"transformer" for 220v to 110 outlet.
 

I have a space in my garage near my washer and dryer where I would like
to place a treadmill. It is a '70's house with basement on one
circuit. Am afraid running washer/dryer and treadmill will blow
circuit breaker.

Dryer is Gas, but there is a 220v plug right there, and would
neccesarilly be on a seperate circuit (right??) Is there some sort of
transformer plug type thing that I can plug into 220 v circuit plug,
then plug 110v treadmill into that circuit.

I don't want to start running new circuits, which of course would be
the correct answer here, just looking for a safe temporary solution.

I don't know if this is legal or not but I just took one leg off oo the
220 and ran it to a 110 outlet. It doesn't have a ground of course.

wrote:
I have a space in my garage near my washer and dryer where I would like
to place a treadmill. It is a '70's house with basement on one
circuit. Am afraid running washer/dryer and treadmill will blow
circuit breaker.

Dryer is Gas, but there is a 220v plug right there, and would
neccesarilly be on a seperate circuit (right??) Is there some sort of
transformer plug type thing that I can plug into 220 v circuit plug,
then plug 110v treadmill into that circuit.

I don't want to start running new circuits, which of course would be
the correct answer here, just looking for a safe temporary solution.

Travis Jordan wrote:
If your 220v outlet is an older style and only has two hot wires and a
ground (usually red, black, and bare/green) you can't create a 110v
circuit from it. If your outlet has 2 hot wires (usually red, black),
a neutral (white), and a ground (bare/green), you can get 110v from
either of the hot wires (black or red) to neutral (white). I'd
suggest mounting a new outlet box adjacent to the current box with a
110v duplex outlet, wired as above. BE SURE TO LOCATE AND TURN OFF
THE RIGHT CIRCUIT BREAKER BEFORE YOU START.

If you don't completely understand this advice and the risks
associated with working on house circuits, don't attempt it.

I should have also mentioned that in order to be safe you should insure
that the existing 220v circuit breakers do not exceed the rating of the
new outlet - i.e. 15 or 20 amps, depending on what type of 110V outlet
you use.

above over my head, am looking for something I can plug into 220...
with a couple of holes on the other side where I can plug in the 110v.
If that does not exist I am not going to try to jimmy anything up, I
am not qualified to mess with any wires.

"I don't know if this is legal or not but I just took one leg off oo
the
220 and ran it to a 110 outlet. It doesn't have a ground of course. "

Do everyone a favor and stop hacking around with what you don't
understand, before you kill someone.

Before he even gets to that, why not figure out what the load from the
washer and the treadmill are together. There may not even be a
problem. Or alternatively, don't use the treadmill when the washer is
running.

Short of that, I agree that any stepdown device is going to be quite
expensive to have enough capacity to run a treadmill. The easy and
correct solution is to just run another outlet. Since it's a basement,
that should be pretty easy and/or reasonable to have done.

If a person know some about wiring, it is possible to get a 110 volt circuit
from a 220 volt dryer setup. It might not be legal or to code, but it is
quite possible.

--

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
www.mormons.com


wrote in message
ups.com...
I have a space in my garage near my washer and dryer where I would like
to place a treadmill. It is a '70's house with basement on one
circuit. Am afraid running washer/dryer and treadmill will blow
circuit breaker.

Dryer is Gas, but there is a 220v plug right there, and would
neccesarilly be on a seperate circuit (right??) Is there some sort of
transformer plug type thing that I can plug into 220 v circuit plug,
then plug 110v treadmill into that circuit.

I don't want to start running new circuits, which of course would be
the correct answer here, just looking for a safe temporary solution.

If a person know some about wiring, it is possible to get a 110 volt
circuit
from a 220 volt dryer setup. It might not be legal or to code, but it is
quite possible.

Hell, it might not even be safe!

I saw a 240v generator on Ebay that came with a 240-120 converter; so they
do exist and can't be all that expensive.

Since no one has referred you to a source WHY NOT DO A GOOGLE SEARCH?

An interesting problem though...
A 120v outlet in your garage has to be GFCI. Would a converter in your
garage have to be GFCI? Donno.

wrote in message
ups.com...
I have a space in my garage near my washer and dryer where I would like
to place a treadmill. It is a '70's house with basement on one
circuit. Am afraid running washer/dryer and treadmill will blow
circuit breaker.

