Splitting 1 220v outlet into 2?

[phoenix5x]

Hello,

Quick question regarding my 220v outlet. I have recently acquired a plasma that will run 30Amps at 220V. I am short an outlet and any more room in my houses junction box... I added the 220V circuit that used up the last spots in my box for my air compressor. Heres the question...

The wire i ran was 10/3 i believe with a 40Amp breaker. The compressor is a 240V at 15Amps...Can I up the breaker to a 50 or 60 amp breaker and then split my single 220V outlet to a dual outlet? The current run of wire is roughly 40 - 45 ft... I may run an ext of 10 to 15 ft off the other outlet.

Thanx for the help!

 

[pattenp]

#10 used for a 240V general purpose circuit with outlets is only good for 30A. If it was to be used for a dedicated piece of equipment such as a welder then the #10 would be okay for higher amps. So by code the answer is no for what you are asking.

 

[Zeke]

I think you can do whatever you want to have convenience so they can both be plugged in. But you're overprotecting the 10 Ga wire with the higher breaker. If you think that's the way to let the compressor come on while you are in the middle of a plasma operation, that's wrong.

Keep the correct size breaker and turn off the compressor while you make the cuts. That is until you need some more air. You just don't have the setup to run both.

 

[phoenix5x]

Turning off the compressor when I nned to cut sounds troublesome...

I know dedicated circuits for each would be ideal...but could I rerun the wire with a higher gauge wire that woulld support the 50 or 60 amps I need?

 

[pattenp]

To me it's best to size the circuit to the outlets. If you use two 6-50R's then use #6 on a 50A breaker. Don't use an undersized outlet on a circuit such as a 6-30R on a 50A circuit.

 

[jerkyboy]

Why not run a line to a 60 amp subpanel and run your compressor and plasma off that with individual circuits to each?

 

[phoenix5x]

Its a house garage and I wasn't going to get that indepth but if I can't re run a bigger line I guess I will have to plan for a slightly larger project than intended...thanx for the info