Cord and plug connected water heater

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hurk27

Senior Member
Location
Portage, Indiana NEC: 2008
422.16(A)
110.3

it will be in the listed instructions if the appliance is intended to be cord and plug connected, most larger appliances would not meet this.

422.16(A)and the appliance is intended or identified for flexible cord connection.
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GG

Senior Member
Location
Ft.Worth, T.X.
So what do the appliance instructions say about using a cord on the water heater? I have never looked at a water heaters instructions to see what they say about using a cord. Is this how you guys are installing them?
 
kwired

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
If it were allowed that particular cord and receptacle would likely not be the right one to use either. (probably a 10-30 non grounding type instead of a 6-30 grounding type)
 
kwired

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
Also check out 400.7(A) uses permitted for flexible cords.

I do not see anything in the uses permitted that will apply to a water heater with the possible exception of (8). Most water heaters that will be allowed to be cord connected by (8) will likely have the cord installed on them at the factory.
 
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GG

Senior Member
Location
Ft.Worth, T.X.
My house was built in 1984 and the water heater is C&P connected. The WH in the picture was in a house built in 2004. I always hard wire them when the main panel is within sight as it was in this picture. I have used non fused pull out disconnects when the breaker box is not within sight.
 
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kwired

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
Minuteman said:
That was done around here for awhile. Seems they were wanting to use a 3-wire dryer cord for a disconnecting means. Haven't seen it in years.
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I could understand why they were doing it that way if it cost less, but I don't see that costing much difference than installing with a pullout disconnect and up to 3 feet of flex, may even cost more.

If you are within sight of branch circuit overcurrent device you don't even need the disconnect.
 
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hurk27

Senior Member
Location
Portage, Indiana NEC: 2008
kwired said:
Also check out 400.7(A) uses permitted for flexible cords.

I do not see anything in the uses permitted that will apply to a water heater with the possible exception of (8). Most water heaters that will be allowed to be cord connected by (8) will likely have the cord installed on them at the factory.
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While true for hot water heaters, there are appliances that don't come with cords since there is more then one way to wire them such as ranges, clothes dryers and such, and many small hot water heaters up to maybe 10 gallons, will have the option of a corded connection in the listed instructions, but I have never seen this in a 40 gallon or even a 30. most likely because of the resistance type heating, most plug connections don't seem to hold up, I have seen a few that was done like this and had to remove the cord and hard wire them because the plug and receptacle was burnt up, not saying this is the reason but most likely.
 
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Minuteman

Minuteman

Senior Member
Location
The Sooner Nation
kwired said:
I could understand why they were doing it that way if it cost less, but I don't see that costing much difference than installing with a pullout disconnect and up to 3 feet of flex, may even cost more.

If you are within sight of branch circuit overcurrent device you don't even need the disconnect.
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Yeah, well, some local interpretation neglected the OCP within sight for a few years.
 
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