Do dryers need their own dedicated circuit?

merk said:

Thanks, I appreciate the advice

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Go to about 1100 in this video and see a wire chase behind his head.
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6hE1-OOGyY[/ame]

Yeah I got the idea if what it was...and from the video your description was spot on since that's exactly what I thought it was.

That's definitely overkill for anything I plan on doing. If I do this myself, I most likely will just run romex overhead, or if I feel extra ambitious, some conduit along the bottom wall.

Romex is the stuff with vinyl coating, it can not be unprotected.
The box in the video is big enough for HVAC also.

What's the stuff in the flexible metal coil? I thought that was romex?

I call that armored cable, but I think it has better name. I don't know about Cal. but I think it would be alright here.

Ah ok,thanks. I'll look it up when I get home to see what that cable is called.

For a garage I agree with Neal that MC type cable would be more appropriate to run if it will be exposed on the outside of the wall. For a few more bucks I would go that route. I think they sell coils of 10/2, 10/3 w/ ground in 25, 50, 100 ft. The one hole straps for them are very cheap too. If you go that route, make sure you use MC type connectors and red anti-shorts at the box locations.

Thanks, I appreciate the advice

nealtw said:

I call that armored cable, but I think it has better name. I don't know about Cal. but I think it would be alright here.

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Armored cable was developed by General Electric and initially manufactured in GE's Bronx NY factory. It was GE's practice to label everything with the factory code for were it was produced. When armored cable first appeared in the electrical industry every role produced had a card stock label attached using a twisted wire tether with the "BX" code on the card. Naturally it was easier to send an apprentice to get BX cable since each roll was already labeled with a tag with that code on it it very large letters. That is how armored cable came to be called BX. By the time other manufacturers began making Armored Cable the term BX was in common use among electricians and the name stuck.

Non Metallic cable came to be called Romex in much the same way. It was developed by the Rome Wire & Cable Company as an alternative to BX that was less expensive and easier to install. Since that company was competing directly with a product commonly called BX they called their Non Metallic Sheathed Cable Romex. By the time that other companies were manufacturing some form of Type NM cable the name Romex was in common use.

I prefer conduit or "protected wire" instead of Bx. But either will work as long as it is 10AWG. And make sure you know how to wire the 220 V breaker in your panel.

Bx mc and greenfield.
All the same thing by different names.

Greenfield is not a cable. It is a flexible conduit you add wires to. The others are complete cable assemblies with casing and wires.

BX and MC are different too. BX is the old armored cable that did not contain a ground. MC is the cable used today containing a ground wire.

Kabris said:

BX and MC are different too. BX is the old armored cable that did not contain a ground. MC is the cable used today containing a ground wire.

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While it is true that the original Armored Cable, which was manufactured at the General Electric plant in the Bronx and labeled BX as a consequence, did not have a separate Equipment Grounding Conductor (EGC) Armored Cable is still manufactured without an EGC in the form of a wire. Instead it now contains a bonding strip run outside the paper wrapping just inside the armor itself. That shorts each spiral of the armor wrapping together and allows it to serve as a fully effective EGC much like the metal of a metallic conduit system.

Metal Clad (MC) cable, on the other hand uses it spiral metal tape over wrap for physical protection only and an EGC is installed with the other conductors in the form of an insulated wire.

When two separate EGCs are required, such as for redundant grounding required in health care facilities or a separate isolated EGC for certain noise sensitive electronic loads, type AC cable is used with the second EGC taking the form of an insulated wire and the armor with bonding strip serving as the EGC for all other purposes.

The overall point is that Type AC and Type MC cables are two entirely different cable types. Neither is a successor to the other. They both look the same because in their most common construction the both have a spiral wound interlocking metal tape as physical protection.

Thanks Tom, you are correct sir. I just refer to BX as the old type because many houses were wired with it back in the day. I don't see type AC used too often anymore in new installations.

merk said:

I'm not concerned about it being 100% up to code. Just as long as it's safe.

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That is what CODE is for...

And I think running it along the top of the wall would be fine. i don't even use the garage to park my car so there isn't any chance of a car antenna or something snagging on the wire.

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CODE!?! I DON' NEED NO STINKIN' CODE!

KULTULZ said:

That is what CODE is for...

CODE!?! I DON' NEED NO STINKIN' CODE!

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I absolutely agree with you!! That is what CODE is for!! :agree:

Again, running romex on the outside of the wall is not a good idea especially in a garage or basement. Something such as a heavy board, or something falling over can pinch a romex and cause a major short or even worse. Using MC or the like can give you added protection against that.

Somebody has to say it. When you factor in the cost for the electrical work, the load on the solar which may or not be able to handle a power hog like an electric dryer along with everything else, maybe it would just make more sense to leave the gas dryer in place. YMMV.

DFBonnett said:

Somebody has to say it. When you factor in the cost for the electrical work, the load on the solar which may or not be able to handle a power hog like an electric dryer along with everything else, maybe it would just make more sense to leave the gas dryer in place. YMMV.

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Solar dryers have been around for ever.:trophy:
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADQDLdfQHco[/ame]

NealTw, just watched that video. Wow, how simple can it be!!