

You use converters all the time! Every time you plug in your laptop, you use a converter. Other features on your camper, such as your furnace, require a little bit of 12V power to operate the control boards.Many features on your RV, such as your lights and ceiling fan, only run on 12V power.12V (nominal) power is what charges your battery.Why do you want 12V power, you ask? Well, three reasons! What comes out: 12V direct-current power, also known as battery power. What goes in: Shore power, also known as grid or household power, which is usually 115-volt RMS single-phase alternating current. It’s like a magic box that changes the type of electricity. Secondly, it transforms voltage from “shore power” 115-volts to a much lower (and safer) 12-volts.As you may remember from high school physics, AC current has a sinusoidal waveform, and DC current has a simple straight waveform. It changes alternating current (AC) electricity into direct-current (DC) electricity.The terms converter, charger, and power center are sometimes used interchangeably – but they’re all different things!Īn RV converter is an electrical device with two jobs: Without a converter, all your power is lost and directionless. It directs the 240V power to your washer and dryer, the 120V power to your air conditioner and microwave, and it converts some of the power to 12V for your lights, stereo, and house batteries.

Your converter is a traffic controller for all this power. The threesome have a simple relationship: Volts (V) measure electrical potential (sort of like pressure).Hopefully, you already know the basic differences between volts, amps, and watts. *You might see this referred to as 110, 115, 120, even 125 VAC power. This power combines two legs of 120-volt power to make 240-volt power – but that’s more than you probably care about. Larger campers with washers, dryers, or electric ovens will use 50A power. If you see four prongs, then it’s almost certainly 50A. A few micro campers accept only 15A or 20A service, but that’s pretty much limited to teardrops and old pop-up campers. Do you see three prongs? Then it’s 30A or less.
