Plugs/Receptacles for elements?

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jhollist

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All,

I am starting to work on a design for converting my brewery to electric. One issue I am thinking about right now is the plug for the element. Kal uses L6-30 plugs and receptacles and I have also seen many using the older NEMA 10-30 plugs. Also what about using NEMA 14-40 without using the neutral?

Just wondering what the prevailing wisdom is on this issue is?

NEMA 10-30 and 14-40 are cheap, but are they safe?

Cheers,
Jeff

p.s. I will be using 4 prong to a 30A GFCI breaker to power the panel.
 
I can't speak on using other plugs and how safe they are. What I can say is that after searching for many hours I did fine a rather well priced source for the exact receptacles and plugs Kal used. They did not carry every single one I needed but they did have most.... and the expensive ones at that. Shipped fast and customer service was very good.

http://www.fruitridgetools.com/storefrontprofiles/default.aspx?sfid=136763
 
Here are the prices I paid from Fruitridge. After extensive searching these were very good prices. Perhaps people with more electronic/electrical experience can tell you something better.

L14-30R (receptacle) - $14.95/each
L14-30P (plug) - $19.95/each
L5-15R - $12.95/each
L5-15P - $5.95/each
L6-30R - $19.95/each
L6-30P - $9.95/each
 
I went with L6-30 in my build because of the combination of a locking plug/receptacle at a good price; furthermore you can readily find them at Lowes, Home Depot, or your local electrical supply. While you can make arguments for and against the safety factor in locking plugs/receptacles it makes sense to me since my power supply from the breaker is via a 14-40 receptacle and I wouldn't want the confusion of having another 14-40 plug to deal with, besides those things are heavy and bulky while the L6-30 is fairly easy to work with and not too big.
 
Thanks guys!

I was leaning towards the l6-30s anyway, but just wanted to get some other opinions.

The argument for having the different plugs is a good one.

Cheers,
Jeff
 
Something to keep in mind is that 5500 watt elements draw around 23 amps when running full bore so that cord is okay on the gauge department (10 AWG is okay for 30 amps) but the jacket may not be up to snuff. 10/3 SJOOW seems to be preferred, you can find it at Lowes or HD, and its resistant to water, oils, and (probably) boiling wort.
 
Here are the prices I paid from Fruitridge. After extensive searching these were very good prices. Perhaps people with more electronic/electrical experience can tell you something better.

L14-30R (receptacle) - $14.95/each
L14-30P (plug) - $19.95/each
L5-15R - $12.95/each
L5-15P - $5.95/each
L6-30R - $19.95/each
L6-30P - $9.95/each

For the L14-30 components, did you order a female receptacle and male plug? I don't see the configuration that Kal uses (male receptacle/female plug).
 
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