Electricity/extention cord/220 ??

Re: Electricity/extention cord/220 ??

Mark Mandell - Gone Round In Jersey

>Not a problem, Jen. You will have to make your own, however.

If voltage loss is your concern, flexible 10/2 with ground wire (Borg) will do fine (12/2 is enough actually). You'll need a 220 25 amp male plug for the wall outlet, and then I'd suggest a 220 30 amp twist-lock set for the lathe end (you'll have to change your machine's plug) so that you have a positively locked cord connection. With size 10 wire you can easily go 30 feet from the wall with no power loss.

M

Re: Electricity/extention cord/220 ??

bill Crommett in seneca

>Jennifer: No sweat. We all run extention cords on our 230V machines.. Remember that because the votage is doubled the amperage is halved, so a smaller wire will accomodate the same ammount of "push".

This is where the European and Caribean countries have it over us, because the US was first to have electricity on a mass basis we didn't realize the advatage of having a higher voltage that will allow transporting the same number of amps over a smaller wire thus saving many bucks in copper as well as the stuggle of working with stiffer wires. Just be sure to get the right kind of plug ends.

Re: Electricity/extention cord/220 ??

Bill Grumbine (Kutztown PA)

>Hi Jennifer

The Poolewood has been running off an extension cord since I got it! It is pretty much as Mark describes, a 10/2 flexible wire from HD, with a twist lock plug on the end. The other end is wired directly into the panel. In fact, right now I am running the saw, the Mini Max combo machine, and my new Mini Max bandsaw all off the same plug. That is temporary, as a friend of mine who is an electrician is coming out to trade some wiring for turning lessons. But the extension cord has been in use since July of '99 with no ill effects.

Bill

Re: Small Caution

Mark Mandell - Gone Round In Jersey

>Bill (& Jen),

It's my understanding that residential structure wiring codes prohibit extension of "direct" wiring beyond a wall unless it is placed in ridgid fixed conduit, i.e. no direct-wired extension cords. All extension lines must be "plugged" into a wall outlet.

The kicker here is not whether I'm right or wrong, but whether your homeowner's insurance will cover your loss after the fire investigator determines that any part of the cause of the fire was a code-violating "extension" cord. Best check with your local building inspector's office as to what is and is not allowed under your local codes since that (as opposed to what anyone else tells you) is where the insurance company will go in preparation for denying your claim.

Mark

Geez, guys; what are you running...

Rod Peterson -- Ormond Beach

>...that you need 10 ga wire at 240V? That's 30 amps! At 240V that's more than 5 HP.

12 ga will more than handle Jennifer's 2 HP lathe. Since my 3 HP planer (and jointer, and Unisaw) draws 15A, clearly 14 ga would be enough for that lathe.

It's the amps that determine the wire size, not the volts. And since we're talking a short run�20 or 30'�voltage drop isn't an issue, either.

Rod

Re: Electricity/extention cord/220 ??

Bill Grumbine (Kutztown PA)

>Mark, mine started out as a temporary measure that, well, you know... Like I said, I have an electrician buddy - a union electrician buddy who is coming out to set me up on all three machines.

Rod, the Poolewood is only 2 HP 3 phase, but I needed the thicker gauge to compensate for voltage drop at its original location in my grandfather's garage. Both the MM machines DO have 4.8 HP motors that require 30 amps of juice at 220v. I have yet to really test the bandsaw, but it is a monster.

Bill

Re: True . . .

Mark Mandell - Gone Round In Jersey

>Rod,

I was considering the weight and resistence to abrasion of the #10 rather than its amp capacity. 12/2wg would certainly handle the load. Come to rethink it, 12/2wg SJTW cable would be okay as well. That's what I use on my 3hp cabinet saw.

M

Re: Permanently Temporary

Mark Mandell - Gone Round In Jersey

>Glad to hear I'm NOT the Only One who has stuff like that to take care when I get a round tuit. |;-}}}

There is sucha thing as armored flexible conduit that can take a hard wire directly from the wall to the machine's junction box, but as far as I know you can't just put on plug on the end.

Ask your guy for sure, as it'll be his license if he screws it up.

M

Re: Electricity/extention cord/220 ??

Dick Hines

>Instead of running an extention cord on the floor why not put a plug in the over head. When I wired my shop I set the tools where I wanted them and put the plugs over head. That way there are no cords on the floor to trip over.

Also when installing plugs on the walls I put the at 5' so I would not have something in the way when I needed them.

Re: Electricity/extention cord/220 ??

Pete in Holland, MI

>Instead of creating an extension cord with a plug in the middle of the floor, suggest simply installing a longer cord right from the lathe. My tools that have too short of cords get rewired with amply longer cords so as to never have to tangle with extension cords.

Bringing the power down from the ceiling, or up from the floor, on a middle-of-the-room is a better option though. Tripping over a 220v cord could make for a serious problem if wires are pulled out of the terminals.

Good luck.

Re: Electricity/extention cord/220 ??

Dennis Y

>I found a "appliance" extension cord at Home Depot for a lot less than I could have made one. I use it on my PM3520 without any problems.

Thanks for the INfo!

Jennifer@Indy.USA

>Thanks everyone for the excellent information. I have learned a lot reading these responses! I will buy the materials to make the cord and then move the lathe to see how it feels in the middle of the shop. The only downside I see is that I won't be able to see out the garage door and down the driveway into my cute little street to see the goings on, which is one thing I love about where the lathe is now. As I was pondering at my wiring yesterday it dawned on me, that if I decide to leave the lathe in the middle of the shop, I can just un staple the run that is already there, and replace it in the new position where the lathe will now sit. My walls are unfinished. In looking at the run, it would only need to be an extension of about 15 feet.

Thanks again for all of your help with this stuff. You guys are priceless!

Jennifer