Changing an Electric Dryer’s Power Cord from a 3-Prong Plug to a 4-Prong Plug
August 17, 2006
Q: We recently purchased our first brand new house and we moved in last night. When I tried to plug in my dryer the outlet is different than my dryer cord. My dryer cord has 3 prongs and the outlet has 4 holes. Should I change the outlet or the dryer cord and how do I do this?
A: Congratulations on the purchase of your first new house. This is a question I receive a lot. You CANNOT change the receptacle (outlet), this is a National Electrical Code® (NEC®) violation. You need to change the cord on your dryer. You need a 4-wire dryer cord and you can get one of these at Home Depot, Lowe’s or your local appliance store for about $15.00.
The 1999 edition of the NEC® first introduced the requirement for a separate ground wire for ranges and dryers. This is also in the 2002 edition as well as the current 2005 edition. This is in Article 250 and specifically section 250.140.
All dryer and range receptacles installed after 2000 are required to be the 4-wire type. This would require the 4-wire cord. All dryer and range receptacles installed before 2000 are the 3-wire type. If a 3-wire receptacle goes bad, you are permitted to install a new 3-wire receptacle. However, if the cable for the 3-wire receptacle goes bad or if you change the location of your 3-wire receptacle, you are required to upgrade to the new and safer 4-wire type.
Dryers and ranges are not sold with a particular cord attached because of this requirement. When you purchase a new dryer, the appliance store will ask if you want a 3-wire or a 4-wire cord. Both cords are rated 250 volts and 30 amps as are all household electric dryers.
The tools you will need for this installation are:
- 1 – phillips screwdriver
- 1 – standard screwdriver
- 1 – 3/8″ nutdriver
- 1 – 5/16″ nutdriver
- 1 – 1/4″ nutdriver
Lets get started
To change your dryer cord from a 3-wire to a 4-wire you first need to disconnect the old dryer cord. To do this make sure your dryer is unplugged and open the access panel cover on the back of the dryer.
This cover is all different sizes and shapes depending on the manufacturer of the dryer, but it is typically very close to where the cord enters the dryer. The cover is typically held in place with 1 – 4 screws. See image below of a Maytag Performa dryer access panel.
Click to enlarge
With the cover open you will see a terminal block with three wires. Black on one end, white in the middle and red on the other end. Use your 3/8″ nutdriver to remove the nuts or a phillips screwdriver to remove the bolts (depending on your dryer) and remove each dryer cord wire from the terminal block. When you remove the nuts or bolts, be careful not to drop them down into your dryer.
Click to enlarge
Now you need to disconnect the bonding jumper on your dryer. The bonding jumper is either a metallic strap (typically copper or copperclad) or a green wire that is connected between your dryer’s neutral (white wire) terminal and the green ground screw connected to your dryer’s frame.
Removing this bonding jumper is an extremely important step when changing from a 3-wire to a 4-wire cord to prevent electrical shocks when touching anything metallic on your dryer.
If you removed a ground wire instead of a bonding strap from the neutral terminal, you need to connect this ground wire to your dryer’s frame.
Click to enlarge
Loosen the screws at the connector and pull the cord out. Now thread your new cord through the connector and tighten down. This only needs to be snug do not over tighten. Sometimes the old connector will work with the new cord and sometimes not. If not, your new cord will include a connector that you may use.
To hook up your new 4-wire dryer cord, connect each wire to the dryer’s terminal block matching color for color (white to white, black to black and red to red). Connect the green wire to the green ground screw on your dryer’s frame.
Click to enlarge
Replace the access panel cover and your new 4-wire dryer cord is installed
Before plugging in your new dryer cord, I recommend turning off the breaker to your dryer receptacle. Then plug in your dryer. Now turn the breaker back on. This is not fool proof, but it is a safer way to turn on the power to your dryer if you made a mistake connecting your new dryer cord.
Update 11/9/09
The purpose of this article was to teach everyone that the ground and neutral wires need to be separated when changing your dryer to a 4-wire configuration. All ranges and dryer ship from the factory with the ground and neutral connected. If you change your range or dryer to a 4-wire configuration, then the ground and neutral connections need to be separated.
I’m not a dryer repair expert. I’ve installed several dryer cords and repaired dryers for myself, friends and family, but that’s the extent of it. If you have a dryer repair question, then I recommend Appliance Parts Pros – They offer live help, a repair forum, part photos, diagrams, same day shipping and you can return any part.
Do you want to do the reverse? I also wrote How To Change a 4 Prong Electric Dryer Power Cord To a 3 Prong Electric Power Cord.
Do you have questions about the above process? Please read FAQ to Changing an Electric Dryer Power Cord from a 3-Prong Plug to a 4-Prong Plug
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Do you need assistance with your electrical wiring project? Please visit my DIY Electrical Wiring Help from a Master Electrician page. Where I provide electrical wiring tips, expert electrical advice, answers to your electrical questions and electrical consulting & design services over the phone, via instant messenger or via email.
