So, can I 'legally/up to code' tap into my 220v that my heater uses and put a plug off it?

The unit is in the garage and I want to put a 220v plug off of it so that when the heater is not on I can use the power.


-Todd

Everything on the circuit needs to be able to run at once. You should see how many amps the heater pulls to see if you are still under the breaker with the new load.

Everything on the circuit needs to be able to run at once. You should see how many amps the heater pulls to see if you are still under the breaker with the new load.

How can I know if everything on the breaker can run at once if I want to install a plug ??? (I could plug in a welder that requires 50amps or a compressor that requires 23.)

-Todd

How can I know if everything on the breaker can run at once if I want to install a plug ??? (I could plug in a welder that requires 50amps or a compressor that requires 23.)

-Todd

You have to design for it..... how can anybody know????. So, what you should do is run each off of it's own circuit. One circuit for the heater, another circuit for the outlet. If your panel is full and don't have the available space to add another 240V circuit, then you take an existing 240V circuit and convert that to feed a subpanel. Then move the circuit who's space you used to feed the subpanel to the subpanel. Then add additional circuits to the subpanel as needed.

Supposing its only a 15 or 20 amp 240V circuit, you can do this safely. You do need a neutral available though. (i.e. white wire in addition to the red, black, and ground.)