Dryer is Gas, but there is a 220v plug right there, and would
neccesarilly be on a seperate circuit (right??) Is there some sort of
transformer plug type thing that I can plug into 220 v circuit plug,
then plug 110v treadmill into that circuit.

I don't want to start running new circuits, which of course would be
the correct answer here, just looking for a safe temporary solution.


Your going to spend more on the transformer and related equipment than
running a new circuit.

You COULD, remove the 220v outlet and breaker get a 20 amp breaker and
outlet. Change the wiring around so that one of the hots becomes a neutral
and you would have an new 120v recpt to code. Better check with a pro in
your area if this is possible.

wrote in message
ups.com...


I don't want to start running new circuits, which of course would be
the correct answer here, just looking for a safe temporary solution.


step 1: open yellow pages

step 2: look under electricians

step3: start making calls

Seriously, If you don't have the skills, leave it to a pro. It's money
well spent, and the life (and home) you save "WILL" be your own.

Be careful!

Les

In article , Len Shure wrote:
I don't know if this is legal or not but I just took one leg off oo the
220 and ran it to a 110 outlet. It doesn't have a ground of course.

It probably *does* have a ground, and does *not* have a neutral. This is
dangerous, and a good example of why people who "don't know if this is legal
or not" should not attempt their own electrical projects.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt.
And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

In article , "Travis Jordan" wrote:
wrote:
Dryer is Gas, but there is a 220v plug right there, and would
neccesarilly be on a seperate circuit (right??)

If done to code, yes.

Is there some sort of
transformer plug type thing that I can plug into 220 v circuit plug,
then plug 110v treadmill into that circuit.

I don't want to start running new circuits, which of course would be
the correct answer here, just looking for a safe temporary solution.

If your 220v outlet is an older style and only has two hot wires and a
ground (usually red, black, and bare/green) you can't create a 110v
circuit from it. If your outlet has 2 hot wires (usually red, black), a
neutral (white), and a ground (bare/green), you can get 110v from either
of the hot wires (black or red) to neutral (white). I'd suggest
mounting a new outlet box adjacent to the current box with a 110v duplex
outlet, wired as above. BE SURE TO LOCATE AND TURN OFF THE RIGHT CIRCUIT
BREAKER BEFORE YOU START.

He needs a GFCI on it, too. (It's in a garage.)

If you don't completely understand this advice and the risks associated
with working on house circuits, don't attempt it.



--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt.
And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

In article , "Travis Jordan" wrote:

I should have also mentioned that in order to be safe you should insure
that the existing 220v circuit breakers do not exceed the rating of the
new outlet - i.e. 15 or 20 amps, depending on what type of 110V outlet
you use.

That's probably no worry. Likely, the 240V recep was for an electric dryer,
and is on a 30A or 40A circuit.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt.
And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

In article , Philip Lewis wrote:

A 240 line is usually the neutral and the two hot phases of the 120V
service in the residential home. (sometimes they have ground as well)

Not correct. A 240V circuit is usually the *ground* and the two hot legs of
the *240V* service in the home. Sometimes they have *neutral* as well.

240V circuits that do not need to supply 120V loads (a water heater supply is
an example of such a circuit) generally do *not* have a neutral, because they
don't need it.

Normally, the neutral is present *only* in 240V circuits that need to supply
120V loads as well, e.g. an electric oven (heating elements are 240V,
timer and light are 120V), or an electric dryer (heating elements are 240V,
motor probably 120V, timer definitely 120V) -- and only then if the circuit
was wired fairly recently. Code *used* to permit using the grounding conductor
as the neutral, which isn't really especially safe. It's no longer allowed,
but there are a *lot* of dryer and range circuits in existence that don't have
a neutral conductor.

If *I* needed a temporary 120V feed, I'd get a 240V (dryer) cord, run
it into a outlet box, cap one of the hot feeds, and wire up the second
hot/neutral to an outlet.

And by doing so, you'd probably create a dangerous condition, because that
240V circuit probably doesn't have a neutral, and you'd be using the equipment
grounding conductor as the neutral.

I'd really want to put some sort of ground
on the device if possible, or use a gfci outlet if ground wasn't
available. Then I would plug in only when using the feed. This would
probably break all sorts of rules in the NEC though... so I wouldn't
recommend it for someone else.

If *I* were doing that, I'd make sure I had a neutral first. I'd also make
sure I understood the Code, and *why* it disallows some practices.

