electrical question!?!?!

[Keith Stelter]

Ok, On one end of my house I have no electrical wiring run outside except for the 220V (single phase) service to my air conditioner. It has a double pole,

40 amp circuit breaker feeding that air conditioner unit. We want to park our camper on that end of the house, and I was wondering how safe it would be to wire up a 110V box from one of the legs of the 220V air conditioner box? The camper has a 30 amp cord on it, but I took a measurement, and could only get it to draw about 16 amps with everything running. I can increase the size of the breaker if needed, but would it cause any problems with the 220V air conditioner if one leg had 10 or 15 amps drawn from it? I don't want to smoke a $3,000.00 AC unit because I didn't want to spend a few hundred bucks adding some new wiring, but on the other hand I'd rather not have to add another circuit unless I have to. Any advice greatly appreciated!

[Bob]

It would not be safely possible to tap the A/C circuit for a 120 volt load, because no current carrying neutral is available.

[mm]

Do you want to run the AC at the same time you are running the camper?

Whether you do or not, you need a neutral to run 110 and it's very unlikely there is one. I don't know what it takes to add one. I think you need romex or Bx, whichever your house uses.

Sleep in the back yard. I don't know about yours but mine is nice.

>

[<kjpro]

Have someone that knows electrical wiring add the circuit for you.

DO NOT tie onto the air conditioning circuit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[<kjpro]

conditioner

And that&#39;s not the only reason!!!!!

[<kjpro]

Again you comment on things you know nothing about.

Are you related to Stormy?????

[celebrate]

If I were you, I&#39;d get another breaker and enough 10-3 UF cable as you need. Make up an extension cord on the end by the camper, and temporarily wire it to the extra breaker. Then just run it out a basement window and over to you camper. This is probably not legal, but its only temporary. On the other hand, you could run that same cable (or NM) thru the basement and out the same place the AC power comes out the house. Then just put a permanent outlet there. If you have an open basement ceiling, its not that big of a job or expense.

[RBM]

The only thing you could do that would be proper and safe, would require disconnecting the line from the AC and converting it from 240 with ground to

120 with ground, reducing the breaker to 30 amp GFCI and installing a rain tight outlet for the camper... but then you&#39;d have to run a new feeder for the AC

[Joseph Meehan]

kjpro @ usenet.com wrote: ...

I don&#39;t know about where you live, but where I am having someone you know who is not licensed would be a no no. Now having someone who knows what they are doing instruct you as you do it, is legal. In either case, I would suggest the one having someone help them realize that if that other someone is not licensed they may not really know what they are doing.

I agree 100% with the advice to not try and tie into the A/C power supply. That is a bad idea from several directions.

[longshot]

the local union has the local government DEEP in their pockets, eh?

[RBM]

Not at all. In downstate NY the majority of electrical master license holders own non union companies. This is probably true in most states

[Doug Miller]

Won&#39;t work. You don&#39;t have a neutral conductor available at the air conditioner, and a 120V circuit won&#39;t work without one.

No, you can&#39;t -- not unless you *like* the idea of starting a fire by overheating the existing wires (which in all likelihood are rated for the existing breaker, and not capable of handling a higher current).

Time to hire an electrician to run a new circuit.