Electrical Questions

[Ivan in Nova Scotia]

Iam not an electrician but have always been able to do some minor work such as changing plugs and wireing simple projects. Last night at my sons house I found something that I had never run across before.
His wire in his house has 4 wires as follows: white,black,red and the ground. His plugs are mostly ( not all ) split with the black on the hot side and also the red. The piece of copper has been cut so that each wire is a circut. I have seen the odd plug wired this way but all of his plugs at the kitchen counter are wired this way. Is there a name for this method?

Another question. He bought a new tread mill at Christmas and the only way the thumb pulse works is if he shuts his ceiling light out. Shut it on and pulse doesn't work. Strange or what.

[Dave W in Calgary]

This is actually a very common way of wiring receptacles in a kitchen. This way two separate 15 (or 20) amp circuits are available at each receptacle. I had my shop wired the same way. I can also convert any of the split receptacles to 220V at any time if required.

As far as the tread mill goes is the light a fluorescent light or on a dimmer? Both can create electrical noise that could interfere with the pulse pickup.

[Chris in Pickering]

I believe that term is "split duplex"
The outlets share a neutral, but each have their own hot wire. The 2 15A breakers in the panel should have a tie-bar connecting them.

[J.P. Rap]

If Im ot mistaken, that's the new code for kitchens. It doesn't apply to old kitchen but it applies to updating old kitchens. If you update your old kitchen wiring, it must be done this way or it no longer meet code.

[ArtMulder]

I had my shop wired the same way. I can also convert any of the split receptacles to 220V at any time if required.


Errrr, is that legal under Canadian Code? I think I've read this in US magazines, but I didn't think you could have both 110 and 220 receptacles on the same circuit in Canada. (I'm trusting one of the Mike's to step up and slap me a bit and give the correct answer...:cool: )

[Ken in Regina]

The thumb pulse doodad in the treadmill is done with light not electrical. There is too much light for it to work properly with the overhead lights on. It's likely that there is a fairly bright light almost directly over the sensor which is affecting it.

...ken...

[billh]

If Im ot mistaken, that's the new code for kitchens. It doesn't apply to old kitchen but it applies to updating old kitchens. If you update your old kitchen wiring, it must be done this way or it no longer meet code.

Split receptacles for kitchens have been the way to do it for some time now. The new code says from 2003 that kitchen receptacles within 1 meter of the sink must be on GFI breakers. Split receptacle GFIs are not common and expensive so they are now using 20A receptacles with #12 wire. Other kitchen receptacles can be either split 15A or a 20A.

[Tony in A'burg]

Errrr, is that legal under Canadian Code? I think I've read this in US magazines, but I didn't think you could have both 110 and 220 receptacles on the same circuit in Canada. (I'm trusting one of the Mike's to step up and slap me a bit and give the correct answer...:cool: )

This is not legal in Ontario at least. I asked the local ESA inspector about it a couple of months ago, and he said no way, either the circuit is 110v or 220v not both!!

Tony

[Chris in Saskatoon]

His wire in his house has 4 wires as follows: white,black,red and the ground. His plugs are mostly ( not all ) split with the black on the hot side and also the red. The piece of copper has been cut so that each wire is a circut. I have seen the odd plug wired this way but all of his plugs at the kitchen counter are wired this way. Is there a name for this method?

This is the code-specified method of wiring kitchen circuits in most of Canada. It's called a "multiwire" or "edison" circuit. The advantage of this technique is two-fold.

1) You can plug a microwave into the top outlet and a toaster oven into the bottom outlet and not trip the breaker.

2) The current flow in the neutral conductor can be zero if the loads on the two circuits are equal.

There are a couple caveats. It is important that the neutral is properly connected. A loose neutral can do bad things like supply 240V to appliances. Both circuits should be controlled by the same double pole breaker, or else with two single pole breakers with their handles tied together. When wiring, the neutral has to be pigtailed so that removing an outlet doesn't interrupt its continuity. (I can't remember right now if the hots need to be pigtailed as well.) Lastly, the two "hot" legs should be supplied with current from different legs in your panel. If they're supplied from the same leg the current in the neutral conductor doubles, and it could overheat.

[Dave W in Calgary]

This is not legal in Ontario at least. I asked the local ESA inspector about it a couple of months ago, and he said no way, either the circuit is 110v or 220v not both!!

Tony

That's the way my electrician wired it and it passed the inspection, so I guess that's good enough for me.

[ArtMulder]

That's the way my electrician wired it and it passed the inspection, so I guess that's good enough for me.

No one is questioning wheather the original setup is legal code, Dave. The question is whether it would be legal to convert any of those split receptacles into 220v plugs.

...art

[Dave W in Calgary]

No one is questioning wheather the original setup is legal code, Dave. The question is whether it would be legal to convert any of those split receptacles into 220v plugs.

...art
The original, inspected wiring had 220 and 110 volt recepticals in the same box on the same 12/3 wires.

[Robin in Niagara]

When I wired my garage/workshop 15 years ago I ran 3 - 220 lines from my panel box and leapfrogged the outlets every 4 feet so every third outlet is on the same circuit. Each outlet has a 220 recepticle and a split 110 recepticle. The inspector at the time thought it was novel but was too much for a "garage". He passed it with no problems. So I guess now it will not pass?
Robin