Good deal on Mig Welder

[Freshtrax]

I've been waiting for it to go on sale as I need a replacement for my old cannox 110v. Lincoln 180 220v. With regulator included 20% off at ctc. 636 plus hst.

 

 

Went to go wire an outlet in garage and assumed I had 220 in the panel in garage . Assumed wrong I have 2 hot wires running from same side of main panel on 2 30 amp breakers.. Have 10-4 cable running to garage about 50 ft run but not enough slack in wire to get to other side of panel to move the second hot. Any licenced electricians on the board in the kw area to help me sort this out.

 

Going to make an extension cord to run from dryer and out the window for now. Wife not impressed

Edited March 29, 2017 by Freshtrax

[irishfield]

I'm at a loss Andrew why you need to get to the other side of the panel with the wire. Every second lug on each side is the other "side" of the buss. You just need a double pole breaker and two spaces to put it on the SAME side of the panel and how you get 220/240 from a panel. The absolute last thing you want is two single breakers from each side to get it, as you could trip one and not the other and the results would not be pretty.

 

The panel in your garage should have never been run with two hot 110 singles. Considering you have 10/4 it should be pretty easy to correct it to use the red and black as your two live lines L1 and L2 to get 220/240 and the white for neutral (thus giving your 120 available for both a 4 line plug and single line breakers) and the ground.

Edited March 29, 2017 by irishfield

[Freshtrax]

This is why I need an electrician . Assumed when reading on how to do this the other buss was the other side of panel , thanks Wayne looks like I have what I need. To be honest I haven't put a voltmeter on out in the garage yet. Guess I should have started there.

Edited March 29, 2017 by Freshtrax

[Rattletrap2]

What Wayne said!

I'm also thinking 30 amps might be a bit on the light side to handle the Lincoln 180. 50 amps would be better. I guess if you don't intend to max out the machine, you might get away with it....but you will be limited. Your #10 wire is maxed out though at 30 amps.

[Freshtrax]

So is that 10-4 wire ok with 2 30 amp breakers clipped together in the middle Or does that make 60 amps? Also what should the main fuse be in the garage with this wire?

 

I have no intentions about messing with this on my own just trying to learn.

 

After further reading the double pole 30 is only 30 , and the correct breaker for the wire.

 

It's an old fuse panel garage with screw in fuses. Since the wire is only rated to 30 feeding this panel should it be a 30 amp fuse ?

Edited March 29, 2017 by Freshtrax

[Rattletrap2]

The two 30 amp breakers only supply 30 amps. The connecting piece makes sure if one trips, they trip together. The 10-4 cable you have should have (1) Black, (1) Red, (1) White, & (1) Green ground wire. This cable should be fine for 30 amps over the 50 feet or so you mentioned. I have not checked the charts, but it should be fine. The white conductor allows you to have 120 volts between either the of the Black or Red and the White. Black to Red should be 240 volts in a house.

I just checked the specs on the machine and it says input current is 20 amps @ Rated output. This seems kind of strange. Usually they are quite a bit higher input for 180 amps output.

Lincoln makes several versions of their 180 amp machines. This is one of the versions created for sale in Big Box Retailers. For home use, it should be fine. It is a good price!

 

Make sure you pay attention to the polarity of the MIG gun. It usually comes shipped with the gun connected to the Negative terminal for Flux core. The work clamp will be positive in this case.

 

If you decide to use a shielding gas of 75% argon/25% CO2, the gun will have to be switched to positive and the work clamp to negative.

 

This will all be in the instructions!

 

The plug on the machine cord will dictate the receptacle you require off your garage panel. It will be two prongs plus the ground.

 

Good luck!

[Freshtrax]

Thanks for taking the time. If I have 240 in garage, and after chatting with you guys and reinspecting my main panel and reading the breakers lol I do. I'm confident in wiring the receptical in garage. Will contact ESA Tomorow to arrange permit/ inspection. Will they have an issue with old screw in fuse panel in garage? And like I said earlier what main fuse should've I have in there considering the wire feeding it?

[irishfield]

Personally I wouldn't open that can of worms by calling ESA.. Hopefully someone can drop over and verify what you have and how to make it work correctly. Wish I was closer..

[Rattletrap2]

Freshtrax, I'm kind of with Wayne again on this one! Bringing ESA into things might be the proper thing to do, but it can open a whole can of worms you don't necessarily need! On the other hand, burning down your house or garage ain't smart either!

I also live quite a ways from you or I would be happy to help out. I'm not a licensed Electrician by any means. I am a licensed Refrigeration HVAC Mechanic and a licensed Welder. I have worked extensively with Electrical for over 36 years, so i have a certain confidence with it as Wayne does.

If you are not confident in this work, it is better to bring someone in that is. For insurance reasons, you want to make sure the Canadian Electrical code is followed.

ESA will only tell you all the things wrong and you still need someone to do the actual work correctly.

 

Okay, having said all that, It sounds like you have a 30 amp two pole breaker in your main house panel that is feeding a sub-panel in your garage. This sub-panel has screw in plug fuses? It is an older one if that is the case. 30 amp sub panels with breakers are not expensive, and might be a better choice. You could get one with 4 or 8 breakers that would suffice for a few other receptacles in the garage when you are not welding. Actually, the cost of breakers might add up to more than the panel! lol The welder could blow the fuses if you max out the output. In most cases, you will be welding at less than the rated output.

 

Where are you at with this project to date?

 

If you still want to use the old fuse panel, it should still work with 30 amp fuses to power your welder. Run 2 - #10 AWG (American Wire Gauge) gauge wire to the receptacle plus a ground wire.