Quote Originally Posted by Rambozo View Post
The big problem with that is that you will have 50 amps of 120V! Not the best thing to run small power tools on because something like a locked up motor will probably not pop the breaker, and set fire to it instead. The best thing would be to add a smaller circuit breaker to your cart to provide better protection for 120V.

To be blunt, if you have to ask about it, it's probably not something you should be doing. If you do plan to go ahead, please at least use a power strip with a circuit breaker on your cart.

BTW, that is not your typical RV plug, but a standard 120/240 plug. You can get receptacles for that at Home Depot. Most RV plugs use the NEMA TT-30.
Fair enough. I hadn't researched the case of whether or not an over-current on just one of the 120V legs would trip the 240V breaker. Electrically providing the right power is one thing - doing it safely is another. If I have to mount a little pony panel on my cart, it's a non-starter and I'm not going to bother doing it. I'm definitely going to consult with a licensed electrician before wiring up my cart, though.

I wonder if electric stoves and clothes dryers, which use a 4-conductor plug to provide 240V for the main heating element and 120V for the control electronics protect the condition you describe? Wondering if they have internal fuses on the 120V circuits, or if the current they'd pull, even in the even of a failure, would be small enough to not cause a problem. I could certainly see how a little electronic circuit board might not pull the same current as a jammed motor.