I'm not a licensed electrician

I can tell. You should not be giving out electrical advice, until you
understand the difference between neutral and ground, and how 240V circuits
are configured.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt.
And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

On 28 Feb 2005 09:04:39 -0800, wrote:

above over my head, am looking for something I can plug into 220...
with a couple of holes on the other side where I can plug in the 110v.
If that does not exist I am not going to try to jimmy anything up, I
am not qualified to mess with any wires.

In that case, I recommend a heavy-duty extension cord.
Get your power from somewhere else.

You COULD get a transformer to go from 220-110, but that
would be just stupidly expensive.

If *I* needed a temporary 120V feed, I'd get a 240V (dryer) cord, run
it into a outlet box, cap one of the hot feeds, and wire up the second
hot/neutral to an outlet.

If you're going to be opening up boxes, why not just move
one of the two hots to the nuetral-bus in the service panel,
tag it at both ends, and replace the receptical and breaker?

wrote in message
ups.com...
I have a space in my garage near my washer and dryer where I would like
to place a treadmill. It is a '70's house with basement on one
circuit. Am afraid running washer/dryer and treadmill will blow
circuit breaker.

Dryer is Gas, but there is a 220v plug right there, and would
neccesarilly be on a seperate circuit (right??) Is there some sort of
transformer plug type thing that I can plug into 220 v circuit plug,
then plug 110v treadmill into that circuit.

I don't want to start running new circuits, which of course would be
the correct answer here, just looking for a safe temporary solution.


The transformer large enough to run the motor on your tread mill would be
pretty large, and somewhat expensive.
If the 240 volt outlet is unused, get an electrician over to convert it over
to 120 volt. It should not be a big deal.
Greg

In article , Philip Lewis wrote:
(Doug Miller) writes:

I can tell. You should not be giving out electrical advice,
I'm not... (aside from telling him that i thought there was an "easy"
option that he should talk to an electrician about)... i thought I
made that clear... Perhaps not.

When someone asks "how do you do this?" and you tell him "this is how I
would do it" that *is* giving advice.

until you understand the difference between neutral and ground,
and probably not even then. :)

A neutral conducts electricity in normal operation,
A ground conducts only in some fault state.
At least that is my understanding of the situation...
but hey, you've shown my memory to be faulty... so i'm not
guaranteeing anything.

That's correct as far as it goes, but it's not the whole story. In particular
you don't seem aware that while 240V circuits nearly always have
*grounds*, they frequently do *not* have neutrals -- and that's what makes
your advice to the OP not only wrong, but also dangerous. Hence my statement
that you should not be giving out electrical advice.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt.
And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

In article , Philip Lewis wrote:
(Doug Miller) writes:
When someone asks "how do you do this?" and you tell him "this is how I
would do it" that *is* giving advice.
[snip irrelevant word games]

My "advice" was that i *think* it can be done easily, and they should
call someone who is familiar with it.

No, that's *not* what you wrote. This is:

"If *I* needed a temporary 120V feed, I'd get a 240V (dryer) cord, run
it into a outlet box, cap one of the hot feeds, and wire up the second
hot/neutral to an outlet. I'd really want to put some sort of ground
on the device if possible, or use a gfci outlet if ground wasn't
available. Then I would plug in only when using the feed. This would
probably break all sorts of rules in the NEC though... so I wouldn't
recommend it for someone else."

Like I said... if someone asks how to do something, and you say "this is how
I'd do it" that *is* giving advice.

That's correct as far as it goes, but it's not the whole story.
you don't seem aware that while 240V circuits nearly always have
*grounds*, they frequently do *not* have neutrals --

I did not ever say to connect a hot and ground to supply power.

Refer to your advice above: "cap one of the hot feeds, and wire up the second
hot/neutral to an outlet." Problem is, there is NO NEUTRAL in a typical 240V
circuit. The OP obviously doesn't understand 240V circuits any better than you
do, and by following your advice he may well use the bare wire, thinking it's
the "neutral" that you're talking about.

I specifically said I would connect a neutral and hot together, and that
i would want to have a ground at the location as well. That choice of
wording specifically would seem to indicate that there was a
difference between the two, and that just perhaps, I knew the
difference between the two. Which is why I made it very clear that I
don't recommend they do what I said i would do.

You also wrote:
"A 240 line is usually the neutral and the two hot phases of the 120V
service in the residential home. (sometimes they have ground as well)"

and this seems to indicate that you don't understand the difference between
ground and neutral, at least with respect to 240V circuits.

