Replacing 220V wall heater with 110v Duplex? Safe? Possible? PROBLEMS! - Electrician Talk - Professional Electrical Contractors Forum

j_v_z · 11-04-2009, 10:43 PM

i have a 220v wall heater on a 20a breaker that i want to remove and replace with a 20a 120v duplex. is this possible? if so how? i just burnt up a ballast in a light and smoked the place up. also, what determines output voltage? breaker?

EDM · 11-04-2009, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j_v_z

i have a 220v wall heater on a 20a breaker that i want to remove and replace with a 20a 120v duplex. is this possible? if so how? i just burnt up a ballast in a light and smoked the place up. also, what determines output voltage? breaker?

sparks134 · 11-04-2009, 10:46 PM

so .... change it out already!

nolabama · 11-04-2009, 11:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j_v_z

i have a 220v wall heater on a 20a breaker that i want to remove and replace with a 20a 120v duplex. is this possible? if so how? i just burnt up a ballast in a light and smoked the place up. also, what determines output voltage? breaker?

is this possible ? no sir not for you call an electrician before you set your house on fire and/or kill someone
the power company determines output voltage

EDM · 11-04-2009, 11:16 PM

From what I gathered, he is trying to figure out how you can choose whether to get 120V or 240V. Also it seems he wired up something wrong and sent 240V to a circuit with lights on it and blew out the ballast.

His profile says that he is a general contractor so I bet this isn't even in his house, it's probably a customer's house that he said he would do the work instead of calling for a pesky electrician.

nolabama · 11-04-2009, 11:17 PM

i mean that part about the fire dude stop what yur doing and call an electrician for help they would apperciate the work right now

j_v_z · 11-04-2009, 11:19 PM

thanks nolabama. i cant afford an electrician. last time they charged me $200 for an hour and a half of work. I am a senior at a University studying construction mgmt and have done a bit of electrical work under the supervision of an electrician.

j_v_z · 11-04-2009, 11:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EDM

From what I gathered, he is trying to figure out how you can choose whether to get 120V or 240V. Also it seems he wired up something wrong and sent 240V to a circuit with lights on it and blew out the ballast.

His profile says that he is a general contractor so I bet this isn't even in his house, it's probably a customer's house that he said he would do the work instead of calling for a pesky electrician.

good guess. its a work shop actually so its not the end of the world that it now smells like putrid smoke in there. and its for a friend so he knows im not exactly certified, lol..... anyway, framing, drywall, hvac etc have been my main line of work, but i will eventually persue an electrician apprentice. just trying to get familiar. thanks again for the help guys

nolabama · 11-04-2009, 11:27 PM

that putrid smell is from plastic being cooked - if you have not turned this whole circuit off do so now NOW DAMMIT

EDM · 11-04-2009, 11:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j_v_z

good guess. its a work shop actually so its not the end of the world that it now smells like putrid smoke in there. and its for a friend so he knows im not exactly certified, lol..... anyway, framing, drywall, hvac etc have been my main line of work, but i will eventually persue an electrician apprentice. just trying to get familiar. thanks again for the help guys

This is a good forum, when you are an apprentice. You should return when you get in.

Until then, you came here under false pretenses. You lied and said that you were an electrician when you signed up. You broke the rules. You are also doing electrical work that could kill someone, hopefully the smoke you breathed in today help you learn that. If you don't know the difference in wiring 120V and 240V, there is no chance in hell that you should be touching electrical work.

j_v_z · 11-04-2009, 11:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nolabama

that putrid smell is from plastic being cooked - if you have not turned this whole circuit off do so now NOW DAMMIT

lol, okay, although i realize i probably dont deserve it due to my lack of knowledge, give me some credit. the circuit was on for less than 5 mins and the light its self was only plugged in for less than a minute and a 12g cord was used with built in breaker between the light and plug

EDM · 11-04-2009, 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j_v_z

lol, okay, although i realize i probably dont deserve it due to my lack of knowledge, give me some credit. the circuit was on for less than 5 mins and the light its self was only plugged in for less than a minute and a 12g cord was used with built in breaker between the light and plug

Credit for what? Being an idiot?

nolabama · 11-04-2009, 11:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j_v_z

lol, okay, although i realize i probably dont deserve it due to my lack of knowledge, give me some credit. the circuit was on for less than 5 mins and the light its self was only plugged in for less than a minute and a 12g cord was used with built in breaker between the light and plug

I dont know that - we have guys trouble shoot things that are going on at the moment - and when a 'lectrician be smellin smoke things are bad

j_v_z · 11-04-2009, 11:38 PM

ah.... sure. i tried reserching this topic for hours online before i thought id found sufficent information. was hoping if nothing else someone could point me to an information database with a page where i could read about this topic. apparently some would rather I guess and check. clearly i have come here out of necesity

nolabama · 11-04-2009, 11:42 PM

you burnt up a lamp installed in the outlet you changed or you set fire to a fixture in the house
answer this correctly its very important

EDM · 11-04-2009, 11:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j_v_z

ah.... sure. i tried reserching this topic for hours online before i thought id found sufficent information. was hoping if nothing else someone could point me to an information database with a page where i could read about this topic. apparently some would rather I guess and check. clearly i have come here out of necesity

You didn't come here out of necessity. You came here because you are trying to do something that you shouldn't be doing.

Have your friend call an electrician.

j_v_z · 11-04-2009, 11:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nolabama

you burnt up a lamp installed in the outlet you changed or you set fire to a fixture in the house
answer this correctly its very important

nothing caught fire, just smoke so i flipped the break on the cord. nothing is installed on the outlet

Kevin J · 11-04-2009, 11:50 PM

Where's the mods? I'm surprised this isn't closed yet.

mattsilkwood · 11-04-2009, 11:51 PM

Come on, are you for real? Quit being a douche, call an electrician before you burn your buddys workshop down.

What's worse, spending a little money now or having people call you torch for the next 20 years? Or worse yet, not being around to hear people calling you torch?

nolabama · 11-04-2009, 11:59 PM

you said ballast in your OP
that indicates to me a fixed overhead light fixture - if it is a cord and plug fixture ok

you need to run a circuit trace to find the breaker
when you find the breaker TURN IT OFF
after you turn it off remove the old outlet
install the new outlet
remove the b phase wire from the breaker and place it on the noodle bar

good luck

CALL AN ELECTRICIAN