Better A'van Detachable Power Cable

You either love or hate the way your electric cable is stored in your A'van. The advantages are you can't possibly leave it behind, you always know where it is and of course storage is virtually automatic. On the downside you do have to wipe it before putting it away or things can get a bit messy inside the locker. A'van are virtually on their own with this system in Australia. The story below is a how to do it article from the States just to give you an idea. There is far more info on their website at http://www.title-3.com/DetachPower.htm. In Australia your local electrician can of course easily do this work. All you need is a special fitting known as an IP34. You can buy these from Camec or Caravan Accessories if your sparky has trouble locating one. Note that to be 100% legal, the special foam gasket MUST be used. The photo immediately below shows a typical Australian installation.

Bob Eustace

Detachable Power Cable

Most pop up campers I have seen come equipped with a "pull out" 30 amp power cable. This has bothered me from the first day I owned my pop up because you need to keep the majority of the storage area under one bench seats clear of all storage because this is where the shore power cable is stored away. It is very easy for a small item to fall into the coiled cable and "stop up the works" when you try to pull out the cable through the "mouse hole" on the side of your camper.

While the parts used in this conversion are standard marine (boat) application parts and are readily available at boating stores I decided to buy a "kit" from Camping World. The cost savings between the individual parts and the kit were minimal when you factor in my Presidents Club 10% discount and a coupon Camping World sent.

The kit consists of a weatherproof 30 amp power inlet which is attached to the side of the camper and conversion parts to turn the 30 amp cable which is attached to your converter into a removable cable which plugs into the power inlet.

This site goes on to list step by step instructions with great photos! The plug they are using below is a newer RV type that is slowly being phased into Australian parks.