I have an aircon with a 20amp plug. How can I get it to work on 10amp without installing a new p/point?

Question

After a messy seperation I moved into a rental and bought the biggest box air con on the market (not being told that it had a 20amp plug on it, easy prey!) Got the go ahead to install a p/point, was then told I need a circuit breaker and the power board needs to be rewired etc etc, costing about $4-5000. Landlords have done nothing and don't plan to in the near future. I have no ceiling fans (Townsville - very hot and humid) would love to hear any suggestions on what i can do.

Answer 1

OK if you plan to plug this in to a bed room. the wiring is probably
not rated at 20 amps. SO UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCE SHOULD YOU PUT IN A BIGGER BREAKER. If the place is up to code your dinning room and kitchen are 20 amp circuits and you can replace the 15 amp receptacle with a 20 amp one. best bet is to size the ac to the room. a small unit
can most of the time run on a 15 amp 120 volt circuit.
if the panel box is up to date a new 20 amp 120 volt or a 20 amp220 volt circuit should cost from $300 to $600 depending on how long the run is

Answer 2

I think you may be mis-stating your problem. An appliance that is rated for 110 volts will have one type of plug and one rated for 220 will have another type of plug. I'm guessing you have one rated at 220. In this instance the wiring is quite simple as a 220 circuit drops the neutral. What you need to do is purchase the proper receptacle to match the plug and buy a 220 v 20 amp breaker to match your circuit box. Then you need a dedicated wire for the unit. If the wire already going to the p/point is of the proper gage for you local codes then you may use this but I strongly doubt that it will be. My guess is that you will need a 10/2 gage or greater wire. The lower the number, the higher the gage. In a 220 application you would need to hook the black wire to one pole of the breaker and the white wire to the other pole with the ground to common. As long as there is space in you main and you can run the wire properly it is not a difficult task to do. I recommend buying a basic wiring book form your local home improvement store.

Answer 3

4-5000 for a 20A receptacle and a circuit breaker????? Wow I need to go to Townsville. If the wiring is 12 gauge or larger then it will handle the 20A. So all you would need is a 20A single pole breaker and a 20A receptacle. The cost of parts should be about 30-40 dollars. I would replace the 15A breaker in the panel with the new 20A one and change out the receptacle. Have you contacted an electrician in your area and asked them about it??