Is there an electrician on here?

[BlacktopTravelr]

I need to know what size of extension cord to get to run about 100 ft from a 30 amp breaker to my building? I'm needing a electric heater for the time being until I can get the new solar panels and two 6 volt batteries. I probably need to run two and put just the heater on one cord and the rest of the stuff on the other cord. I could buy the 40 lb propane bottle and have it filled, but then I'd have to cut a hole in the wall or floor to run a line into the building as you can't have the propane inside the building you are occupying. Which doesn't make sense since the heater cabinets I have use the 20 lb bottles in them? I'm going to have to do the hole cutting anyway when I put in a normal heater and buy a big tank. I'm not going to have enough money for all this when I get my SS this month.

If I had known all I was going to get when I retired on SS was equal to what I made a week when I was working you can bet I would have worked that other 3 years and put more back and paid in more so I could draw more when I did retire. Oh well, all that is water under the bridge now. It looks like it might be a cold winter so I need to get tires for the van and figure out a way to cover up the bike. I might end up using Spanky as a foot warmer.

[YoDude]

14/3 should cover it. but it won't be too cheap at 100'. Good luck!

Yo-

[Suzuki Johnny]

To be sure John.....at 100 foot this wire should cover just about any installation.....but there will most likely be more answers forth coming to your question..
You can bury it or run it overheard it that's possible.....I wouldnm't recommentd just laying it on the ground
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[BlacktopTravelr]

Thanks guys and for the link Johnny. 14/3 Walmart should carry that. I'll wait and see if anybody adds anything to this.

I might just get 100 ft of wire and bury it and where it ends put up an outdoor plug then plug my extension cord into that for now. I could wait to see how much money I have left (if any) after I buy the stuff I know I need to insulate the building and put in 12 volt outlets. It looks like a couple of 120 wouldn't hurt.

Now for the second part of my question, you didn't know it was a multi part question did you well neither did I until I saw this

amps = 800W / 12V = 66.667A

So how can I run an 800 watt heater on a 20 amp breaker when it takes 66.667a to power that 800 watts? I'm so confused.

[Herb]

Thanks guys and for the link Johnny. 14/3 Walmart should carry that. I'll wait and see if anybody adds anything to this.

I might just get 100 ft of wire and bury it and where it ends put up an outdoor plug then plug my extension cord into that for now. I could wait to see how much money I have left (if any) after I buy the stuff I know I need to insulate the building and put in 12 volt outlets. It looks like a couple of 120 wouldn't hurt.

Now for the second part of my question, you didn't know it was a multi part question did you well neither did I until I saw this

amps = 800W / 12V = 66.667A

So how can I run an 800 watt heater on a 20 amp breaker when it takes 66.667a to power that 800 watts? I'm so confused.

Uh, 800 watts is only 6 amps. Well maybe 7, depending on if you divide by 120 or 115. You have your decimal off by 1 point.

14/2 wire (with ground) is only about 30 bucks for 250ft at lowes and home depot and will handle the 6-7 amps just fine. It can be used to make an extension cord, I have done it many times.

14 gauge wire is good for up to 15 amp draw. Working off of a 30 amp breaker isn't the greatest idea, but if you are careful about what you hook up, it will work, for a temporary situation.

Since most extension cords are 16 gauge wire, or even less, the 14 would probably be a better way to go.

[draggindakota]

Thanks guys and for the link Johnny. 14/3 Walmart should carry that. I'll wait and see if anybody adds anything to this.

I might just get 100 ft of wire and bury it and where it ends put up an outdoor plug then plug my extension cord into that for now. I could wait to see how much money I have left (if any) after I buy the stuff I know I need to insulate the building and put in 12 volt outlets. It looks like a couple of 120 wouldn't hurt.

Now for the second part of my question, you didn't know it was a multi part question did you well neither did I until I saw this

amps = 800W / 12V = 66.667A

So how can I run an 800 watt heater on a 20 amp breaker when it takes 66.667a to power that 800 watts? I'm so confused.

Are you running this from house voltage or your solar setup? If house then your math is wrong. I = P / V, so you should be dividing by 120 for line voltage, not 12v. It pulls 6.67 amps at 120v.

[BlacktopTravelr]

I just copied what I saw on the internet and it showed the 66.667a. Maybe I need to start checking other peoples math before I post chit. i was smarter than that in math and should have seen something was wrong. And the say you eyes are the first thing to go when you gt old. Just to clarify things I will be running off 120 v. By the time I get the other two solar panels and two 6v batteries up and running I am hoping to have a propane heater hooked up so this electric heater with be a temp thing. Anyway, my 3,000 amp inverter will handle that 66.667a easy. [space]

[YoDude]

John after re-reading this thread, I think you should clarify what it is you're wanting to do and accomplish here.

Yo-

[BlacktopTravelr]

I want to run an extension cord or a electric line from the trailer, about 100 ft, to my little building for an electric heater. I was wanting to know what size cord to get to be on the safe side. As we all know electric heaters draw a lot of amps and make the cords hot to the touch.

[YoDude]

Well you are right those heaters do suck up the juice.

In order to play it really safe, I think you should opt for a 12 gauge cord instead of the 14 I recommended earlier.
100' is a long way to go and that heater at the end if could start causing problems if it's not fed properly. Even though you're dealing with AC current instead of DC current, the electricity traveling over that distance warrants a larger diameter conductor to reduce the possibility of heating within the wire core.

What's you plan for each end if this cord? The trailer being the source end, are you planning to hook it into a breaker box, or put a plug on it and just plug it into an outlet? What about the heater end of it, put a socket on it and just plug the heater into it, or something else?

And of course the real question....I assume this is to keep things out there from freezing or something? Do you have a plan to somehow connect in a way to control the heat automatically? What about the safety factors?

I'm just trying to make sure your not risking yourself or your stuff either.

Yo-

[BlacktopTravelr]

Yo, what I have now is a 14/3 extension cord (I think) with a male plug that plugs into the trailer to a line with a 20 amp breaker and a female end that my heater plugs into. The heater I use during the day is one of those 800 watt infrared heaters that gets the object in front of it hot but not the air. The night time heater is a small 200 watt heater I have used for the last 3 years under the covers in an old plastic milk carton at the foot of the bed with a pvc cocoon type devise covered over with an old electric blanket. Yes it sounds dangerous but I can assure you it is safe as there is no way the heater vent can be covered up. The milk carton keeps the cover from the vents and also lets in plenty of air for the heater.