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240v appliances with 120V outlets

8K views 21 replies 9 participants last post by  J. V. 
#1 ·
We will be moving to a new house within a week. We will be bringing our appliances along. However, the dryer and the stove have a large 3 prong plug (240V). The house does not have the outlets for us to use them.
I do not want to get rid of my stove and dryer, I would like to keep them and use them. We were looking at hiring an electricain, but found it will cost us a lot of money.
Is there an easy solution to this problem?
The house is wired for 120V appliances, not 240V.
 
#4 ·
It depends on how much you can do electrically. Have you ever performed any electrical installations? Fishing cables, installing receptacles or switches? If the answer is yes, then you can do this and we can help you.

How much did the electrician say it would cost? You say it is was expensive? You have to look at materials (cheap) and labor (not cheap) but free if you do this yourself. You also have to look at your capabilities. If you are up for the job let us know. You can have your appliances ready to be plugged in before you move in. :thumbsup:
 
#6 ·
Take a picture of your panel (with the cover off, if possible) so we can see what we're working with here.

You need two free slots for each 240 volt circuit. If it's already full, this could be beyond a DIY fix for the original poster.

If you have 2 free slots (or can free them up moving other circuits to tandems), then hook up your stove, but sell the electric dryer and get a gas one. (Gas dryers are much faster, and are less expensive to run.)
 
#8 ·
Okay, we took a look at the panel. It does have 2 larger free spaces that we could use. We ran into another problem.........
The panle is in a different room than the laundry room and the panel is no where near the kitchen and one room away from the laundry room.

Again, we don't have any experience in electrical. But the cost sounds great! It has already been a headache trying to find new/used appliances that would fit and sell the ones we have.

I think the heat is gas. The appliances in their already are MUCh older. The dryer doesn't work and the stove is older than ours. Our appliances are under 4 years old and are in great condition.
 
#11 ·
You can configure an electric dryer to operate on a 120 Volt source.

Be advised that it will take 3-4 times longer to dry a wet load of clothes, when so connected.

If you connected an electric range in a similar manner, it might also work, albeit quite marginally.

The heating elements would only produce ¼ their rated wattage, and cooking would be quite a task with limited heat output. :huh:

Best to stick with gas appliances in your situation for the time being.
 
#15 ·
You can configure an electric dryer to operate on a 120 Volt source.

Be advised that it will take 3-4 times longer to dry a wet load of clothes, when so connected.

If you connected an electric range in a similar manner, it might also work, albeit quite marginally.

The heating elements would only produce ¼ their rated wattage, and cooking would be quite a task with limited heat output. :huh:

Best to stick with gas appliances in your situation for the time being.


Don't go with this idea!
 
#12 ·
the dryer and the stove have a large 3 prong plug (240V).

The current stove is electric. The dryer is gas.

I am a bit confused. The existing stove is electric but doesn't have a receptacle?

In that case, the modification is pretty simple. Install a jbox, a receptacle and plug in your stove. Parts $30, labor 1 hour (or a half day if you do it).

If the existing dryer is gas, just use it. A new dryer circuit will be $300 minimum.
 
#20 · (Edited)
Reconfiguring a 240 volt electric dryer to run on 120 volts also requires center tapping the heating element. (If you don't know what that means then this is not a DIY project for you.) Neutral goes to the middle and the two ends are tied together and connected to the hot line. The heat will then be the same as the original 240 volt power supply would yield.

Estimate the total amperes drawn at 120 volts to be twice that at 240 volts. (The heating element uses the majority of the energy.) Should this be more than 20 amps (20 amp circuit) then the project is not practical. You would need to string a new circuit for a 120 volt load greater than 20 amps (80% or 16 amps for something continuous or long running like an air conditioner) and if you need to do this you might as well string a 240 volt circuit.
 
#22 ·
I would fish the cables, install the recepts and connect to the panel and be done with it. Gas appliances cost more to buy new. But IMO are the better option. I like gas, but if my appliances are electric and in almost new condition I would pull the trigger. Watch that meter spin.
 
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