Answers to Electrical Questions About Overcurrent Protection for Cooktops and Ovens, Upgrading an Electric Service and Wiring a Hot Tub

April 19, 2008

Question mark Gmoney asks:
I found someone’s electric cooktop and electric oven on one 50 amp circuit. Is this okay , or are they required to be on their own individual circuits?

Answer:
If the cooktop and oven is a single unit, then this is ok. If the cooktop is separate from the oven, then this is not ok. You need to provide overcurrent protection for each unit. The will be a nameplate on each unit with the overcurrent protection requirements. For example, most electric cooktops that I’ve wired are typically on a dedicated circuit rated 30 amps at 220v. This would require a 2-pole, 30 amp circuit breaker.

If the cooktop and oven are individual units, then the single 50 amp circuit in unsafe. The units could potentially start a fire or electrocute someone and the breaker probably won’t even trip. If they are individual units, I would keep the 50 amp wiring and use it for the oven. However, change the circuit breaker to the proper size needed according to the nameplate rating on the oven. This will probably require a 30 amp or 40 amp breaker. Then I would install a new, properly sized circuit for the cooktop.

Dave asks:
I’m needing to change a 100amp service to a 200 amp, how and what do I need to accomidate a 50amp hot tub.

Answer:
The first thing you need to do is talk to your local power company to find out what their requirements are and get on their schedule. At peak times here in Montana, our local power company may need 2 – 3 weeks before they can be their to disconnect and reconnect your power.

The next thing you need to do is determine if you are legally able to do this work and get a permit. Some areas will not allow homeowners to install / upgrade their electric service. If you are able to do this work legally, then most building codes departments and power companies have created some type of documentation with their local requirements.

Different hot tub manufacturers have different power requirements. I wrote Wiring a Hot Spring Bengal Spa / Hot Tub. This article shows step by step instructions with pictures of 1 type of hot tub installation. Your hot tub may have different power requirements than the one in this article.

Upgrading your electric service and wiring a hot tub are not really projects for beginner DIYers. For beginner DIYers, I recommend hiring a licensed / qualified electrician for this work. That being said, this is not rocket science either. I think that if you do your research, pay attention to the details and get an inspection when the work is completed, these projects can be completed by DIYers of all experience levels.

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Written by Wayne Gilchrist · Filed Under Electrical Installations & Repairs · 3 Comments

Heating and Cooling Units Recalled by Goodman Manufacturing Co. Due to Fire Hazard

April 18, 2008

Goodman Manufacturing Heating and Cooling Unit On April 3, 2008 Goodman Manufacturing Co. L.P., of Houston, Texas voluntarily recalled approximately 1,000 package gas-electric heating and cooling units. The serial plates on the units contain inaccurate information that could result in the use of undersized installation wiring, posing a fire hazard.

This recall involves Goodman single package gas-electric heating and cooling units with model numbers GPG13480901AC, GPG13481151AC, GPG13600901BB, GPG13601151BB, and GPG13601401BB, and with serial numbers beginning 0712, 0801, and 0802. The model and serial numbers are found on the serial plate attached to the control compartment door on the front of the unit.

These units were sold by heating and cooling equipment dealers nationwide from December 2007 through February 2008 and manufactured in the United States.

Goodman is directly contacting consumers with the recalled units to arrange for a free replacement of the serial plates and free inspection of the installation wiring. For additional information, contact Goodman at (800) 394-8084 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CT Monday through Friday or visit the company’s Web site at www.goodmanmfg.com.

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Written by Wayne Gilchrist · Filed Under Product Recalls · 1 Comment

Is Entrecard Really Worth All Of The Effort? – off topic

April 13, 2008

Back to square one This is the question I’ve been asking myself since their latest update and I’m seriously considering dropping Entrecard. I still drop 300 cards per day. However, the amount of return drops has dropped off significantly. It seems that several Entrecard members believe that they do not need to drop cards anymore. I’ve seen several posts in the Entrcard forums, on member websites and in the Entrecard group on Blogcatalog where several Entrecarders do not see the incentive to drop their cards anymore.

Well, some of the incentives to drop your Entrecards that I see are:
1. Everytime you drop your card you receive 1 credit. You need these credits in order to advertise at the new very expensive prices.
2. If you drop your card on sites that will return the drop, you will will receive an additional credit. So, you could receive 2 credits for every card dropped.
3. Everytime you drop your card, you put your site in front of another blogger that could become a subscriber, advertiser or reach out to create a strategic partnership or joint venture.
4. Everytime you drop your card on a site that will return the drop, you increase your popularity on Entrecard.

Entrecard is constantly changing and updating. This is very frustrating. With each change that they’ve implemented, I’ve recreated a new strategy for dropping cards and to maximize my efforts on Entrecard. However, I am getting very tired of all of the changes as well as all of the time and effort that goes into developing new strategies that will work.

Entrecard used to be fun and exciting. However, now it is just a lot of work that pays very poorly. I spend hours each day on Entrecard dropping cards, trying to find quality blogs to advertise on, trying to strike up strategic partnerships or joint ventures and reading in the forums. However, I’m getting very little return on my investment. So, from a business perspective, this means that it’s time to stop focusing on Entrecard and time to move on and find other quality traffic sources. It seems that I am not the only one that feels this way. There are several other entrecarders that have either already removed their widget or are considering removing their widget and dropping Entrecard.

