Electrical plug on arc welder

Anytime you have a question about use of plugs and recepticals go to Google and type "NEMA Plug Configuration". As said earlier, most devices are marked with the NEMA code, so you don't have to guess, just consult the chart.

CAUTUION NOTE: You have to use a plug,,,,and a receptacle,,,,, and branch circuit feed wires,,,,, ,,,, and a circuit breaker rated to handle what the welder requires!!!!! !! Some AC Buzz Box welders similar to what you describe require 50 amp service n receptacles n wiring and branch circuit breakers while smaller welders may only require 30 amp service WHAT DOES YOUR WELDER REQUIRE ????? ????? ????? ??? Once you know that all you have to do is insure that alllll lllll the branch circuit components being the plug,,,,the receptacle,,,,, ,the branch circuit wire sizes,,,,, ,,and the circuit breaker are suitable for the welder, be it 30 amp or more likely 50 amp service.

Once I know what the welder requires, be it 30 or 50 amp service, I can advise you whats required.

John T, retired Electrical Engineer

Theres no free lunch or easy way to do things sometimes grrrrr rrrrr r

John T

You're getting well-intentioned advice on this but some of it is mistaken. If your electrical system was designed and installed correctly (let's assume it was), there isn't much you're going to do at the outlet in the compressor room or with the welder plug that could cause a dangerous situation. What would be dangerous in your situation would be to think you needed a 50 amp breaker to handle the welder and to install one in your panel in place of the existing 30 amp breaker without upgrading the 10 gauge wire coming out of that breaker. Then you would have a situation where an appliance could draw more current than the wire could handle; the wire could burn before the breaker would trip.

In your present situation, on the other hand, what you are doing is to changing the configuration so that an appliance that can draw more than 30 amps (more about that in a minute) will be doing it through a breaker that will trip if more than 30 amps passes through it more than momentarily. In other words, the 30 amp breaker is still the limiting device in the circuit---as it should be. The problem you are more likely to experience is nuisance tripping; the welder overdraws the circuit and trips the breaker. This isn't a situation without consequences. Breakers aren't supposed to be tripped over and over again. The quality of breakers varies greatly by brand. I've had to deal with a number of problems that were caused because breakers failed to do what they were supposed to (but didn't cause a fire.)

I've read on this forum that the national electrical code makes specific exception for the circuit size requirement for welders. My experience is consistent with this. For home shop welding you're unlikely to be welding for long periods at high settings. If you are, you haven't got the right welder for it anyway.

I think you're going to be perfectly satisfied running your welder on a dedicated 30 amp circuit. If it trips the breaker frequently, that would be the time to add a 50 amp circuit on 6 gauge wire (or look into buying a more power efficient welder.)

All the best, Stan

Worst case, you ought to be able to figure out white and black by popping the cover off your wall outlet. From there, use an ohm meter or continuity tester to figure out which wire goes to which pin on the plug.

--->Paul

put the green wire on the "U" terminat---the red or black on the brass screw the white wire in the silver screw.....