On Fri, 6 May 2005 14:29:01 +0100, DanaK
wrote:
Yes, I'm in Texas and I strongly suspect 220v is how he wired the wall
plug. In the side panel of the A/C unit, however, it says 230v/208v.
Isn't this one leg of 3 phase?

The transformer at the street is fed from one leg of a three phase
service. This is standard in the united states. If your a/c unit is
marked 230v then your outlet was 230v (commonly called 220, 230 or
240) or the a/c unit would have never worked.


Since this is a "ranch house" the only
thing that is done to code is the A/C unit itself when it was made in
the factory.

The type of house has nothing to do with whether it meets code or not.
In most places the house has to meet the National Electric Code or
local code to get a certificate of occupancy when it was built. Older
houses, of course, won't meet current code without upgrades but any
new wiring you do has to meet the current codes.


I have yet to find where this wiring is coming from so I can figure out
what he's done and where the power to both legs come from. I hope I
don't have to tear up the wall to find out but it may take that. At
the very least I suspect I'm going to have to replace the A/C unit.


The wirirng should come from a 220v double breaker in the panel and
run directly to the outlet. There is no reason to suspect a problem
with the a/c unit at this point. It requires 220v to work and you
don't have that so it won't work. Thats kind of like running the car
out of gas and saying you need a new one before you add more gas.

A decent electrician can make sense of this and explain it to you in a
matter of minutes. Even if its a bad wire an electrician can put a
tracer on it and tell you exactly where the wire runs and where the
problem is. Why would you want to replace the a/c and tear out walls
to save a $50 charge for an hour of somebodys time?