functionality - other than giving you something cool to look at?
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More compact, shallower mounting?

Personally I agree with cheaper and functional, but given the fantastic conversions some people have shown in various threads looks does matter to many. If you're only building one the higher cost is worthwhile for many people. vic

Do you need more than one circuit breaker? How about just having your first plug be a GFI?

ECU said:

Do you need more than one circuit breaker? How about just having your first plug be a GFI?

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I assumed I might do something wrong or that some device or piece of wiring would cause a fault.

So the lighting is on two or three separate dc circuits so a problem wouldn't require flashlights everywhere. Separate light circuits are a no-brainer anyway since one light at a time is often sufficient.

The ac is perhaps less critical since the van doesn't have any built-in ac devices. But the kitchen microwave, induction burner, coffee grinder could be moved to different outlets if something went bad without impinging on a camping trip. Mostly it is convenient to have duplex outlets in four corners of the van and I wanted backup in case anything I plugged in for one time use tripped a circuit breaker. Or an outlet got wet or otherwise compromised.

Folks with air conditioners or other heavy loads might want a separate inverter subpanel for the non shore power/generator draws.

Not a necessity to have separate circuits with only 30a---just useful for diagnostics and isolating any trouble item.

Just to clarify - a GFI isn't a breaker. It will not protect wiring. It may, depending on the fault, but it is not designed to.

I have a 15A breaker "protecting" the inverter. I have a double 15A breaker downstream of that for 1) The AC and 2) All outlets, including the microwave. This is all housed in a pretty small sub panel, out of view.

However, I recently and accidentally tried running my microwave and A/C at the same time. This should draw more than 15A. The inverter detected the overload and shut down. The breaker did not trip.

NBB said:

Just to clarify - a GFI isn't a breaker. It will not protect wiring. It may, depending on the fault, but it is not designed to.

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Thanks for that.

The "only needing a GFI on a 30 amp feed" suggestion is kinda scary when someone is wiring 15 amp receptacles with #14 or #12 AWG wire. You need to protect the wire size and that would be either 15 or 20 amp.

Someone might say, "But it's only 30 amps?" And that is only 100% overload for 15 amp wire, and 50% overload for 20 amp wire. Those are big percentages.

NBB said:

However, I recently and accidentally tried running my microwave and A/C at the same time. This should draw more than 15A. The inverter detected the overload and shut down. The breaker did not trip.

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That is not unexpected. The breakers are probably electromechanical devices which have a time delay built in for motor starting and other normal in-rush current.

The inverter is a solid state device with more sensitive components so any overcurrent protection will be set to trip earlier in the curve to protect those components. The inverter overcurrent device may also be solid state which are often by design more sensitive than electromechanical trips. FWIW. vic

We are the proud owners of a new 2018 MB Sprinter Van converted by Sportsmobile. Where is the 30 amp circuit breaker??? 30 amp fuse is on the left side of the drivers seat.

NBB said:

I used a very small residential sub panel - mostly because it's about 100 x cheaper. Really - what do those Blue Sea panels add in functionality - other than giving you something cool to look at? It's just a breaker, and you probably only need 2-3 of them.

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How small are we talking?

wankel7 said:

How small are we talking?

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https://smile.amazon.com/Square-Sch..._1_3?keywords=qo2l30scp&qid=1548072287&sr=8-3

This small. 30 Amp, 2 space, 2 circuit load center. Home depot or lowes, $20 - plus a couple of breakers, terminal ground bar kit, strain relief, etc. It is the only significant non-Blue Sea item in my power installation because I could not accept Blue Sea's prices for AC breaker panels.

I love my Blue Sea stuff, but Progressive Dynamics' or WFCO's ac/dc power distribution panels are a more rational option.

Be interesting to see some examples of AC distribution in US RVs.
This is the unit I installed in my UK Camper Conversion

3 Way Consumer Unit by David, on Flickr
used a standard small Consumer Unit housing; incoming RCD (Residual Circuit Breaker - called a GFI in the US I think); outlets are Dual Pole MCBs (Dual Pole, so the Live (Hot) and Neutrals outs are both disconnected on MCB trip).
around 160mm Wide (so about 6.5").
Also remember that all our voltage is 230V so a 15A UK service has the same power as a US 30A service.

ThomD said:

https://smile.amazon.com/Square-Sch..._1_3?keywords=qo2l30scp&qid=1548072287&sr=8-3

This small. 30 Amp, 2 space, 2 circuit load center. Home depot or lowes, $20 - plus a couple of breakers, terminal ground bar kit, strain relief, etc. It is the only significant non-Blue Sea item in my power installation because I could not accept Blue Sea's prices for AC breaker panels.

I love my Blue Sea stuff, but Progressive Dynamics' or WFCO's ac/dc power distribution panels are a more rational option.

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WWWWWWWWWWWWW

this is the one I used, but I got a twin 15 amp breaker to to two 110 wall box plugs, and a single 30amp for my shore power input.

Graphite Dave said:

I bought a IOTA combination AC and DC distribution panel. Wiring was difficult due to so much wiring in such a small space.

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Few residential boxes/panels are set up for both AC and low voltage DC in the same volume.
(ones that do tend to have a barrier plate between the two voltage level areas, consider it to be like the cargo barrier in a Sprinter: it prevents a cargo shift becoming dangerous for the driver and passenger))

BUT residential boxes/panels tend to have (thanks to code requirements) more "free space" (for both cooling and not-cramming-wires reasons). And, being "mass market", they're cheaper (but rarely designed for "looks"). They're not *designed* for the vibration environment of an RV, so thinking hard about their attachment systems is a good idea (will the internal wires vibrate/rub/abrade/short against things?)

Which you choose for your build can be impacted by your future plans (expanding later? Significantly increasing loads? Opt for free space now)

--dick
p.s. i notice that ThomD's cited panel is listed as a "close-out" item (on Amazon)