220v Help/Advice please

[blackhawkdriver]

Hey guys I need to add some 220v outlets to my Garage for a Mig Welder/ Plasma cutter and and I 'm trying to figure out if I can add just one to my main breaker or if I need to add a subpanel. My house is brand new and I'm military so I don't know how long we will be living here before moving and renting the house out so I don't want to invest too much into it. Here are some pics of my breaker panel:




Basically what's possible and about how much would I be looking at for option A-adding a single 220 outlet, B-adding 2 220v outlets to my existing panel, or C-adding a subpanel and like 3 110v outlets and a couple 220v ones. Also I don't think I could do the work because I have no experience with electrical wiring and don't want to learn by frying myself or burning my house down.

 

[G_P]

This may be a dumb question but what is up with the 4 pole main breaker? Never seen anything like that before.

 

[Kingcreek]

You can add one 220 breaker to your panel. What are the chance you would be using welder and plasma cutter at the same time? If adding a 220 air compressor I would go sub panel.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

This may be a dumb question but what is up with the 4 pole main breaker? Never seen anything like that before.

GE panel. Have done this for years. Two of them in parallel for each hot all ganged together.

 

[blackhawkdriver]

I don't think I would be welding and cutting at the same time and my air compressor is a 110 unit. Any ideas on how much it would cost? I'd probably put it pretty close to the breaker so I don't think it would require much wire.

 

[sberry]

If it was close to the garage you can buy 15 chunk of 6/3 a 6 space panel. Many garages have no 240 and a single circuit for 120, I leave all the existing wiring alone, put in 2 240 outlets and a couple 120, one for your comp, one for other power tools like a chop saw. Spaces are expensive in this case and a few simple parts are cheap.

 

[Kingcreek]

If you are comfortable setting the outlet boxes and running the wire, you can get an electrician to make it hot for around $150 total parts and labor if you don't need a lot of wire

 

[Norcal]

This may be a dumb question but what is up with the 4 pole main breaker? Never seen anything like that before.

It's not a 4-pole breaker it's 2-pole. GE was not even the 1st one to build them that way ITE Imperial (now Siemens)was the first in the 1970's & GE & Cutler-Hammer followed.

 

[blackhawkdriver]

I think I could set the box and run wire to it, Just nervous to start messing around in the breaker box. I think I'll go this route seems like it would be the cheapest too.

 

[theoldwizard1]

I think I could set the box and run wire to it, Just nervous to start messing around in the breaker box. I think I'll go this route seems like it would be the cheapest too.

You have space to add one 240V breaker on the left at the bottom. The breaker should cost less than $30 at Home Depot unless it is a weird box.

To add a second 240V breaker you would have to replace 4 120V breakers with 2 tandems. 2 - 240V breakers and 2 - 120V tandems should be under $80 (guessing).

Length of wire has a lot to do with cost. Assuming your welder and plasma cutter don't need more than 30A and the total length of wire is less than 50', 10/2 wire should be adequate. Just guessing, wire, receptacles, outlet box, etc will run some where between $50-$100.

If your garage does not already have a separate 20A 120V circuit, I would add one for your compressor.


If you don't feel comfortable, then don't mess with it !!