How to Wire a Travel Trailer to a House Breaker

If a travel trailer is going to be parked for an extended period of time, you may choose to wire it into your house electrical system so that the trailer can be used for extra space. Most trailers are designed to run on a 120-volt circuit. However, it is not really a big deal whether the trailer runs on 120 or 240 volts. Either circuit can be easily installed. Establishing a dedicated breaker for the travel trailer circuit will help prevent overloaded circuits in the home.

Instructions

1

Examine the travel trailer to find out whether you need to install a 120- or 240-volt circuit. The only differences between these two installations is that the 240-volt circuit will have two wires to attach to the breaker instead of the one for the 120-volt circuit. Since most travel trailers have a wire with a plug attached to connect them to a power source, you will need to purchase the outlet, as well as, the wire and breaker to complete the job.

2

Cut the wire with wire cutters to the length needed to reach from the breaker box to the location where the outlet will be installed. You will need enough wire to have about 18 inches of wire inside the breaker box and an extra 6 inches for wiring up the outlet. Turn off the main breaker in the breaker box. Remove the screws that secure the cover to the box and remove the cover.

3

Feed about 18 inches of wire into the breaker box through one of the ports in the edge of the box. With wire strippers, remove about a foot of the insulation from the wire and about 1 inch of insulation from the smaller inside wires. If you are wiring a 240-volt breaker, attach the two black wires to the breaker by inserting them under the screws and tightening the screws. For a 120-volt breaker, you will only be inserting one black wire and securing it by tightening the screw. The breakers will clip to the power bus in the center of the breaker box.

4

Attach the white and bare wires for either type of voltage to the neutral bus by pushing the ends under two of the screws and tightening the screws with a screwdriver. Replace the cover of the breaker box and reinstall the screws to hold it in place.

5

Install the outlet for the travel trailer by using the wire strippers to remove about 4 inches of the outer insulation from the wire and about 1 inch of insulation from the ends of each of the inside wires. Loosen the screw that holds the cover on the outlet and remove the cover. Push the end of the black wire into the slot under the brass colored screw and tighten the screw. If it is 240 volt, there will be two connections to be made. The white wire will go under the silver colored screw.

6

Fasten the bare wire in the slot under the green screw. In some cases, you will need to bend the end of the green wire and wrap it around the screw before tightening the screw. Replace the cover on the outlet and tighten the screw to secure it in place. Plug the travel trailer power cord into the outlet. Turn on the main breaker at the breaker box to provide power to the trailer.