My electrical wiring project involves change the wiring a water heater in the bathroom of a mobile home.
Wire and breaker size for electric water heater.
4 x 40 amps dp.
Wire a hot water heater with wire that s sized to accommodate the heater s current requirement.
While all voltages are dangerous it is this particular voltage which is most notorious for causing severe injury or death.
A 1500 watt heater on a 120 volt circuit thus needs a breaker of 15 6 amps.
The circuit wiring typically includes a 30 amp double pole breaker and 10 2 non metallic nm or mc cable.
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101 vancouver washington 98665 how to calculate breaker size wire size and wattages the chart below will help you determine fuse or breaker size and the necessary wire size to service various wattage loads.
For example a 20 amp hot water heater needs 12 gauge wire a 25 amp hot water heater requires 10 gauge wire and a 30 to 40 amp hot water heater requires 8 gauge wire.
Understanding water heater wiring.
Now in order to choose an electric breaker multiply the current draw of the water heater with 125 per cent in order to determine the size of the breaker you will need.
Some large heaters draw up to 50 amps requiring 6 gauge wire.
What is the right circuit breaker and cable for an electric water heater.
2 1000w 1 1500w 240v heaters 3500 watts total.
Model recommended breaker maximum amperage 240v recommended household electric service recommended minimum wire gauge.
In the above example we would require a 15 6 amp circuit breaker for our us readers.
At the water heater the black circuit wire connects to the black wire.
It is extremely important that the circuit be off when wiring an electric water heater.
When placing multiple heaters on a circuit do not exceed the wattage listed for the corresponding wire and circuit breaker size.
Most home hot water heaters are powered by a 240 volt circuit.
Multiply the value for current by 125 percent to determine the size of the breaker you need for the heater.
These 3 heaters would require 12 2 wire and a 20 amp 2 pole breaker if they were to all be placed on the same circuit.
To protect against material failures the national electric code.