Connect Unisaw to Dryer Outlet

Mar 18, 2005 62 Replies

I am currently living in a rental until our house is finished. There is no



220 volt outlet in the garage so I can't use my saw. Not being an electrician, can I plug it into the outlet used by the dryer? I know I will have to change the plug on my saw.

Thanks for the help.



Jim


Or change the dryer socket. Spose they would like it netter if you changed your plug. As i recall the molded drier cables are/were just a few $$.

As long as the panel breaker is at least the required capacity.. YES.

Yes you can providing the amp rating is high enough. More than likely it is. Mine shares that circuit and I can run the dryer and TS at the same time. I did not want either to interrupt the other.

There is nothing magic about one kind of 220V over another, at least in this

60 Hz country. But you might want to change the circuit breaker to match the saw requirement. You could also change the outlet to match the saw, instead of the other way around. Six of one-half a dozen of the other.

Steve

Dryer sockets are commonly used for many welding "buzzboxes". And they draw a lot more amps than most saws.

Just look on the electrical panel to make sure that you have enough amps on that circuit.

But you might want to change the circuit breaker to match

DON'T do that!! The circuit breaker is there to protect the wiring - not the appliance plugged into it. I'll amend that - you can size it down to a smaller size breaker (15 amp from 20 amp) but never size it up unless you know for sure what size and type the wire is and the length of the run.

Ok, changing the circuit breaker is a waste of time and money and could be quite dangerous if you increase its rating.

Also, since it is a rental unit, it's probably better not to mess with the house wiring and just change the plug on the saw.

No need---as has been noted many times, the circuit breaker is to protect the circuit wiring, the device...

If it's an electric dryer, it's probably a dedicated 220V 30A circuit, with a NEMA 14-30R

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is a 4-wire plug, delivering two hots, a neutral, and ground. There's 110V from either hot to neutral, and 220V from one hot to the other.

You don't mention what kind of motor is in your Unisaw, so I'm assuming it's the common 3HP, 220V. In theory, this needs a 220V 15A circuit, but most people put them on a 20A circuit (mostly because it doesn't cost any more to install the 20 and you might need it some day in the future). The circuit you have now will work fine. You would need to put a 14-30P plug on your unisaw. Your saw's cord will have 3 wires -- two hots and a ground. The neutral pin on the 14-30P plug will be left unconnected.

Your dryer needs the neutral because it has internal components that need

110V (the controller, light, probably the motor that makes the drum go around; only the heating element is on 220V). You saw only has the 220V motor, so it doesn't need the neutral.

Now that I've explained all that, please go hire an electrician to do the work, or at least check what you've done. I've made a lot of guesses above about what you've really got from your vague description, any of which could be wrong.

OK, let's assume you can check the wiring gauge size at the panel or at the outlet. If it happens to be beefy enough to handle, say, a 30A breaker, is it then safe to switch out to that larger capacity breaker?

H.

breaker?

If you don't know, ask an electrician to look at it for you. To many variables such as type of wire, type of insulation, length of run, etc.

Since this is electricity for the dryer, he will have the added advantage of being able to cut green wood and have it dried when the cut is done.

My drill press is on the same circuit as the lights in my 9 month old sons room. Is that why brown stuff keeps oozing out the end of my boards?

"Edwin Pawlowski" wrote in news:H7D_d.5632$ed6.4260@trndny06:

But he WILL have to use something other than the 4" dryer vent for dust collection. DAMHIKT.

Patriarch

OK, I will admit to the assumption that a dryer has a higher amp rating than a table saw. A 30 or 40 amp table saw would be a real monster. Like a sawmill. I would go for a circuit breaker that trips near (but above) the saw spec, so it does provide protection.

Steve

on 3/18/2005 12:13 PM Steven and Gail Peterson said the following:

Once again: The circuit breaker is there to protect the WIRING, NOT the appliance. The rating of the saw, etc. when stated as "Use only on 15 AMP circuit" states the MINIMUM rating for the circuit to which the saw is connected.

That essentially the logic behind the fact you don't have any one amp circuit breakers protecting your electric toothbrush recharger, the nightlight in the hallway, etc.

The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw. The circuit breaker protects the wiring, not the saw.

Are you going to change out all you circuit breakers to a lower amp also for you lamps, TV, radio's, blenders, 110 volt tools, and such? They require much less than the circuit rating. If anything a lower rated circuit breaker is going to make the motor heat up more when under a strain because it is not getting enough power.

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