30 Amp Dryer Circuit - Canada

I plan to install my old electric dryer at my cottage in Canada. The dryer will be located under a weatherproof porch, but the operator will be standing directly on the ground, or on a wooden platform in front of the dryer. The circuit will be a typical 240 volt/30 amp "3 prong" pigtail/plug type. My Concern: The plug is labeled "non-grounding" and therefore I need to establish a device ground (not potentially involving the operator!). There is no water pipe, etc. nearby that could be used for this device ground. So, I thought I would go to the expense of getting a 240volt/30 amp GFCI breaker for the Square D (QO) service panel, and, run 10/3 BX with Ground from that breaker to the 2 hots and 1 neutral of the dryer outlet, connecting the BX ground wire to the grounding screw on the metal dryer case. This wire would establish a device ground directly from the dryer's metal case to the ground/neutral buss of the service panel. I want this circuit to be "overkill +++" safe. I very much appreciate any constructive comments or suggestion on how to improve this plan. My neices and I thank you in advance for you assistance! Doug MacQueen

Reply to
Doug M.
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Modern dryers give you a choice of 2wire or 3wire. If you chose 2wire, you jumper the neutral to the ground. If your dryer has that jumper, then remove it, and wire as planned. It should be fine. If your dryer cannot be "unjumpered", you will gain nothing by adding the 3wire, you will just have two neutral/grounds. In fact, I doubt the GFCI would even work with that wiring. (However, it should work with 2 wire)

Reply to
Toller

The dryer should be convertible to a 4-wire plug. That would be a lot cheaper than a GFCI breaker. Buy a grounded dryer cord, a matching outlet, and run your favorite kind of #10 4-conductor cable.

Bob

Reply to
zxcvbob

I do not know about Canada but all US dryers need to be 4 wire now. 2hots, neutral, and ground. The plug is different as well. My new dryer company tried to give me the old 3 pronged, I told them that I wanted a 4 wire, they said no and I said refund my $2k for all that I had just bought. Oddly they had another box with 4 wire cords in it.

Check with the local authorities to be sure.

Reply to
SQLit

Canadian dryers and stoves have required plugs and receptacles and a separate ground wire and prong on the plug since before 1970, as that was the regulations when I built my house. That dryer must be an o-l-d one.

Reply to
Eric Tonks

Not true; all new dryer outlets have to have both a neutral and a ground. Since most existing outlets are for three prongs (combination ground/neutral), the dryers are designed to accomodate either cordset. (Incidently, my earlier reference to 2wire and 3 wire should have been to

3wire and 4wire; it is x/2 and x/3 cable. I appreciate that no one pointed out my absent mindedness.)

You must have gotten too low a price or something, because it is trivial to change the cordsets.

Reply to
Toller

Hi,

Canadian electrical codes always has asked for a 4 pronge dryer plug and outlet with a ground. We are also not allowed to have the ground and nuetral wired together at the appliance, feed wire should be, Electric dryer - 220 - 240 volt, 60 hertz, properly grounded circuit with 30 amp breaker or fuse protection. #10 gauge wire is preferred.

No washer for the dryer?

Some GFI info from some appliance manufactures....

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electrical helps/tips/ect.

jeff. Appliance Repair Aid

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Reply to
jeff

If there is not a 4th grounding wire (or a grounded conduit -- or at least EMT) then run a 10-3 plus ground cable and buy a "3 pole 4 wire 120/240Volt

30 Amp" grounded dryer plug and dryer cord (two straight blades, an L shaped neutral blade and a U shaped ground IIRC). No need for GCFI (unless mandated by local codes). These will likely cost about 3X what the older style costs (say US$15 vs US$5 for the plug).

In the old days (thru the '60's or so?) the 3 wire 120/240V w/o ground "crowsfoot" plugs/cords (two blades at an angle and an L shaped neutral blade) were comon, and sometimes "grounding" was accomplished by tying the neutral to the chassis, but this is not considered good practice now. The neutral should be bonded to the ground ONLY at the main service entrance, nowhere else. You may be ligcky and have a grounding wire in the existing cable. If you have armored cable or EMT (thinwall tubing) you may have a good ground through it (check every EMT joint for tight screws). If the breaker is in the same panel as the main service entrance breaker th eground and neutral bus will likwly be the same, if it is a sub panel, they should be seperate buses.

Reply to
The Masked Marvel

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