charliemyers
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Post by charliemyers on Feb 13, 2018 11:46:45 GMT -8
my cord from the 15amp plug to the box is 12G. 12 gauge is good for up to 20 amps, so you're fine for 15amp service. But if you upgrade your inlet to 30amp in the future, you'll need to get a 10 gauge cord and run 10 gauge wire from the inlet to the breaker box (because it's likely 12 or 14 gauge as well).
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Post by charliemyers on Feb 13, 2018 8:09:26 GMT -8
No, that's probably not much power. But as BW mentioned if a hot wire happens to get shorted to ground somehow, it will draw current until a breaker trips, a fuse blows, or something catches on fire. It's good that you have that breaker to prevent a fire.
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Post by charliemyers on Feb 12, 2018 12:06:39 GMT -8
As long as you never draw in excess of 15 amps, you should be fine.
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charliemyers
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Post by charliemyers on Feb 11, 2018 4:30:31 GMT -8
If you plug a 15 amp service into a 30 amp outlet using an adapter, be sure that your trailer’s breaker will trip at 15 amps! If you draw more than 15 amps through your inlet, you risk starting a fire. If you have a single 15 amp breaker in your breaker box then you should be OK. If you have a 15 amp main breaker then you should be OK. If you have any other way of ensuring that your service will be interrupted above 15 amps, then you should be OK. I personally do not accept the “I will only use a limited number of devices at once” answer, but that’s an entirely personal choice.
The entire purpose of the National Electric Code is to make electrical systems NOT a personal choice.
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Post by charliemyers on Feb 3, 2018 7:02:04 GMT -8
I’m about to order a tarp from tarpsonline to keep over my Compact during this summer’s rebuild. I know for a fact that all of the skins will come off and the wrap (inside panels from front to back) will be replaced. Any recommendations on what size will be sufficient to keep this 12.5’ camper safe during the rebuild?
Thanks!
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Post by charliemyers on Feb 3, 2018 6:09:54 GMT -8
Dan’s scraper is great and widely used among woodworkers. The benefit is that you have great control of the depth of cut. The drawback is that you have great control of the depth of cut! It takes practice to learn how to control it. I often use a marriage of Dan’s a nd the other one that Larry posted. Something like this, but from the pre-war era when iron was heavy: Stanley scraper planeYou still have control of the cut, but the tool helps you with the adjustments. You still need to know how to remove the old burr and “sharpen” it by burnishing on a new burr.
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charliemyers
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Post by charliemyers on Feb 2, 2018 13:14:05 GMT -8
None of those are in my '60 Airflyte for what that's worth.
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Post by charliemyers on Jan 31, 2018 12:26:02 GMT -8
Welcome to the forums rosbud33. You might want to post that info in this thread for Shasta VIN numbers: Shasta VIN Model Database
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Post by charliemyers on Jan 28, 2018 10:19:31 GMT -8
Hello fellow Westerner, I made sure each 2x4 was anchored securely on my plywood bench, either by fastening the 2x4 to the bench using counter-sunk screws, or a number of clamps... If you decide to attack it with a skill saw, this is an excellent idea. Some people can get away with ripping narrow stock without doing this, but lots of people lose digits trying. In all my years of woodworking, I’ve learned that properly holding you work is one of the most important skills you can learn for safety as well as the quality of your work.
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Post by charliemyers on Jan 28, 2018 4:32:35 GMT -8
Also, if it's a 47, does it have the 3 piece rims that use an inner tube and a lock ring, I think it's called? “Split rims” is the term I’ve always known for these, and yes, very few people will still work with them due to the dangers. I personally know a man that had half of his face reconstructed because one of those blew apart on him, but I don’t think he had it inside the cage at the time.
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Post by charliemyers on Jan 24, 2018 13:19:08 GMT -8
Sorry BW! I have no intentions of selling anything, but I might be convinced to share my knowledge with those that might want to try doing this themselves. Plus I haven't even completed it yet...it could end up falling by the wayside never to be completed.
Yep, I'm just doing it because I want to, and it sounds like a fun project. It was supposed to keep me busy this winter, but I haven't had much time yet to put into it.
Sorry kathleenc! And to everyone else for the diversion. This is more into digital electronics than 12V wiring, but being related to LED lighting almost makes it appropriate.
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Post by charliemyers on Jan 24, 2018 11:11:20 GMT -8
Actually I do intend to use a smart phone for the interface. The microprocessor that I'm using can run its own little web server, so I might be able to make it OS independent and require only a web browser. But I haven't decided yet whether to go with a purely web based solution or develop an app (I have zero experience writing apps). I still have some details to work out with the hardware though before moving on to the software.
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Post by charliemyers on Jan 24, 2018 7:51:06 GMT -8
Sounds like it's a rheostat type dimmer? If so then it's basically a variable resistor which drops more or less voltage across the resistor as you adjust it. LEDs require a very specific voltage to turn on, and they typically go from off to near full brightness in short order with this method which explains the very fine sensitivity that you're seeing.
Accidental grounding wasn't really a concern (the word "safety" usually comes to my mind when I hear "concern" as it relates to electricity). I primarily just wanted to point out that if you had a PWM controller (which apparently you don't) then it likely would not dim the LEDs if they had another path to ground.
I'm in the very beginning stages of designing my own PWM LED controller that can be controlled via wifi. Unfortunately I haven't had a whole lot of time lately to put into that project.
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Post by charliemyers on Jan 23, 2018 5:47:16 GMT -8
If your lights are wired in parallel (as they should be....all of the +12V together and all of the grounds together), then I would think yes, all of them should dim. However I don't know that you can count on all of them shining at the same brightness level.
Without knowing more about your dimmer, the rest of this explanation is speculation. Although LED lights can be dimmed by varying the resistance, most often they're dimmed by "PWM" (Pulse Width Modulation - the light is turned on & off at a high frequency with the amount of "on" time versus "off" time being varied...the human eye sees it as either getting brighter or dimmer). Often the low side (ground) is switched on & off this way because the electronic components that switch the low side are typically cheaper and more efficient than those that switch the high side (+12V).
So if your dimmer accepts both +12V and ground wires and if it's designed for dimming LED lights, you will probably need to run both +12V and ground wires from the dimmer output to each fixture, and you may need to make sure that none of those three fixtures are grounded by any other way (otherwise a PWM on the ground wire will have no effect).
I'm usually not terribly good at explaining things, so I hope that makes sense.
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Post by charliemyers on Jan 21, 2018 18:07:46 GMT -8
Another thought that isn’t often mentioned is that electric brakes with a battery & disconnect switch can help bring your trailer to a stop if it ever separates from the the tow vehicle on the highway. Yes, safety chains are supposed to save your skin in that case, but it’s possible for those to fail or not be properly connected.
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