Hot Water Tank Wiring Question

[spamwatchdog]

I need to install a used hot water tank into an existing home that had the tank already removed. So looking at the existing hookup is impossible since no tank is there.

Two of the wires are hot, so I will simply attach 110V to each wire, of course being on a separate leg off the box. Where does the neutral wire attach? To the ground on the tank?

I've searched for a good illustration that described the electrical hookups to no avail. And with this being a used tank, no instructions are present.

Please let me know how to hook this up or please point me to a good illustration on how to do so. Thanks in advance for your help!

[jim]

How many wires have you got and what voltage as normal is 2 wires black and white 220 volt

[RBM]

Assuming it's a 240 volt tank, You connect two wires to a double pole circuit breaker of the proper amperage for the wires,(usually #10 wire on 30 amp breaker) and one wire to the ground bar. At the tank there should be a green screw or bare wire to connect the ground to. There is no neutral

[spamwatchdog]

It's a 240 - 40 gallon tank. Sounds like I was on the right track. I'll hook up the hot wires to the two exposed on the tank and attach the ground to the green screw.

Thanks aga> Assuming it's a 240 volt tank, You connect two wires to a double pole

[Goedjn]

If there's no screw-terminal for a nuetral, then the WH probably has 240V controls, and doesn't need a nuetral. In that case just wire nut it and leave it unconnected.

[Stormin Mormon]

You sound like you havn't done this kind of thing. Please try to find a wiring diagram for the heater. Also, please find someone experienced to work with you. This is no place to have a "learning curve" moment.

[Doug Miller]

Assuming it's a 240V water heater -- there is no neutral. The black and white wires in the supply connect to the two hot leads on the water heater, and the bare wire in the supply connects to the ground on the water heater.

[Mark Lloyd]

That white is SUPPOSED to be red. White is meant to be used for neutral. Someone's used the wrong cable and failed to make the white as red.

[Doug Miller]

In what sense is using 10/2 WG to wire a water heater "using the wrong cable"??

[Nate Nagel]

It's not, but current code would suggest wrapping each end of the white wire with red (or other color that would designate that conductor as "hot") tape.

nate

[Mark Lloyd]

The wires themselves are not wrong. The insulation colors are. It should have black and red, rather than black and white.

This could have been corrected by properly identifying the white as being red.

[Doug Miller]

Then why did you say "Someone's used the wrong cable"?

Or by marking it black, or blue, or yellow, or brown, or purple with pink polka dots and a fluorescent-orange stripe -- basically any color except white, gray, or green.

[Steve Barker]

Do you care to elaborate on where the hell you would purchase a cable with a black and a red and no white in it? Using a standard black and white 10-2 in this application is perfectly fine if you mark the white wire as a hot.

When I ran my 10-2 to my heat pump, I just taped the white with black tape. Done.

[Mark Lloyd]

"The wrong cable". One with black and white, rather than one with black and red. Where's the problem?

[Mark Lloyd]

That, I don't know. Are those sold anywhere?

Which I said in me first reply in this thread.

[Doug Miller]

Right here: please explain where you propose to buy NM cable containing black, red, and bare wires.

[Doug Miller]

Perhaps you should have had that figured out before you started spouting this nonsense about someone using "the wrong cable", no?