I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

Jeff C wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

Sounds like you have the wrong style outlet for your current wiring
which sound like it's 6/2, not 6/3 which would have a total of four
conductors (black, red or black with red, white, and green or bare).
Your current wiring is supplying two hot leads (the two black ones) and
a ground (the bare one) and no neutral.

The outlet you have is a 120/240V without ground variety that requires a
neutral (white) connection. What you need is a 240V (only) with ground
outlet to go with your current wiring.

Better still would be to replace the wiring (cheap unless it's real
long) with 6/3 (four conductors) and install the newer (and new code)
four conductor 120/240V with ground outlet style. You don't need to
change breakers or anything, it's just an additional conductor to
neutral in the panel.

If you stick with aluminum wire (either your existing or new 6/3 AL) be
sure to apply anti-oxidation compound to the connections and use AL or
CU/AL rated devices. Revisiting the connections after a few weeks of use
and retightening them (power off of course) is also a good idea.

Pete C.

Pete C. wrote:
Jeff C wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

Sounds like you have the wrong style outlet for your current wiring
which sound like it's 6/2, not 6/3 which would have a total of four
conductors (black, red or black with red, white, and green or bare).
Your current wiring is supplying two hot leads (the two black ones) and
a ground (the bare one) and no neutral.

The outlet you have is a 120/240V without ground variety that requires a
neutral (white) connection. What you need is a 240V (only) with ground
outlet to go with your current wiring.

Better still would be to replace the wiring (cheap unless it's real
long) with 6/3 (four conductors) and install the newer (and new code)
four conductor 120/240V with ground outlet style. You don't need to
change breakers or anything, it's just an additional conductor to
neutral in the panel.

If you stick with aluminum wire (either your existing or new 6/3 AL) be
sure to apply anti-oxidation compound to the connections and use AL or
CU/AL rated devices. Revisiting the connections after a few weeks of use
and retightening them (power off of course) is also a good idea.

Pete C.

Thanks for the reply Pete. The house is over 100 years old and the run
is probably 80 feet to the breaker box. The outlet that the wonderfull
guy with the "orange" vest gave me was a NEMA 10-50, even the box says
range outlet. If I follow your lead, and get a 240v(only) with ground
outlet, does that have a specific name I should ask for?

wrote:
On 13 Jul 2006 15:01:28 -0700, "Jeff C"
wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

In a 3 wire setup the 3d (bare) wire is the neutral. That is not a
legal way to do it these days but you are grandfathered in.
DO NOT connect either black wire to the angled plugs, both are hot.
Normally the neutral is an insulated white wire and you would have a
bare ground but prior to 1996 there was an exception that allowed you
to use a combined ground/neutral for ranges and dryers.

Thanks for the reply gfretw

The nice guy at the hardware store said almost the same thing, the bare
wire was neutral. One of the connectors on the back of the plug does
say "neutral". If I follow your lead and DO NOT connect either black
wire to the angles plugs, where do I connect them?

Jeff C

The nice guy at the hardware store said almost the same thing, the bare
wire was neutral. One of the connectors on the back of the plug does
say "neutral". If I follow your lead and DO NOT connect either black
wire to the angles plugs, where do I connect them?

Jeff C


I personally would not run the neutral on the bare wire, since you would
then have no ground. An ungrounded stove can be a bad thing. Does the
stove use 110 for anything? If not, it doesn't need neutral.


I suppose I wouldn't be too nervous if I grounded the stove to the
plumbing or something, but ya know, wire be cheap.....

You misunderstood him. You do connect both insulated black wires to the
angled slots, and the Neutral/ground(bare wire) to the straight slot



"Jeff C" wrote in message
ups.com...

wrote:
On 13 Jul 2006 15:01:28 -0700, "Jeff C"
wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

In a 3 wire setup the 3d (bare) wire is the neutral. That is not a
legal way to do it these days but you are grandfathered in.
DO NOT connect either black wire to the angled plugs, both are hot.
Normally the neutral is an insulated white wire and you would have a
bare ground but prior to 1996 there was an exception that allowed you
to use a combined ground/neutral for ranges and dryers.