In my original post, i see that i did screw up and say that there is
usually a neutral and sometimes a ground...

That's exactly what I've been telling you. Glad you finally noticed.

[...]

Out of curiosity, If there is an unmarked white insulated wire in an
outlet, other than tracing it back to the circuit panel, is there a
way differentiate between neutral and ground? (Let's assume that it
wasn't hooked to a box ground lug and that we have no idea if it's
wired to code.)

Hook an ammeter to it, and apply a load to the circuit. If the ammeter shows
current flowing, it's either hot or neutral. If the ammeter shows no current,
either it's ground, or it's not connected to that circuit.

In any case, we're mostly talking semantics and interpretation
now... which isn't helping this guy get his treadmill plugged in.

No, we're *not* talking semantics and interpretation. We're talking the
difference between safe and unsafe practice.


--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt.
And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

In alt.home.repair on Mon, 28 Feb 2005 12:42:28 -0700 Andy Hill
posted:

wrote:
Before he even gets to that, why not figure out what the load from the
washer and the treadmill are together. There may not even be a
problem. Or alternatively, don't use the treadmill when the washer is
running.

Well, yeah, that should be plan A. Heck, shouldn't even have to calculate --
exercise while running the washer and dryer, and if the breaker trips, then move
onto plan B (with the cheapest plan B being "don't run the treadmill while doing
the laundry"). If you just gotta run the treadie while doing the laundry,

Better yet, Harry, with a few pullies and drive belts, and the removal
of the access panel at the rear of washer, you could connect the
treadmill to the washer.

For normal loads, Jack would run at 6 to 8 miles an hour, and for
lingerie and other delicates he would walk at about 2 miles and hour.

With a mirror on the inside of the washer lid, Jack could get visual
feedback on how the laundry was doing.

He wouldn't need any electricity to run either the dryer or the
treadmill.

then a 50' high-capacity outdoor extension cord isn't all that expensive.

W


Meirman
--
If emailing, please let me know whether
or not you are posting the same letter.
Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

Travis posted

If your 220v outlet is an older style and only has two hot wires and a
ground (usually red, black, and bare/green) you can't create a 110v
circuit from it. If your outlet has 2 hot wires (usually red, black), a
neutral (white), and a ground (bare/green), you can get 110v from either
of the hot wires (black or red) to neutral (white). I'd suggest
mounting a new outlet box adjacent to the current box with a 110v duplex
outlet, wired as above. BE SURE TO LOCATE AND TURN OFF THE RIGHT CIRCUIT
BREAKER BEFORE YOU START.

If you don't completely understand this advice and the risks associated
with working on house circuits, don't attempt it.

In alt.home.repair on 28 Feb 2005 09:04:39 -0800
posted:

above over my head, am looking for something I can plug into 220...
with a couple of holes on the other side where I can plug in the 110v.

That's basically what Travis is recommending. If you have 4 slots,
and not 3, in the dryer outlet.

If that does not exist I am not going to try to jimmy anything up, I
am not qualified to mess with any wires.

I bet you could do this, or get someone to do it for you. There are
only four wires and they are already connected at the plug end.

You can get what they called a pigtail, a replacement cord with the
standard dryer plug on the end, for a dryer, at a hardware store.

Also get a surface mount 110 volt receptacle (also called an outlet).
Surface mount means that it screws to the outside of the wall, doesn't
have to be mounted inside the wall to look right. These boxes have
a lot more space in them than most "receptacle-ends" of extension
cordds, and pros don't seem to like cords that aren't firmly fixed to
a wall. This *is* the only place in the house you'll be able to use
this cord, so there is little reason not to screw it to the wall,
right?

You connect the black or the red wire -- it doesn't matter which -- of
the cord to the gold contact of the receptacle. You cut off the other
wire, the red or the black, or you cover the end with a wire nut or
tape*** so that the wire inside doesn't touch anything. You connect
the white wire to the silver screw of the receptacle, and you connect
the bare wire to a green screw on the receptacle, or whatever is
labelled the ground screw.

All of this can be assembled *before* you plug it in to the dryer
outlet.

The only way you can come up with more than 110 volts would be if you
used both the red and the black wires of the cord, and you won't do
that, will you?:)

***Others here can tell you what is best.



Meirman
--
If emailing, please let me know whether
or not you are posting the same letter.
Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.