Ok, I have an old craftsman 10" RAS that I inherited from my father. I have just finally installed it on my new workbench, in my new workshop that was part of a garage overhaul. Went to plug it in and behold I couldn't because it was wired for 220. All my plugs are for 110. How do I convert it back to 110 or should I wire the plug to 220. For either case how do I do it. I can do the wiring and etc, if someone just tells me how. thanks.
Randy
there should be a wireing diagram on the inside cover on the side of the motor. [ where the curley wire goes in! lol ] i dont remember the how or why of it but you will only be changing a couple of the conections. IMHO you would be better off running a 22o circuit in the garage if that is possible. i know mine seems to run better on 220 than itdid on 110.
skeez
The saw probably needs it own circuit anyhow. Do you happen to have a 120v
20a circuit that isn't otherwise used? If so, then you can change the saw to 120v and be good to go. There is probably a wiring diagram on or in the motor.If not, then you should add a new circuit. Assuming you have space in your breaker box, it would make more sense and be just as easy to add a 240v circuit. (240v requires two breakers)
And while it is very easy to do (run the cable, put a breaker in, attach the cable to the breaker, attach the other end to your new outlet) if you have to ask how to do it, you probably should have someone who doesn't have to ask do it. You can do 90% of the work by running the cable from where the outlet will be to the breaker box.
Hi Guys, Mine came wired for 110 and I could not rip a 2 inch plank without the thermal switch on top cutting off. I wired it to 220 and the diagrams are on the cover and never had a problem after that.
Eric
Personally I would wire the shop for 220v. Lots of good tools require
220v, like decent welders, air compressors, hiher end woodworking tools.If you do it your self apply for an electrical permit at you local city goverment, and do it right. Or hire an electrician to do it. What ever the case don't get hurt or burn your house down. Choose the appropriate wire and breaker for the current you need.
appropriate
If you go to a real electrical supply or hardware store (NOT the Home Center) they can set you up with the proper supplies.
I did have the electrician put in a dedicated 20 amp service for the RAS, a dedicated 20 am circuit for the dust collector and alternating plugs on different 20 amp circuits. just didn't know if the 220 would be better. thanks for the info
Assuming you can figure out how to change the RAS to 120v, your dedicated circuit will be fine. If you can't, then changing the circuit to 240v is trivial; the hard part is running the cable and that is already done. Good Luck
running the cable and that is already done.
I am curious don't you need thicker insulation at the higher voltage and therefore cable rated for 220V and the correct amperage?. Also what is the amperage rating of your saw?
What ever the case you should talk to your electrical inspector or licensed electrician, not take newsgroup advice on this,which is worth what you paid for it.
Whoops I see cable was already installed for 220v and the correct amperage. Sorry.
I hope you are kidding. You only get 120v in your house. 240v uses two hots, 120v uses only one hot and a grounding conductor; so there is 120v on all the wires regardless of whether it is 240v or 120v. Besides, romex is generally rated to 600v.
In fact 240v is less demanding because the current is half that of 120v; he could probably use #14 for his saw on 240v when 120v requires #12..
I generally find the advice here to be very valuable; well perhaps not generally, but often.
The gauge of wire needed is determined by the current (amperage) that it needs to carry, and not by the voltage. The tool will draw half the amps at 240V that it draws at 120V, and thus can actually use a *lighter* gauge of wire: you could run it on a 15A circuit at 240V.
-- Regards, Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)
Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt. And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?
Ummmmm, no, not unless the house is really really really old and the electrical service was never upgraded.
Yep -- both of which are present in approximately 99.9999999% of the homes in America.
120V potential to *ground*, yes, but in a 240V circuit there is a 240V potential between the two ungrounded conductors.Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)
Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt. And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?
Rarely does the insulation rating of home wiring come into play as most wire insulation seems to be in the 600V range or at least 300V, depending on the type. Just about any wire for electrical service wiring you can buy at the borg (not counting low voltage wire such as bell wire, intercom wire, low voltage lighting wire, for all the nit pickers out there) will function equally well on 120V or 240V.
The factor that is always a consideration is the wire gauge, which determines the number of amperes the circuit can safely supply. The higher the gauge number, the fewer amps it can carry. The common combinations are:
14 gauge - 15 Amp 12 gauge - 20 Amp 10 gauge - 30 AmpThat covers everything you'll be able to buy breakers for up to (but not including) your new welder, dryer, or range.
- - LRod
Master Woodbutcher and seasoned termite
Shamelessly whoring my website since 1999
I'd still prefer to run on 240, just because there is less drop with distance. We don't think about it a lot, but there is a lot of distance in a normal wiring run. In my garashop, which is 24' wide with a 10' ceiling, the panel is on the opposite side from my WW tools, so I have a wire that runs up from the panel, across the ceiling and down to an outlet. I have four 240V outlets on that run (I only use one tool at a time, and don't like having to unplug and re-plug) and the run extends more than 15' down the wall. All told I have over 50' of wire just to get to the farthest receptacle. For a
20A circuit #12 wire will handle up to 70 feet - but don't forget to add in the cord to your tool. Only my TS is more than a couple feet from the wall, and it has a 20' cord on it. Just to be on the safe side I ran #10 wire in the wall and don't ever anticipate any voltage drop problems.I am also adding a dedicated circuit for the dust collector (when I ever get one) and maybe another for a stationary compressor if I ever decide I want to be able to spray finishes.
It is pretty easy to run additional circuits now while the walls are still just studs, so I'm going well overboard, but I think it will be worth it.
Tim Douglass
Where did you get the information that a 20A 12ga circuit is only good for around 70 feet Tim? I know that I have measured voltage at equipment at the end of my runs and that's a lot more than 70 feet and seen no voltage drop. I'm not at all sure the 70 foot thing is accurate.
I have a Sears RAS which I converted over to 220. Fairly simple to do. Cut off the old plug, switch over the motor, put on new plug. Follow that order to prevent tragic mistakes. From the standpoint of current draw, at 110V. the saw could pop a 15A breaker when heavily loaded, or when starting on a heavily loaded circuit. Even worse if the lights are on that circuit. @ 220V the RAS uses about 1/3 of the available current on a 20A circuit. In theory, it will start a _little_ more crisply due to the somewhat lower line voltage drop. Mine comes up to speed NOW, not later. I consider the greatest advantage is the removal of a large tool from the available 110V circuits.
Most power cords are rated for 600V. Code I think. The neat part is that neither side of the 220V circuit is further from ground/neutral than the hot side of the 110. Of course, if you should happen to get a hot leg of the 220 in EACH hand at the SAME time, that would be bad(tm). As a matter practice, I make it a point to avoid EVER handling wires (which THINK are dead) in such a way that that I am holding a pair of wires, one per hand. My mom once walked into a room where my dad was wiring overhead lights, and she said, "Here, let me turn on the light so you can see what you're doing". Things got tense.
NEC - National Electrical Code charts for just this thing. I only have an old one but that's what it says for a 20amp, 240 volt single phase circuit.
FWIW, checking the voltage without a load in place won't tell you squat. It has to be under load. As an example that same #12 wire is good for
280' with a load ofHomeOwnersHub 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.