Thanks for the reply gfretw

The nice guy at the hardware store said almost the same thing, the bare
wire was neutral. One of the connectors on the back of the plug does
say "neutral". If I follow your lead and DO NOT connect either black
wire to the angles plugs, where do I connect them?

Jeff C

RBM (remove this) wrote:
You misunderstood him. You do connect both insulated black wires to the
angled slots, and the Neutral/ground(bare wire) to the straight slot



"Jeff C" wrote in message
ups.com...

wrote:
On 13 Jul 2006 15:01:28 -0700, "Jeff C"
wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

In a 3 wire setup the 3d (bare) wire is the neutral. That is not a
legal way to do it these days but you are grandfathered in.
DO NOT connect either black wire to the angled plugs, both are hot.
Normally the neutral is an insulated white wire and you would have a
bare ground but prior to 1996 there was an exception that allowed you
to use a combined ground/neutral for ranges and dryers.

Thanks for the reply gfretw

The nice guy at the hardware store said almost the same thing, the bare
wire was neutral. One of the connectors on the back of the plug does
say "neutral". If I follow your lead and DO NOT connect either black
wire to the angles plugs, where do I connect them?

Jeff C


Thanks for the reply RBM2. I dont have the stove yet, it's ordered, but
I figured I better get the wiring correct and the wall patched back up
before it arrives. I'll connect both black wires to the angled slots
and the bare wire to the neutral slot.

Once that's done and I have my trusty meter, I'll check the voltages.
Anyone venture a guess what I should on each side(angled slot)?

Jeff C

Between the two angled slots 240 volt. Between either angled slot and
neutral 120 volt. Be sure to get a three wire cord set with the range



"Jeff C" wrote in message
oups.com...

RBM (remove this) wrote:
You misunderstood him. You do connect both insulated black wires to the
angled slots, and the Neutral/ground(bare wire) to the straight slot



"Jeff C" wrote in message
ups.com...

wrote:
On 13 Jul 2006 15:01:28 -0700, "Jeff C"
wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on
two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire.
The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two
angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word
"neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should
leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and
so
is time, so please bear with me.

In a 3 wire setup the 3d (bare) wire is the neutral. That is not a
legal way to do it these days but you are grandfathered in.
DO NOT connect either black wire to the angled plugs, both are hot.
Normally the neutral is an insulated white wire and you would have a
bare ground but prior to 1996 there was an exception that allowed you
to use a combined ground/neutral for ranges and dryers.

Thanks for the reply gfretw

The nice guy at the hardware store said almost the same thing, the bare
wire was neutral. One of the connectors on the back of the plug does
say "neutral". If I follow your lead and DO NOT connect either black
wire to the angles plugs, where do I connect them?

Jeff C


Thanks for the reply RBM2. I dont have the stove yet, it's ordered, but
I figured I better get the wiring correct and the wall patched back up
before it arrives. I'll connect both black wires to the angled slots
and the bare wire to the neutral slot.

Once that's done and I have my trusty meter, I'll check the voltages.
Anyone venture a guess what I should on each side(angled slot)?

Jeff C

Jeff C wrote:

Pete C. wrote:
Jeff C wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

Sounds like you have the wrong style outlet for your current wiring
which sound like it's 6/2, not 6/3 which would have a total of four
conductors (black, red or black with red, white, and green or bare).
Your current wiring is supplying two hot leads (the two black ones) and
a ground (the bare one) and no neutral.

The outlet you have is a 120/240V without ground variety that requires a
neutral (white) connection. What you need is a 240V (only) with ground
outlet to go with your current wiring.

Better still would be to replace the wiring (cheap unless it's real
long) with 6/3 (four conductors) and install the newer (and new code)
four conductor 120/240V with ground outlet style. You don't need to
change breakers or anything, it's just an additional conductor to
neutral in the panel.

