"Andrew Sarangan" wrote in message
m...
I am replacing an old stove. There is 220V power, but there is no
outlet on the wall behind the stove. The wires (encased in a flexible
metal conduit) were coming from under the floor, and they were
directly attached to the old stove. The sales person at Lowes told me
that that is no longer allowed by code, and that I have to install an
outlet and then use 3-prong plug to attach the stove to it. Can anyone
verify that? The old stove was a 'drop-in' kind, but the new one is a
floor unit, if that makes any difference to the situation.

All appliances require a means to disconnect them within sight of the
appliance, or a means to disconnect them and then lock them out.
A plug will obviously meet that requirement; but presumably your breaker
will accept a "lock-off" device.
So, my understanding is that the sales person is wrong in general; however,
your town may have more restrictive requirements than normal, or they might
not accept the "lock-off" device. I would call the town if you are
concerned.

I hate to throw in another complication, but current code requires both a
neutral and a ground, and you don't have them. Ordinarily you would not
need to update your wiring to meet current code if you were just attaching a
new stove, but if you change something on the circuit (such as installing an
outlet where there wasn't one before) the finished product must meet current
code. Again, your town may or may not enforce it this rigorously.