Campground ladder, expert tier
Expert RV Campground Power Setup
Researched from published standards and manufacturer specifications. Updated .
Quick answer
A full-time 50 amp setup uses a hardwired electrical management system, an inverter/charger with an internal transfer switch, a 200Ah or larger lithium bank and soft starters on the air conditioners. The transfer switch is what makes shore and generator power mutually exclusive.
Who this is for
Full-time living in a 50 amp coach, on hookups, where an outage or a bad pedestal is a genuine disruption.
Who should not buy this
Weekend and seasonal travellers. This is a lot of money for redundancy you would rarely call on, and the intermediate build covers occasional use comfortably.
The complete build
Everything needed to make this system work, grouped by function. If you buy this list you can finish the job.
Shore power protection and switching
| Item | Qty | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Progressive Industries EMS-HW50C Hardwired, 50A Progressive Industries Permanent protection on both legs, with nothing to remember to plug in. | 1 | $169.99 | Buy |
| PowerMax PMTS-50 50A Automatic Transfer Switch PowerMax Makes shore and generator power mutually exclusive, which is what prevents back-feeding a generator into a pedestal. | 1 | $129.00 | Buy |
| ELEGRP 50A to 30A Dogbone Adapter ELEGRP For the sites where 50 amp is not available. Remember this gives the whole coach 30 amps total. | 1 | $19.99 | Buy |
| Shore power protection and switching subtotal | $318.98 |
Battery bank
| Item | Qty | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yeagulch 12V 200Ah LiFePO4 yeagulch A 200A BMS on each pack, which is what a 2000W inverter on 12V actually demands. | 2 | $633.18 | Buy |
| Victron SmartShunt 500A Battery Monitor Victron Energy Amp-hour counting on a bank this size is not optional. | 1 | Check | Buy |
| Battery bank subtotal | $633.18 |
Inverting and charging
| Item | Qty | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xantrex Freedom XC PRO 2000W Inverter/Charger Xantrex A 100A charger section refills a large lithium bank quickly, and the internal transfer switch handles the changeover. | 1 | $1,216.32 | Buy |
| Inverting and charging subtotal | $1,216.32 |
Air conditioning
| Item | Qty | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| SoftStartRV Soft Start Kit SoftStartRV By NetworkRV Cuts compressor inrush so both air conditioners can start on a generator, on an inverter, or on a tired pedestal. | 2 | $590.00 | Buy |
| Air conditioning subtotal | $590.00 |
Wiring and distribution
| Item | Qty | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| RVMARINEPAT 12V 250A Busbar, 6 Studs RVMARINEPAT Separate positive and negative distribution for a bank this size. | 2 | $53.98 | Buy |
| BOJACK 200A Inline ANL Fuse Holder with Fuse BOJACK Inverter feed, charger feed and distribution feed each need their own protection. | 3 | $47.97 | Buy |
| TOPDC 4 AWG Battery Cable Pair, 18 in TOPDC Interconnects. Keep parallel battery cables identical in length so the packs share current evenly. | 3 | $35.94 | Buy |
| Blue Sea Systems m-Series On/Off Battery Switch Blue Sea Systems A main disconnect with published continuous ratings. | 1 | $27.05 | Buy |
| Wiring and distribution subtotal | $164.94 |
Build total
$2,923.42Totalled from the catalog price of every line above at the quantities shown. One or more items had no listed price and is excluded from this figure. Prices change often, so treat this as a planning figure and check each listing.
What you can skip
Telling you not to buy something is what makes the rest of the list worth trusting.
- A 3000W inverter on a 12 volt bank. It pulls roughly 300 amps, which demands extreme cable and gives a lot of trouble for the gain. Build at 24 volts if you genuinely need that much.
- Solar, if you truly never leave hookups. It is the boondocking ladder that earns its keep there.
What to upgrade first
Move the whole system to 24 volts. At 24V the same power moves at half the current and voltage drop as a percentage falls by a factor of four, which makes everything downstream smaller, cheaper and cooler. It is the change that stops a large 12V system fighting itself.
Compare the tiers
Beginner
Beginner RV Campground Power Setup
The lowest cost complete shore power setup: pedestal protection, a correct cord and adapter, and enough battery to cover
Intermediate
Intermediate RV Campground Power Setup
The buy-once campground setup: lithium capacity, a converter that can actually charge it, a shunt monitor and full pedes
Different use case?
For rigs that spend days away from hookups. The spend goes on usable capacity and on refilling it without a pedestal. See the boondocking ladder.
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Frequently asked questions
- Who is the expert campground build for?
- Full-time living in a 50 amp coach, on hookups, where an outage or a bad pedestal is a genuine disruption. Weekend and seasonal travellers. This is a lot of money for redundancy you would rarely call on, and the intermediate build covers occasional use comfortably.
- What can I leave out of this build?
- A 3000W inverter on a 12 volt bank. It pulls roughly 300 amps, which demands extreme cable and gives a lot of trouble for the gain. Build at 24 volts if you genuinely need that much. Solar, if you truly never leave hookups. It is the boondocking ladder that earns its keep there.
- What should I upgrade first?
- Move the whole system to 24 volts. At 24V the same power moves at half the current and voltage drop as a percentage falls by a factor of four, which makes everything downstream smaller, cheaper and cooler. It is the change that stops a large 12V system fighting itself.
- Why are there two different build ladders on this site?
- Because RV power has two genuinely different buyers. A rig on a pedestal most nights needs shore power protection and a converter matched to its battery, and gains almost nothing from solar. A rig off grid for days needs usable capacity and a way to refill it without a pedestal. One ladder cannot serve both without giving bad advice to one of them.
Before you wire any of this. Never exceed a conductor's rated ampacity, and fuse every positive conductor as close to the battery as it will fit. A LiFePO4 bank needs a lithium charge profile at every source, and must not be charged below freezing without a low temperature cutoff or a self-heating design. Never connect lithium directly to an alternator. Never run a generator in an enclosed or partly enclosed space, because carbon monoxide is odorless and kills. Permanent AC wiring is work for a qualified RV technician or licensed electrician.