If you stick with aluminum wire (either your existing or new 6/3 AL) be
sure to apply anti-oxidation compound to the connections and use AL or
CU/AL rated devices. Revisiting the connections after a few weeks of use
and retightening them (power off of course) is also a good idea.

Pete C.

Thanks for the reply Pete. The house is over 100 years old and the run
is probably 80 feet to the breaker box. The outlet that the wonderfull
guy with the "orange" vest gave me was a NEMA 10-50, even the box says
range outlet. If I follow your lead, and get a 240v(only) with ground
outlet, does that have a specific name I should ask for?

I believe it would be a NEMA 6-50R which should be 240V only with
ground. NEMA 14-50R would be the new style. There are more than one
style of "range" outlet, more than one "dryer" outlet as well.

Here is a link to one chart of NEMA plug types I found:

http://moose.ca/~slowzuki/slowzuki/t...nema_plugs.htm

Pete C.

RBM - Looks like I'm all set - 240 between angles, angled to neutral
120! Now on to patching the wall back up.

I'd like to thank everyone for their help

Jeff C

RBM (remove this) wrote:
Between the two angled slots 240 volt. Between either angled slot and
neutral 120 volt. Be sure to get a three wire cord set with the range



"Jeff C" wrote in message
oups.com...

RBM (remove this) wrote:
You misunderstood him. You do connect both insulated black wires to the
angled slots, and the Neutral/ground(bare wire) to the straight slot



"Jeff C" wrote in message
ups.com...

wrote:
On 13 Jul 2006 15:01:28 -0700, "Jeff C"
wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on
two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire.
The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two
angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word
"neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should
leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and
so
is time, so please bear with me.

In a 3 wire setup the 3d (bare) wire is the neutral. That is not a
legal way to do it these days but you are grandfathered in.
DO NOT connect either black wire to the angled plugs, both are hot.
Normally the neutral is an insulated white wire and you would have a
bare ground but prior to 1996 there was an exception that allowed you
to use a combined ground/neutral for ranges and dryers.

Thanks for the reply gfretw

The nice guy at the hardware store said almost the same thing, the bare
wire was neutral. One of the connectors on the back of the plug does
say "neutral". If I follow your lead and DO NOT connect either black
wire to the angles plugs, where do I connect them?

Jeff C


Thanks for the reply RBM2. I dont have the stove yet, it's ordered, but
I figured I better get the wiring correct and the wall patched back up
before it arrives. I'll connect both black wires to the angled slots
and the bare wire to the neutral slot.

Once that's done and I have my trusty meter, I'll check the voltages.
Anyone venture a guess what I should on each side(angled slot)?

Jeff C

Don't be so cheap......if you don't know how to do it ....hire a
electrician....or get some marshmellows to roast at the house fire
you're going to have. Even though homeowners are allowed to do their
own electrical, the stuff still has to be inspected, or your insurance
might not cover you when it sets the house on fire. Yes I know what I'm
talking about......I'm a electrician, and a electrical engineer.
Pete C. wrote:
Jeff C wrote:

Pete C. wrote:
Jeff C wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

Sounds like you have the wrong style outlet for your current wiring
which sound like it's 6/2, not 6/3 which would have a total of four
conductors (black, red or black with red, white, and green or bare).
Your current wiring is supplying two hot leads (the two black ones) and
a ground (the bare one) and no neutral.

The outlet you have is a 120/240V without ground variety that requires a
neutral (white) connection. What you need is a 240V (only) with ground
outlet to go with your current wiring.

Better still would be to replace the wiring (cheap unless it's real
long) with 6/3 (four conductors) and install the newer (and new code)
four conductor 120/240V with ground outlet style. You don't need to
change breakers or anything, it's just an additional conductor to
neutral in the panel.

If you stick with aluminum wire (either your existing or new 6/3 AL) be
sure to apply anti-oxidation compound to the connections and use AL or
CU/AL rated devices. Revisiting the connections after a few weeks of use
and retightening them (power off of course) is also a good idea.

Pete C.

