Two 50' extension cords or one 100' cord?

[mroneeyedboh]

So looking for a 100' cord. I'm debating if I should get two 50' cords or one 100' cord? They're going to be the same brand etc, but not sure if I should have the convince or two 50s or just have a one and done 100'.

Is it okay to connect two 50s together? Or just get the 100'er

 

[The Cobbler]

100' is more difficult to wrap up, keep the twists out , etc.
I'd go with 2 50'ers

 

[bri_man57]

Personal opinion, a 100 foot extension cord is a pain in the rear to deal with. I'd rather have two 50s, they will be way more useful and user friendly. If you buy two 50 footers, make sure they are correct gauge for the legnth you are going. I have a 100 footer heavy gauge for my camper, I plan to buy a few ends and make my own 50 footers. Long extension cords just ****. Reels would help.

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[Bolson32]

From an electrical standpoint I don't think it matters.

I have both, the 100 can be a bear to deal with. 50s are more manageable but I ran one out to my garage for the entire build which was minimum 140ft from the house. I was glad to have the 100 for that run.

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[MarlynOC]

2 50's if the tool you want to use it with draws too many amps the 100 may not supply enough power. Like an air compressor draws too much.

 

[stickshift]

I bought a 100ft 12g cord thinking the only use I'd have for it was a snowthrower. Turns out I've used it a bunch of times. It is kind of a pain to unroll and reroll though. When I don't need to reach out, I use 25ft 12g or 25ft 14g, or combine them for a 50ft 14g.

 

[logical]

2 50's if the tool you want to use it with draws too many amps the 100 may not supply enough power. Like an air compressor draws too much.

If you are 100 feet from the outlet the compressor doesn't know or care if its a 100 ft cord or two 50 ft cords connected together assuming the same wire gauge.

The point here is if you buy two 50's and plan to connect them, size the wire based on load at 100 feet.

Sent from my garage.

 

[mroneeyedboh]

Looking to use it around the house mainly. Shop vac in the truck, electric leaf vac, DA buffer for vehicle detailing. The shed is wired up so yeah just going to be used around.

Planned on getting 12/3

 

[66cj225]

How good is your hedge clipper? It will randomly divide that 100 ft at the least expected time.....

 

[bri_man57]

Looking to use it around the house mainly. Shop vac in the truck, electric leaf vac, DA buffer for vehicle detailing. The shed is wired up so yeah just going to be used around.

Planned on getting 12/3

Get the 50s then. If you have to hook two together (appropriate gauge wire for total length) so be it but using them somewhat frequently you will be happy you got 50s. I use my 10s and 25s the most.

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[zmotorsports]

How often are you going to be using it for the full 100' range?

If not very often then like others have stated, two 50's will be easier to manage and work with. However, if very, very seldom then I would opt for one 50' and two 25' lengths. I hate extension cords for the most part and I have a lot of electrical outlets in my shop so very seldom do I need one but I when I do I find myself glad I have 25' extension cords handy.

 

[fsae0607]

I would get two 50's. I bought a 100' for those rare times I have to go in the crawl space, so I almost never use it since it's a PITA to bundle up. 50's are much easier to handle.

 

[rlwhitetr3b]

How good is your hedge clipper? It will randomly divide that 100 ft at the least expected time.....

When I was cutting the hedge growing up, I would end up with a 99 ft and a 1 ft. I did eventually learn to keep the cord over my shoulder while working.

I vote for two 50' 12/3 cords.

 

[Dustball]

As others have said, get two 50's BUT size the conductors as if they're going to be 100 feet. See if you can get ones with locking ends on them so they don't pull apart on you.

 

[mkef]

I carry on my work truck 1-100' 12g, 1-50' 12g, 1-50' 12g three-way and 1-25' 12g three way. The 100'er is always the last to get deployed. I ussually only use it if its raining and I need power from my welder/generator to inside a building and the others wont reach.

 

[sberry]

I have one and 1 2 50"s. I carry a,50 on my truck with a 25 or 2 of 16. I have a Maxstar . I hardly ever use anything but 16, I have a dozen 25"s and a couple 50, couple 100"s too. I want a couple more 50 as my buildings are big. All my stuff is fixed, have most battery tools. The occasional blower works fine on light cord as do angle grinders and battery chargers. Can't recall using a heavier cord in several years not welding and that is rather rare.

 

[bushmechanic]

2 50's if the tool you want to use it with draws too many amps the 100 may not supply enough power. Like an air compressor draws too much.

It's the other way around. Two fifty foot cords must be connected together; that's nowhere near as ideal as a hundred foot uninterrupted run. The hundred would be for higher draw devices.

On paper, anyway. In the real world, I'd rather have the fiftys. I wouldn't want a hundred foot cable if I couldn't have a fifty to use, so I'd end up with two anyway.

Indeed, I have two fifty foot cords here for my generator. That gives me a lot of versatility.

A: One cord connected to a power strip running a limited number of devices, and another free to do something else; exchanging capacity for portability.

B: Both cords connected to the generator, which exchanges functional radius for an extra powered location.

C: Both cords connected together to reach otherwise annoying devices. Now you're exchanging everyday convenience for convenience in extreme conditions.

If I had a hundred foot cord, I'd be stuck with option C alone. I'd rather buy a hundred later if it was ever required than wait around cursing and eventually buy a fifty anyway.

