Originally Posted by
Rob Holcomb
For those of you that have inquired whether my 220V circuit is a "catch-all" circuit, yes it is. Because I only have one 220V outlet, I have it wired to accommodate 30Amps because I have three tools now that require 220V. My Band Saw of course, my Table saw that requires 13Amps and my planer which requires a “minimal” circuit size of 25Amps (20Amps continual/25Amps peak). I went with a 30Amp circuit to avoid being at the “minimal” requirement per the specs. In an ideal shop setting, you would want a separate 220V outlet set up with the correct size breaker for the corresponding tool. In the real world, I have a small hobbyist woodworking shop and I’m not about to rip out my walls to install more wiring and put in more 220V outlets. Sometimes you make do with the situation you have. I bet for everyone that has responded in this thread that thinks I’m risking a problem, I could go in their shop and point out a situation that isn’t perfect either and poses a risk. Maybe not an electrical problem but some risk of some sort. It wouldn’t make any sense to spend hundreds of dollars and countless hours of work to install new 220V outlets to run a band saw and table saw for 30 minutes a week in most instances. People like to spend other peoples money so until someone sends me the money to do what they think I should, I’ll use one outlet for my three tools. I will be watching my PM's closely for your bank account numbers so I can make things the way you think it should be and I can stop being scorned by some of you.
I posted this thread to share how one employee of Home Depot offered his opinions on a topic he wasn’t very knowledgeable in when all I asked him to do was to lead me to the bin where the 30Amp plugs were. In most cases, you can’t find an employee in the stores when needed and in my case, I got an employee that outright told me I couldn’t do something that I knew I could. That should never happen but happens all the time. Is it ideal? no. Does it work? yes it does. Should I have gone to an electrical supply store rather than Home Depot? Maybe, but it was Good Friday. Electrical Supply stores in my area were closed for the holiday weekend. I had the time to put my band saw together and Home Depot was open.