Extension Cord for a MM251

By Chad251 Date 04-16-2006 03:05

I have a MM251. I bought 50' of 10/3 wire to build an extension cord to be run from my range outlet. I believe that my welder draws 47 amps, so I cut the cord into two 25' cords and ran them parallel so that I have six conductors carrying the load. Did I make the correct decision, or would I have been o.k. to run the 50' on a 10/3 cord.

By aevald

Date 04-16-2006 06:09

Hello Chad251, you made a decision to cut the cord and run it in tandem, it should carry the electrical load fine, although most electricians would probably cringe at doing it that way and in the event of a fire the insurance investigator might have a hayday with it. You really would have been better off to have used an 8/3 50' cord, the 10/3 over a 50' run would have likely experienced a slight voltage drop and possible overheating although not likely. My $.02 Regards, aevald

By Chad251 Date 04-17-2006 02:37

Thanks for your input. I already had the 50' of 10/3. Should I just run one cord that is 25' instead of the double? I looked up a reference chart in my workshop calculations book, and it said that the 10/3 wire was good to carry a 30 amp load up to 32ft or so. However, I know for a fact that the 10/3 will run a heavy duty machine. I am just worried that it will have to work to hard to pull the extra amps that it needs to function correctly. I may just tuck my tail and buy the 8/3 wire.

By David C Date 04-19-2006 11:51

Just as an aside. Unless your pushing the machine at max amps your load on your extension cord will not reach the max of 47 amps. If your burning 3/32" & 1/8" rods the single cord should be fine. Although the pair puts you way to the good, hastle of two cords not with standing.