30A shore to 50A boat

[Bill Root]

New boat, so lots of questions. Sorry, folks.

When I bring Buffalo Gal back to Sanford from Ft. Lauderdale I may need to tie up for a month or so at a dock that has only a single 30A/125V power source. I can get a 30A male to 50A female adapter from Defender for a bit under $200. Is there anything I need to know about how this would function on my boat? I have the standard MY set-up with two 50A/250V and one 50A125V connectors on each side of the boat. Should I attach the shore power chord to the 50A/125V connector since I will have only 125V coming to the boat? I do understand I will have only one power leg this way, but I really only need to run the battery charger and maybe one A/C unit until I can move over to a slip with 50A/250V.

Thanks for your advice.

 

[Pascal]

There are two type of 50 amp connectors single leg 125-50 and dualmleg 125/250-50

If your 30amp adapter is 125/50 then you will need a 125/50 shore cord to connect to your 125/50 inlet

Afaik the only 125/20-50 adapters available require 2 outlets and will only work if both are connected and on opposite phase

 

[captddis]

Just buy the 30A 125 to 50A 125 adapter and plug the adapter into the boat, then you can use a 30a 125 cord. Much cheaper than a 50 125 cord. Of course you will only be able to use a minimal loat of 30a or less.


Or buy a 30A 125 cord and put a 50A 125 female end on it to connect to the boat. Cheaper yet.

 

[Genesis]

Do you have a 125/250 switch on your inlet transformer?

I had one on my boat (factory) and it would allow me to power BOTH SIDES from a 125V cord.

Now the "gotcha" is that you still only have 30 amps of 125V service, so if you try to run more than that it's breaker time, but it DID provide power to both legs and didn't require any screwing around.

I liked it.

 

[saltshaker]

I have a 50/250 to 30/125 adapter that is wired to energize both legs. Put it on the end of your 50/250 cord or on the boat side with a 30/125 cord attached

 

[SKYCHENEY]

Bill,
The isolation transformer will convert your 120v power coming in to 240v so you can run your charger. Just get the adapter and run it in through your 120v/50a inlet. Then switch the breaker for that inlet and you are good to go. Just remember, you'll only have 15 amps at 240v to work with.

 

[Bill Root]

Thanks to all who responded. I think I've got this thing figured out now.

 

[DCMY #92]

Where do you keep the boat in Sanford? I lived there for 12 years and kept the boat there for another 7 years after moving. I love the place.

 

[Bill Root]

We kept our 43 at Boat Tree Marina just north of the Lake Monroe railroad bridge. We like it there, but they can't accommodate the 54 in a way that will allow us to we get on/off through the midships gate, so will have to go to Monroe Harbor or Sanford Boat Works, probably SBW because my wife likes the pool.