 

[ImportTuner]

100' is more difficult to wrap up, keep the twists out , etc.
I'd go with 2 50'ers

That's the way I went .. and I did buy a 100" 12 gauge extension, but I hate coiling that up. Got to be a easier way

 

[mkef]

That's the way I went .. and I did buy a 100" 12 gauge extension, but I hate coiling that up. Got to be a easier way

Lay it out in the sun if it's really twisted. I roll all my cords up using the "roadie wrap" or "over/under" style. I can throw any one of my cords out and the lay right 98% of the time. The 100'er can be a pain to throw but that's why I dont use it much

 

[nadogail]

Because most of the times that I need an extension cord a reletively short one is just the right length.

My work van carries three extension cords. They are two 50 footers on a Cord Wheel and a 25 foot cord in my Sawzall storage box.

My Sawsall box holds not only the Sawzall, but my assortment of blades, an extra Allen wrench for blade changes as well as an extension cord.

 

[kwb]

I would do 2 25's and one 50' all 12ga

I have a 100', a 50, and a few other randoms. The bad part with the 100 when I get it out is that it ends up all over the floor as a trip hazard all over the place since it will reach anywhere and is everywhere. Remember those Family Circle cartoons in the paper when Billy would run all over.... that is my 100' cord.

Love hate thing with that cord.

If you really need a 100' then a 10ga triple tap cord is a great thing but it will cost you.

 

[rharman]

How good is your hedge clipper? It will randomly divide that 100 ft at the least expected time.....

I tested the sharpness of my trimmer this way a couple of weeks ago. Took 10' off my 50' cord. Need to get around to splicing it back together. Been using two 25's in the meantime.

 

[Miss the Pontiacs]

I have a number of varying lengths of extension cords. I did inherit 2 100 footers. I am doing my very best to slowly convert them to 2-50 footers. And then I should be fine.

 

[johnnyradiant]

At the end of a job at about 70' of rerolling you're gonna ask why you didn't do 2 50'. I think I would go with 2 for weight sake and versatility. A good HD 50' starts to get heavy too.

 

[CraigStu]

Two 50s is much more versatil.
I use one of these to roll it. The joint in the middle makes it a bit of a pain but that is out weighed by the times I only use one 50.
https://www.bing.com/images/search?...6A7114&selectedIndex=0&FORM=IRPRST&ajaxhist=0
I stick the male end in the middle and just the end out through one of the small holes. I keep a 6 ft cord handy so I can unroll whatever length I need, set it on the floor, and use the 6 ft to connect into the wall outlet.

 

[Bretny]

100' is more difficult to wrap up, keep the twists out , etc.
I'd go with 2 50'ers

If your putting twists in your cord your wrapping it wrong. Are you wraping the the thing over your arm?

 

[PhantomEB]

Keep the things warm helps keep the kinks out too.

Definitely 2 50s in my opinion.

 

[WisJim]

I have a bunch of cords and find that I wear out cord ends due to a lot of plugging and unplugging. Replaced many with much heavier duty ends. Top quality cords may have better ends but I haven't seen evidence of that lately.
.

 

[Tduby]

That's the way I went .. and I did buy a 100" 12 gauge extension, but I hate coiling that up. Got to be a easier way

 

[nadogail]

When I feel the need for a longer cord, I connect two or more shorter ones together.

 

[Zmann]

Generator and 10 foot cord

;-)

 

[ez-duzit]

Every connection produces resistance and voltage drop. where you need to run power 100', use a 100' cord, preferably 10-ga.

 

[bad_idea]

(2) 50' cords.

 

[Jinks]

Over the years I've had a lot of extension cords. I buy the 100' length because I don't want to be bothered with moving the plug. A while back I had three 100' cords but didn't need that much length every time. I cut one & put new ends on it. I now have two 100' cords, one 75' cord, & one 25' cord. I can get power anywhere I need it, but don't have to handle a 100' if it's not necessary.

BTW, Bretny is correct, if you're twisting any cord when you wind it up you're doing it wrong. Yeah, it takes a little more time to wind them right, but less time than it takes to untangle them next time you need to use them.

 

[torqueman2002]

I buy 100' 12/3 and a male & female plug ends. Then I can make a 50 & 50' or 25 & 75', or ....

I also like the plug ends with neon lights, to indicate when the extension cord is powered up.

 

[ez-duzit]

...I also like the plug ends with neon lights, to indicate when the extension cord is powered up.

Yeah, that is a great feature. Saves you from running around to check if the cord has become unplugged.

 

[LS6 Tommy]

If you are 100 feet from the outlet the compressor doesn't know or care if its a 100 ft cord or two 50 ft cords connected together assuming the same wire gauge.

The point here is if you buy two 50's and plan to connect them, size the wire based on load at 100 feet.

Sent from my garage.

You beat me to it.

Tommy

 

[MushCreek]

I have two 100' 10 gauge cords. I just used both of them during a power outage. They work great for that, but they sure are a PITA to store. They're too big to put on a cord reel. I finally put them on a hose reel I had laying around. I bought them when building our house, and needed a LOT of extension cord.

Now, I need a really long (200') cord for my Christmas lights. The good news is that it's a very low wattage application. The bad news is that it's 200'! I have a fear of laying extension cords across the lawn for a month with rain and snow. Seems dangerous. I need a way to secure and weather-proof the connections, or buy a 200' cord (they make them) and fight with the thing every year.

 

[NUTTSGT]

The 100 footer only comes out when I need a long run. Other than that, two 50' cords work fine.

If you take care of your extension cords, they will last a long time. Id suggest to any young DIYer to invest in some good cords.

One 100'
Two 50'
Two 25s
And if you can find them, a couple of ten footers.

 

[sberry]

It might be helpful to learn to size a cord, would save a lot of money and effort.