2000W heating element with a 15a plug

[djsereno91]

I recently decided to upgrade the heating element in my heat stick to 2000w. At 120V, that puts me at 16.7A. However, I'm now realizing that the wire plug that I was using is rated for 15A. I also have a portable GFCI plug that I use in addition to the GFCI outlet (doubling down on the safety factor) which is also only rated for 15A. The circuit is good for 20A so that is not a problem, but do I need to replace the plugs? The majority of the plugs I'm finding at Home Depot are 15A. If possible, I'd prefer to not have to replace anything, but I realize I'm slightly over the rating for these guys.

 

[bja]

I'm not sure what your question is, but you don't have a choice, you need to replace the plug at least.

Are you sure it's a 20A circuit? Does it have 12ga wire? What is the breaker rated for?

 

[HoppyHills]

I'm a 4 year electrical apprentice.. studying to take my journeyman's test. Most outlets that you see that are rated at 15amps are good for 15-20 amps. It says it right in the National Electrical Code (NEC).

You're good, man, just make sure your wiring to the plugs is 12 gauge all the way from the panel. 14 gauge isn't rated to carry 16.7 amps, where 12ga is.

Hope this helps!

 

[HoppyHills]

I'm a 4 year electrical apprentice.. studying to take my journeyman's test. Most outlets that you see that are rated at 15amps are good for 15-20 amps. It says it right in the National Electrical Code (NEC).

You're good, man, just make sure your wiring to the plugs is 12 gauge all the way from the panel. 14 gauge isn't rated to carry 16.7 amps, where 12ga is.

Hope this helps!

Just noticed you said the cord wiring is rated for 15 amps, I would change that out to a 12 gauge cord if you have the chance.. if not, just don't leave it alone when you're brewing lol. At the peak of heating up, grab the cord, if it's hot to the touch, then I'd worry. Just because the heater is rated at 2000w doesn't mean it's constantly drawing a full 2000w, that large of a draw is most likely rarely touched.

 

[augiedoggy]

When you take the codes and policies out of the conversation and just look at it from a mechanical and electrical pint of view , a 15a outlet and 20a outlet can both carry the same current, They have the same plug and contact surface for electrical transfer. One blade is just turned sideways so prevent plugging in a 20a device into a 15a circuit. Honestly a 15a or 20 3 prong outlet can in many cases carry much more current safely than they are rated for. I dont use them for this and im not recommending it since it goes without saying it can have detrimental side effects from the confusion created but if your sure your the only one using your home brewery and are aware of this I think youll be fine.

I do have some older 15a style outlets that actually say they are good for up to 20a kicking around.

I would be cautious that you dont have other stuff running on that circuit though while using the element.

Soon all the electricians and code police will chime in.. and explain why its a bad idea and they do usually have valid points but those points may not apply to your situation.

It reality that 2000w element could be drawing a less that 16 amps many of my elements draw less and are less powerful than they were sold as, I have a 4500w element thats only 4025w or so when fed 240v. This is one case where those amp meters every says is useless bling can come in handy.

Just yesterday I replaced a 1500w rv tank heater with a 1440w element. The element ended up not being the issue but I did notice they both read the exact same 9 oms with a meter... I thought it odd they even sold a 1440w element but then realized its likely just rounded up to 1500w and sold as such in most cases. I believe a 2000w element I have reads 7 ohms.

 

[djsereno91]

Thanks for all the responses everyone. I think I may have been a little unclear, so let me explain my situation a little better.

The breaker is rated for 20A and the GFCI outlet itself is also rated for 20A (allowing for a 20A horizontal plug). I'm assuming the wire running between the two is rated for the same since the apartment I live in was recently remodeled, and it would be very irresponsible of the electrician to set up the breaker and outlets to allow 20A if the wire was not rated for that.

My heatstick was using a 1650W heating element, 12Ga wire, a plug rated for 15A, and a portable GFCI adapter also rated for 15A. My new heating element is 2000W (measured a resistance of 7.4 ohms, so pretty close to 2000W). I was hoping to just swap out the element and reuse the rest of the assembly. I went ahead and bought 20A plugs which means I can no longer use my portable GFCI adapter. Not the end of the world since I'm already plugging into GFCI outlets. I just like the redundancy. I may just buy 20A portable GFCI outlets now and bite the bullet for the extra peace of mind.

 

[z-bob]

The right thing to do is replace the plug on the end of the cord with a 20A plug (NEMA 5-20). I don't see any reason with your current setup to be in a big hurry about replacing it; you're not going to be using it unattended.

I would check the pass-through current rating of the portable GFCI.

 

[processhead]

A loose wire connection will overheat quickly when you run plugs and connectors at or over their rated ampacity. Making sure all your screw terminals are tight will go along way to keeping you out of trouble.