Entrecard used to be one of the top 3 traffic sources to this site. However, they have recently dropped to seventh place and falling quickly. Blogcatalog is even sending me more traffic than Entrecard. Entrecard is currently sending me 150 visitors per day and my bounce rate is a little over 70%. Considering these numbers, what’s the point of putting so much effort into making Entrecard work for me?

For a while there were reciprocal droppers lists popping up everywhere. What a joke most of them were; especially the u drop I follow movement. I think Lee Doyle had very good intentions and he drops his card on my site daily. However, only approximately 30 – 35% of the rest of the list will return a drop. What is the point of signing up and placing the badge on your site if you don’t intend to drop. I think most of these people should change their badges from u drop I follow to u drop I follow when I feel like it.

At any rate, I grabbed most of these lists. I would grab a new list and drop on it daily for 2 weeks. After 2 weeks, I deleted everyone that did not drop back atleast 10 times. After a while, I developed a pretty good list that mostly dropped back each day. For a while, I was averaging 250 returned drops per day from my list. Since the update, I’m averaging approximately 150 – 170 returned drops.

I also tried a mass advertising strategy before the update. I bought an ad on every site I could find for 10 credits or less. Sure, I was rejected by several sites, but even more accepted me. I think I ended up purchasing a little over 400 ads and I still have 150 in que that have yet to be approved. This moved me to the top of the biggest advertiser page quickly. However, the ads are not producing very many clicks. Yesterday, my ad ran on 30 different sites, where I only received 7 clicks total from all of these ads. Friday, my ad ran on 25 different sites and I received 0 clicks from these ads. Today, my ad is scheduled to run on 46 different sites. I’m curious to see what happens with these.

I guess that I’m confused about how to proceed with Entrecard. Dropping cards does not work and advertising doesn’t either.

So, this is one of my first rants about Entrecard. Obviously, I’m pissed off and tired of all of the changes and effort put forth to receive very little in return. I don’t run my electrical contracting business this way and I’m not going to run my online business this way either. When something doesn’t work or stops working, it’s time to drop it and move on.

Entrecard was a good run while it lasted, but I think it’s time to move on. I’ve learned a lot, met some really nice people and created some beneficial joint ventures. I’ve decided to move the Entrecard widget below my paying sponsors. It’s not performing very well, so it does not deserve the top spot. I’m working on some new strategies, but if things do not improve by the end of April, then I’m probably going to drop Entrecard all together.

What are your thoughts? Do you like the new system? Are you going to stick with Entrecard?

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Written by Wayne Gilchrist · Filed Under Entrecard · 4 Comments

An Awesome Green Product Giveaway You Should Enter

April 5, 2008

Eco Friendly Earth I was dropping my entrecards the other day when I landed on Green Home Improvements‘ site. I read his article “Go Green and Get Free Green Products” and learned about a giveaway he entered. So I had to go check it out.

It looks like lifegoggles is running The Great Green Giveaway Competition – Win $3,484 / £1,742 Worth Of Prizes!. There are currently 72 prizes that will be awarded to 72 randomly selected winners chosen on April 30th.

There seems to be this big green movement going on. Everywhere you look, something is either “green”, “eco friendly” or environmentally friendly. If you haven’t got in on the big green movement or even if you have, this is a great chance to get some free green products.

Some of the prizes include:

1 x Freeloader Solar Charger from Ecotopia
1 x “Right to Education” soccer ball from Fair Trade Sports
5 x Radius Toothbrush sets
10 x five book packages from HarperCollins
1 x Hemp Travel Bag from Satvia Bags
1 x Akamuti Spa Selection set

You should head on over to The Great Green Giveaway Competition – Win $3,484 / £1,742 Worth Of Prizes! and sign up for your chance to win one of 72 different eco friendly products.

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Written by Wayne Gilchrist · Filed Under Announcements · 2 Comments

Portable Electric Heaters Recalled by Aloha Housewares Due to Fire Hazard

April 4, 2008

On February 20, 2008, Aloha Housewares Inc., of Arlington, Texas recalled approximately 152,000 portable electric heaters. The heaters were recalled because they can overheat and melt plastic parts, posing a fire hazard. Aloha Housewares has received 29 reports of the heaters melting, smoking or catching fire, including 18 reports of property damage. One consumer reported minor burns to the hands and feet.

This recall involves electric oscillating tower heaters with the name “Aloha Breeze” printed on the top. The white heaters have model number 02044 and dates codes 06/06, 06/07, 06/08 or 06/09. Model numbers and date codes are printed on the silver label located on the back of the heater, near the bottom.

These units were sold at Wal-mart and small retail chain stores nationwide from August 2006 through November 2007 for between $35 and $45 and manufactured in China.

You should immediately stop using the recalled heaters and contact Aloha Housewares to receive a replacement product. For additional information, contact Aloha Housewares at (800) 295-4448 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. CT Monday through Friday, or email the firm at ahitexaslg@aol.com.