I have 3 wires coming to a 220 air conditioner. One is black, one white, and one copper. I need to replace this air conditioner with a 110 outlet. Can I cut the black and take the white to one side and the copper to the other side of the new 110 outlet

 

Go to the breaker box and remove the white wire from the breaker and connect it to the ground/neutral bus bar. Then just take out the 220 outlet and install the 110 outlet in the usual way that a 110 outlet would be installed and you're done. But whatever you do, don't use the ground wire as the neutral.

Robert

 

Liquid plumber's advice is good. But make sure that the amp rating of the breaker isn't above that required for the A/C (probably 20 amps), or you'll have to replace the breaker. And if this is a subpanel rather than a main panel, make sure you connect the white wire only to the neutral bar and not to the grounding bar.

 

you will need to replace the breaker anyway. you will only be using one side of a 2-pole breaker. You would need to replace the breaker with 2 single pole breakers. Also, you do not mention what gauge wire is run to the air conditioner. If it is 14ga you must use a maximum of 15A breaker, 12ga can have 20A. This is assuming you use a standard duplex receptacle and not a single outlet version. If a single outlet is used (such as for a dedicated 120V air conditioner receptacle), the breaker must not exced the rated current of the receptacle (15 or 20A). If 10ga wire was run, I do not believe that any standard receptacle is rated for that large of wire.

 

You do not have to replace the breaker just because it is double pole. It's perfectly okay to use half of a double-pole breaker and not use the other half.