Thanks for the reply Pete. The house is over 100 years old and the run
is probably 80 feet to the breaker box. The outlet that the wonderfull
guy with the "orange" vest gave me was a NEMA 10-50, even the box says
range outlet. If I follow your lead, and get a 240v(only) with ground
outlet, does that have a specific name I should ask for?

I believe it would be a NEMA 6-50R which should be 240V only with
ground. NEMA 14-50R would be the new style. There are more than one
style of "range" outlet, more than one "dryer" outlet as well.

Here is a link to one chart of NEMA plug types I found:

http://moose.ca/~slowzuki/slowzuki/t...nema_plugs.htm

Pete C.

So your point is that connecting three wires to an outlet is soooo difficult
that mere mortals would be fools to attempt it!!!


"Wired1" wrote in message
ps.com...
Don't be so cheap......if you don't know how to do it ....hire a
electrician....or get some marshmellows to roast at the house fire
you're going to have. Even though homeowners are allowed to do their
own electrical, the stuff still has to be inspected, or your insurance
might not cover you when it sets the house on fire. Yes I know what I'm
talking about......I'm a electrician, and a electrical engineer.
Pete C. wrote:
Jeff C wrote:

Pete C. wrote:
Jeff C wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on
two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire.
The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two
angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word
"neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should
leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short
and so
is time, so please bear with me.

Sounds like you have the wrong style outlet for your current wiring
which sound like it's 6/2, not 6/3 which would have a total of four
conductors (black, red or black with red, white, and green or bare).
Your current wiring is supplying two hot leads (the two black ones)
and
a ground (the bare one) and no neutral.

The outlet you have is a 120/240V without ground variety that
requires a
neutral (white) connection. What you need is a 240V (only) with
ground
outlet to go with your current wiring.

Better still would be to replace the wiring (cheap unless it's real
long) with 6/3 (four conductors) and install the newer (and new code)
four conductor 120/240V with ground outlet style. You don't need to
change breakers or anything, it's just an additional conductor to
neutral in the panel.

If you stick with aluminum wire (either your existing or new 6/3 AL)
be
sure to apply anti-oxidation compound to the connections and use AL
or
CU/AL rated devices. Revisiting the connections after a few weeks of
use
and retightening them (power off of course) is also a good idea.

Pete C.

Thanks for the reply Pete. The house is over 100 years old and the run
is probably 80 feet to the breaker box. The outlet that the wonderfull
guy with the "orange" vest gave me was a NEMA 10-50, even the box says
range outlet. If I follow your lead, and get a 240v(only) with ground
outlet, does that have a specific name I should ask for?

I believe it would be a NEMA 6-50R which should be 240V only with
ground. NEMA 14-50R would be the new style. There are more than one
style of "range" outlet, more than one "dryer" outlet as well.

Here is a link to one chart of NEMA plug types I found:

http://moose.ca/~slowzuki/slowzuki/t...nema_plugs.htm

Pete C.

OH MY GOD !!!!!!
You are about ready to either burn down you home or get electrocuted
(or both). *** STOP NOW ***
Call an electrician. DO NOT do this yourself.
Are those few dollars worth your life and/or your home?



On 13 Jul 2006 15:01:28 -0700, "Jeff C"
wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

Jeff C wrote:
wrote:
On 13 Jul 2006 15:01:28 -0700, "Jeff C"
wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.


Your black wire and black/red wire are hot. You connect them to the
terminals labeled X and Y (angled) on the NEMA 10-50 outlet. The other
(bare) wire is a grounded neutral wire. It connects to the W terminal.

Then you need a 3-wire cord set for the stove, and you need to follow
the directions that came with the stove regarding the grounding strap
for 3-wire installations. RTFM. ;-)

I'm assuming that the breaker for this is in your main breaker panel
(not a subpanel) and that you do not live in a mobile home. If it is in
a subpanel (or mobile home), then that bare wire is just a ground wire
and cannot be safely used as a neutral -- you'll have to run a new
4-wire cable if your stove needs a neutral. (It's possible that the
stove doesn't require a neutral; the manual should tell you this.)

