Hi,
New guy here....This site looks great!
I would like to add 220VAC to my garage. The garage and the laundry room share a wall and there is a 220 outlet in the laundry room for the clothes dryer.
Is it acceptable to simply add another outlet on the garage side to that same circuit?
I can live with not being able to weld while my clothes are drying :-)
Thanks in advance for any help/wisdom/advice.
MarkB

 

240 volt receptacles are designed to be specific use, rather than general purpose. 240 volt clothes dryer circuits are typically 30 amps. Ranges are usually either 40 or 50 amps. The wire on the circuit is sized to the current requirements and (if necessary) to the distance.


What are the power requirements for the welder you want to use?

 

The models I am looking at require single-phase, 60Hz and are in the 20-25A range. So if I understood you correctly, I'm probably OK from a technical standpoint in that the circuit will support it (as long as I don't try to weld & dry at the same time). But is it acceptable to do from a (typical) wiring code standpoint?
Thanks again,
MarkB

 

Absolutely not. One 220 circuit, one receptacle only. The only remote possibility would be to connect the wiring from the dryer receptacle (if it's got 4 wires - hot, hot, neutral AND ground) to a sub panel with 2 separate circuits feeding 1 receptacle each. I think a new run for the welder would be cheaper...

Doug M.

 

That is not a rule with which I am familiar.

 

Rule of Doug... Perhaps I should have prefaced it with "for all intent and purposes".

But you're not saying that in a residential setting you can put multiple 220 appliances on one circuit are you?? I know some builders that would be really thrilled with that information.

Doug M.

 

There are rules. Certainly not everything goes. But the Rule of Doug you cited is not a Rule of Code.

 

Don't think this is helping the original poster...

Can Mark B piggy back a second plug from his existing dryer plug, and if so, how?

Doug M.

 

I was waiting for Bob to come back and follow up. I'm sure he'll be here soon. I was just trying to clear up one point.

 

Thanks John. I guess I'll come back then.

I would not do this. There will come a time when you will want to use the dryer and the welder at the same time. You (or someone in the house) may even try it. This will likely (hopefully) very quickly trip the breaker. this may screw up your welding.

However, it sounds like you can do this. Before proceeding, verify that the welder does indeed call for a 30 amp circuit and 10 gauge wire. It sounds like it does.

You will need to run a piece of cable from the existing receptacle to the new receptacle for the welder. Use 10-3 wire. Match up the wires to the existing receptacle, and correctly wire the new receptacle.

 

I can't tell where the OP is located. It depends on your jurisdiction. In Canada, the dryer must be on a dedicated circuit.

 

Thanks guys.
It sounds like, while it *may* be technically allowed (will have to check local code), it might be an iffy proposition for the reasons Bob mentions. I'm kind of a "do it the right way" type of guy, so I'll probably either run a separate circuit or just go with a 110 welder. I think I was talking myself into more machine than I needed anyway. But that's a whole separate thread in another place and time....
Thanks again for all the help and comments.
MarkB