AC200Max owner here looking to wire the “30A Super DC” output to a Blue Sea fuse box. Ordered and received the connectors sold by Bluetti to find they are made up of:
- SA20 plug (rated at 25A)
- 14AWG wire (rated at 15A)
Am I missing something here?
The current capacity of a certain AWG is related to how long it is. 14awg is undersized for a long run at 30A (8-10AWG is better), but if it is a couple of feet then it is likely fine. Think of a fuse, it is way undersized for the current, but is OK because it is so short.
Total agree with you that distance is part of the calc to determine wire gauge, but I’ve never seen 14gauge recommended for any distance on a 30 amp circuit.
It isn’t recommended.
However, will it be a problem? Let’s take a look…
There are two issues when it comes to wire size, first is voltage drop and second is heat generation.
Voltage drop
A 1m (3.3ft) of 14 awg wire has resistance of 0.008ohm each way, 0.016ohm full loop. At 30A, that is 0.48v drop. About 4% for a 12V output. Not zero, but generally not a big deal.
Power and heat
At 0.016ohm, it will drop 0.48V, at 12V, that is about 5.7W of power. The wire will probably get warm, but 5.7w over 3ft of wire is less than 2W per foot, not going to melt or start a fire. So are are likely OK too.
I won’t run 30A over 14awg over any long distance, but 2-3ft should not be an issue.
I appreciate the explanation and calcs.
Might it be just fine, sure, but in my opinion that’s not what a company should be putting out there. If it’s a 30A rated output the plug and wires should be rated to 30A plus a factor of safety.
I have an AC200MAX. AFAIK, the port only delivers around 18A (i.e. it’s not a 30A port). 30A x 120V = 3600W. And the inverter is rated for a bit over 2000W.