In article ,
says...
On Wed, 16 Jul 2003 17:07:39 GMT, am (Laurie Forbes) wrote:
Just wondering - can you properly connect an applicance to a breaker
rated larger than the applicance rating??

Sure. The breaker is sized to protect the *wire* feeding the outlet. The appliance
is on its own. It can have internal fuses, or not, as the appliance designer (and UL)
chooses. For example, you can plug a radio or TV into an outlet protected by a
15 amp breaker, even though the radio may only draw a fraction of an amp. If the
designer so chose, the radio would have an internal fuse to protect it, or it might
be impedance protected in some other way to prevent it from drawing excessive
current in case of an internal fault.

Now if the appliance is *hard wired* into a dedicated circuit, the rules are a little
different. The breaker still has to be sized to protect the wire, but it may also be
required to be sized to protect the appliance. But as long as there's an outlet and
a plug involved, that rule doesn't apply.

AFAIK, NFPA 70 does not distinguish between permanently
connected and plug-connected flexible cords for the purpose
of determining the required overcurrent protection. See
section 240-4.

Ned Simmons