Add USB AC Outlets to Your RV Plus That Other Thing

The Other Thing – A Simple Outlet Expansion

On the edge of our kitchen, we have an area we refer to as our coffee bar. The appliances have grown over the years which now include a toaster, my drip coffee maker (I’m a huge fan of a strong cup of Café Bustelo.), Joan’s Keurig, to our new Igloo Portable Ice Maker. With all these devices we have one dual outlet to service all these appliances. Sure we can plug and unplug and have done this for some time, but we wanted something simple and inexpensive to expand the various plugs. The fix was a GE 6 outlet adapter. This was a $5.00 fix that took seconds and now gives us to ability to plug-in all the devices.

One tip, just because all the devices can be plugged in doesn’t mean all can run at the same time. These are very high wattage devices served by one 15 amp breaker. Turning all on at the same time will overload the circuit and trip the breaker. It’s just that little added simple $5.00 convenience making the kitchen fill more like home.

Adding USB AC Outlets

Adding USB AC outlets can be a little more involved. The task requires a basic knowledge of AC wiring, but it’s not overly complex. Practicing safety first is imperative and not taking the necessary steps to ensure a wall plug has the power removed could cause harm or much worse. Turning off the breaker powering the wall outlet then verifying the power is off with a simple circuit tester or digital volt meter ensures one can move forward with the task.

We replaced our standard wall outlets with TOPGREENER 3.6A USB Wall Outlet Chargers that also has two 15 amp standard AC receptacles. We replaced two outlets adding the convenience of supporting our phone and tablet devices without the use of those wall-warts along with one for visitors to recharge their phones during a visit. The installation of one outlet was a very simple – pull the existing receptacle out, cut the wires, connect to the new TOPGREENER USB outlet and screw in place. A 5 minute upgrade. The second receptacle was chronicled in the video below and was a little more involved. Here we had to remove a contained AC receptacle, add a make-ready box, trim a small amount of wood, before we could connect and replace with the upgraded USB outlet. It was less than a 30 minute effort, but the results look like the USB receptacles came from the factory.

We show the steps for both upgrades in the video below. We also understand working with electricity can be daunting for many. Our goal of the video was to show the ease of installation for those who have expertise in working with household electrical circuits. For those who may not want to tackle this project, yet would like to modernize their wall receptacles, we wanted to show a start to finish of what to expect. And if you’re not comfortable working with an electrical outlet, the services from a licensed electrician and a small fee for an hour of work, you too can add USB AC outlets upgrading your RV.

Products Discussed In This Video

GE 6 Outlet Wall Plug Adpater	TOPGREENER USB Outlet
Digital Multimeter	Non-Contact Voltage Detector
11-in-1 Tool

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