To save yourself a lot of trouble a few years later, give the ends of
the wires a good scrubbing with stainless steel toothbrush and apply
that AL wire antioxidant black goop. I don't remember the brand name,
but the guys in the electrical dept at any hardware store will know what
it is.

Best regards,
Bob

Wired1 wrote:

Don't be so cheap......if you don't know how to do it ....hire a
electrician....or get some marshmellows to roast at the house fire
you're going to have. Even though homeowners are allowed to do their
own electrical, the stuff still has to be inspected, or your insurance
might not cover you when it sets the house on fire. Yes I know what I'm
talking about......I'm a electrician, and a electrical engineer. By the
way....Aluminium wiring has to be cleaned and terminated with a
anti-oxident such as No-Lux and the terminations must be tightened
properly to prevent overheating of the joint....and "fire"

Apparently you can't read very well, can't post properly and think you
know more than you do. I already specifically mentioned the
anti-oxidation compound and retightening the lugs after a week or two if
using AL wire. I also note that the NEC specifically excludes simple
device replacement changes like this from their recommendations for
permitting.

If you are indeed a licensed electrician you are an example of the
insecure and questionably competent ones that give the profession a bad
name. You should be well aware that what is permitted varies greatly
from area to area. If you were truly competent you would also not be so
insecure that you have to resort to "hire an electrician" and absurd
"house fire" comments. You're probably so unqualified that you have to
rely on outlet changing to make a living because no real (commercial)
contractors will hire you.

Pete C.




Pete C. wrote:
Jeff C wrote:

Pete C. wrote:
Jeff C wrote:

I have #6-3 Alum Wiring that was wired DIRECTLY to an 30 year old
JennAir Downdraft Range, which I'm now replacing. The circuit is on two
ganged 50a breakers. I'm going to put in a 3 prong outlet into the
wall. The wire has 2 black wires, one with a red stripe, the other
black wire with no stripe, and what looks like a bare ground wire. The
directions on the outlet say to wire the "hot wires" to the two angled
connections and the neutral to the "straight" connection. When I
started this I noticed the "straight" connection has the word "neutral"
embedded on the back of the connector.

Am I correct to assume that the black wire without the stripe is
"neutral", the black wire with the red stripe is "hot" and the bare
wire is ground? If that's right, then which what do I do with the
"ground" wire?

Thanks
Jeff C

p.s. I know what assume means and someone's going to say I should leave
this up to a qualified electrician, but sometimes money is short and so
is time, so please bear with me.

Sounds like you have the wrong style outlet for your current wiring
which sound like it's 6/2, not 6/3 which would have a total of four
conductors (black, red or black with red, white, and green or bare).
Your current wiring is supplying two hot leads (the two black ones) and
a ground (the bare one) and no neutral.

The outlet you have is a 120/240V without ground variety that requires a
neutral (white) connection. What you need is a 240V (only) with ground
outlet to go with your current wiring.

Better still would be to replace the wiring (cheap unless it's real
long) with 6/3 (four conductors) and install the newer (and new code)
four conductor 120/240V with ground outlet style. You don't need to
change breakers or anything, it's just an additional conductor to
neutral in the panel.

If you stick with aluminum wire (either your existing or new 6/3 AL) be
sure to apply anti-oxidation compound to the connections and use AL or
CU/AL rated devices. Revisiting the connections after a few weeks of use
and retightening them (power off of course) is also a good idea.

Pete C.

Thanks for the reply Pete. The house is over 100 years old and the run
is probably 80 feet to the breaker box. The outlet that the wonderfull
guy with the "orange" vest gave me was a NEMA 10-50, even the box says
range outlet. If I follow your lead, and get a 240v(only) with ground
outlet, does that have a specific name I should ask for?

I believe it would be a NEMA 6-50R which should be 240V only with
ground. NEMA 14-50R would be the new style. There are more than one
style of "range" outlet, more than one "dryer" outlet as well.

Here is a link to one chart of NEMA plug types I found:

http://moose.ca/~slowzuki/slowzuki/t...nema_plugs.htm

Pete C.