Oven Wiring Question
#1
Oven Wiring Question
I'm installing a new electric oven in a home approximately 20 years old in New Mexico. The wiring where the old oven was removed has a black wire, a white wire and a bare wire. The oven (Jenn-Air) has a black wire, white wire, red wire and bare wire. I'm not 100% sure what to connect to what here. I appreciate any guidance you can offer.
#2
The installation instructions for your new oven will contain two sets of instructions, one for a 3-wire hookup and one for a 4-wire hookup. The 3-wire hookup instructions always say something like "if local code allows", and local code almost always does. Follow the 3-wire instructions exactly. This will probably mean another trip to the store to buy a 3-wire oven cord, and will involve connecting some sort of bonding wire or strap.
#4
Have you read every word of every piece of paper that came with your oven? If so, consult with the manufacturer via phone or web. You are missing some information you need that should be supplied by them. However, most of the time, you should be able to find this information by carefully reviewing all the material that came with the oven.
#5
Thank you for your help. I've reviewed the manual carefully and it doesn't have the information. Here's a link to the installation instructions that came with it:
http://www.jennair.com/cust_serv/pdf...seBVCookie=Yes
I'll try calling Jenn-Air.
http://www.jennair.com/cust_serv/pdf...seBVCookie=Yes
I'll try calling Jenn-Air.
#6
Well, I have to admit that these aren't the best instructions I've seen. They do cover both 3-wire and 4-wire connections, but in a very terse manner. On page 3, it says:
The neutral of this unit is grounded to the frame through the solid grounding wire. (The ground and the white wires are twisted together at the termination of the conduit.) If used on new branch-circuit installations (1996 NEC), mobile homes, recreational vehicles, or in an area where local codes prohibit grounding through the neutral conductor, untwist or disconnect the ground wire and connect to ground in accordance with local code. Connect the white neutral to the service neutral.
This says that the unit is factory-wired for a 3-wire connection. That's good for you. It says that the ground and white wires are twisted together at the termination of the conduit. So you can connect both ground and white to your bare service wire, and connect black to black, and red to white.
The neutral of this unit is grounded to the frame through the solid grounding wire. (The ground and the white wires are twisted together at the termination of the conduit.) If used on new branch-circuit installations (1996 NEC), mobile homes, recreational vehicles, or in an area where local codes prohibit grounding through the neutral conductor, untwist or disconnect the ground wire and connect to ground in accordance with local code. Connect the white neutral to the service neutral.
This says that the unit is factory-wired for a 3-wire connection. That's good for you. It says that the ground and white wires are twisted together at the termination of the conduit. So you can connect both ground and white to your bare service wire, and connect black to black, and red to white.
#7
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Questions, questions:
Can you describe just what sort of wire is in the wall? Is it a cable, and if so, can you see the printing on the cable?
Do you know the gauge of the wire?
Do you have a fuse panel or circuit breakers? If so, what controls the oven circuit? What is the amp rating of the fuse or circuit breaker?
What is the KW rating on the nameplate on the oven?
For what it is worth, the electrical installation paragraph on the right side of page 3 of the instructions describes both 3 and 4 wire connections. Basically there are _4_ wires, but the method of connecting to a 3 wire circuit is to simply connect _both_ the ground and the neutral from the range to the same neutral supply wire. However from your description, it is _not_ at all clear that you actually have a useable neutral wire.
-Jon
Can you describe just what sort of wire is in the wall? Is it a cable, and if so, can you see the printing on the cable?
Do you know the gauge of the wire?
Do you have a fuse panel or circuit breakers? If so, what controls the oven circuit? What is the amp rating of the fuse or circuit breaker?
What is the KW rating on the nameplate on the oven?
For what it is worth, the electrical installation paragraph on the right side of page 3 of the instructions describes both 3 and 4 wire connections. Basically there are _4_ wires, but the method of connecting to a 3 wire circuit is to simply connect _both_ the ground and the neutral from the range to the same neutral supply wire. However from your description, it is _not_ at all clear that you actually have a useable neutral wire.
-Jon
#8
Jon, while I agree with you that we have no evidence that he has a usable neutral (i.e., the cable type is SE), we certainly have no evidence that he does not. He could possibly have a hundred other electrical problems too. One has to bound the scope of the project somewhere.
#9
Thank you for your help. The oven is installed and produced no smoke when the breaker was flipped (I can't say it won't produce any when it's my turn to cook supper, though).
The black-to-black, red-to-white, white-and-bare-to-bare combination worked perfectly.
Thank you for your patience.
The black-to-black, red-to-white, white-and-bare-to-bare combination worked perfectly.
Thank you for your patience.