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justaquickquestion · 03-13-2007, 02:28 PM

Hi all,

I'm new here and know very little about Electrical knowhow.

I moved into a total re-build house (I mean new everything but the frame).
I bought a washer and dryer and plugged them into an outlet.
They worked for 5 minutes then they died.
I called the service repairman, he checked the outlet with a reader and it read240-245v.
He said the outlet fried both computer broads.

The parts and repair are costing me a small fortune.
Is there an easy way to change the voltage to 120 for a newbie?
I checked the curcuit breaker panel and there were four of them labeled for the washer and dryer.

Example:

1.Washer Breaker
2.Dryer Breaker
3.Washer Breaker
4.Dryer Breaker

1. and 2. breaker are connected together
3. and 4. breaker are connected together

I can't flick off 1. without flicking off 2.
And I can't flick off 3. without flicking off 4.

I trying to save a few bucks if the converision is easy.

Thank you for your time.

Art

JoeD · 03-13-2007, 04:56 PM

This is a simple change. You will need to open the front of the panel and change the arrangement of the wires. One of the wires(white) will need to be removed from the breaker and put on the neutral bus. The receptacles should have abeen a 240 volt version that prevented you from pluggin in your 120 volt devices. That is obviously not the case so you won't need change the receptacles.

Square Eye · 03-14-2007, 03:09 PM

OMG!!
DO NOT OPEN THAT PANEL IF YOU ARE NOT POSITIVE THAT YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING!!!

I want to agree with JoeD, but a homeowner can be injured even kiled in an electrical panel. This is not a job for a novice. If a homeowner opens a panel and finds a black and a red on the breaker, what does he do? If he accidentally touches a wire, a main buss or a live breaker's terminal screws, what then?

The first thing You need to do is determine which breaker is providing power at the receptacle. Then determine if you can, whether anything else is on the same circuit. If so, stop and call an electrician. If not, then turn the breaker off and open the receptacle first. Check the color and orientation of the wire. If it's wired correctly, return it to it's box and cover it. If not, Call an electrician. Then when you or the electrician have good knowledge of what's in the receptacle box. The wire swap in the panel will be much more likely to be correct.

NEVER ASSUME THAT THE PREVIOUS ELECTRICIAN DOES EVERYTHING THE SAME WAY THAT YOU WOULD.

Code regulates us to certain parameters, but variables still exist that make a good understanding of electricity necessary to maintain our personal safety and the safety of others. I can't remember how many times I have been called to homes where the dryer or the oven was shocking people and found that the homeowners had wired a receptacle wrong, or an old receptacle was wired wrong.