ground / arc

If a 3-conductor dryer cord is not attached at the conductor that is used for ground, apart from the danger of an ungrounded appliance, could one of the other conductors that is screwed in ,arc to the unscrewed in part of the three heads?

Reply to
chimpanzo
Loading thread data ...

The gap is too great at 240 volts for an arc to happen. However, that 3rd wire in a dryer is not just a ground, it is also a neutral to run the 120 volt drum motor, timer motor, and interior light.

Reply to
Rich.

Dryers are usually sold with a jumper connecting neutral to the ground/chassis when connected to a 3 wire cord. Use it.

Check if local electrical codes still allow a 3 wire cord for electric dryers first.

Reply to
Michael Moroney

Reply to
chimpanzo

Forget the arcing - short answer. All three connections MUST be made correctly - if not - all bets are off on proper and safe operation. If you are not sure of how to safely connect this dryer, find someone who is sure.

Reply to
hifi-tek

Why would they still allow it?

Reply to
Michael A. Terrell

Because there are a lot of receptacles wired H-H-N with no ground. It was allowed from about WW2 until 15?? years ago. You can not wire a new circuit that way, but existing receptacles are explicitly grandfathered in the NEC. There were some pretty strict restrictions when it was allowed.

Reply to
bud--

The only likely arching is at the connection that was not properly made up. If the wire for that connection was laying in or on the connecter without having been made up with the correct tightening torque then that connection would arc. I have seen that myself on more than one occasion.

-- Tom Horne

Reply to
Tom Horne

In other words, it's not allowed. Grandfathered is a horse of another color. You can't even find the three pin plugs in some places, without a special order. My next door neighbor bought a new dryer 10 years ago, and had to wait several days for the store to get the right cable.

Jumpering neutral to ground (on a three wire cord) at the dryer can kill you, if the neutral opens. I had the neutral fail at the buss bar in my breaker box. If the dryer had been wired that way, I would be dead.

Reply to
Michael A. Terrell

Not all that likely. Just before we were married, my inlaws moved into a new house. For years after she was complaining about getting "shock" off the dryer. No one else had ever had such "shocks", so it was a *very* low priority. One time when we were back visiting, she complained once too often so I pulled the dryer out and pulled all the cables apart. Everything was as it should be, so I added a ground wire from the case to the cold water pipe. It took out a 60A fuse, telling me that everything was *not* as it should be. I finally took the entrance panel cover off and saw the red wire connected to ground and the black and white to the fuse terminals. It had been that way for *years*. MIL said the dryer worked a lot faster, after I fixed it.

Dangerous, sure. Sure death, no. Too many variables.

Reply to
krw

When it's sitting right next to a washer that is grounded, it's too damn easy to touch both of them.

Reply to
Michael A. Terrell

PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.