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- Answers to Electrical Questions About Dryer Connections
- Changing A Dryer Cord From 3-Wire to 4-Wire
- FAQ to Changing an Electric Dryer Power Cord from a 3-Prong Plug to a 4-Prong Plug
- Answers To Electrical Questions About Wiring A Cooktop, Installing a 4-wire Dryer Power Cord and Connecting Underground Wiring From A Barn To An Existing House Panel
- Answers to Electrical Questions About a 4-Wire Range Cord with a 3-Wire Receptacle and Installing 2 Wires Under A Screw Terminal
Thank you so much for publishing this. I am a single mother and I purchased a HUD home and I have not been able to wash clothes for over a week. Everyone that I knew that was an electrician or knew how to change the cord lived 40+ miles away. I follow your instructions step by step and I was able to successfully change the cord with no problem. Thanks so much for making it so simple.
Jamese
Just wanted to say thanks for your advice on this!
Thank you and keep on doing what you’re doing because we are never too old or young to learn. Safety FIRST.
thanks I new to electrical stuff and was scared I would be blown away but thanks I am still alive and kickin
I had an idea how to change from a three prong to a four prong, but I was always confused about the ground wire. Thanks
This article is very helpful. However, my husband did those exact same steps…the only problem is that our dryer has no heat. is this something that has to do with switching out the cords?
I have an Estate dryer and there is a black, red, and white connection and the new cord has a green ground wire. The external ground screw has a white wire running to it (I’m changing from a 3 prong cord) and the green wire on the new cord won’t reach it. What am I doing wrong?
Hey Chris,
I don’t think that you are doing anything wrong. Most times the wires are not stripped long enough from the factory. Just strip off a couple more inches of the outer jacket on the cord and push your cord further into the connector. This should lengthen your wire and solve your problem.
Make sure the dryer is unplugged before you begin working on it.
Hi, I appreciate the info and directions. I switched my 3-prong plug to a 4-prong plug today. The only thing that I am still not sure about is my ground wire that was connected from the dryer, goes all the way back into the dryer. I unscrewed the old ground wire and connected the green ground wire from the 4-prong plug onto the ground wire screw. Now, I have this open prong from the old ground wire just hanging there. What do I do with it? Should I cover the end of the ground wire with an electric wire cap or electrical tape? Thank you.
Hi Liz,
You need to reconnect this wire. The only thing that needs to be disconnected is the bonding strap that is on the neutral (white) terminal. Sometimes this is a ground wire instead of a bonding strap. If there is a ground wire connected to your neutral terminal, disconnect it and connect it to the ground screw on the dryer’s frame. You may also email me a picture if you are unsure and I will be able to tell you what wire to disconnect and where to reconnect it.
Make sure the dryer is unplugged before you begin working on it.
I have a 220 receptacle for my convection oven. I purchased a new range and it has a 110 plug. Can I replace the 220 receptacle with a 110 receptacle? if I can, how is it done? thank you
Wayne, Great page. Thanks for the advice. I am a little confused as with my 3-prong plug, there was a green wire that was grounded to the dryer. When I installed my 4-prong plug, I replaced this green wire with the green wire from the 4-prong plug. What am I supposed to do with the green wire that was grounded to the dryer with the 3-prong plug? It is just hanging there now. The diagram with the dryer shows this green wire attached with the white wire to the center terminal. Is this what I should do? Thanks!
@ Maher – I created a new post with your answer. Please click on the link below:
http://www.ezdiyelectricity.com/?p=412
@ Tim – Thank you. If the green wire was already connected to the ground screw on dryer’s frame, then put it back there. The only wire or strap that needs to be disconnected is the one bonding the neutral terminal to the dryer’s frame. This is the terminal with the white wire and typically in the center.
Love the answers on the 3 prong to 4 prong dryer, but could you tell me about doing the same for a Range/Oven? I have no idea what to do with my green wire.
Okay, I tried this on my son’s dryer in his apartment. The problem was e the 3-prong wires were all the same gray color. We put it on as we thought it should be layed out and when we plugged it in it blew out the power in his whole apartment. We had to find the breaker box on the whole apartment building to get the power back on. Do you think it would work if I just rotated the wires the opposite way? This made me a little nervous. Or maybe is there another way to tell the wires? Please help.
Wayne, Similar to Liz’s question. I have the red white and black wires connected and and can’t seem to figure out the “bonding strap” or in my case green wire. I realize this is an important step so I want to do it correctly. The green wire goes from the grounding screw back into the dryer but not to the white terminal as far as I can tell. I know the green wire from the new plug goes to the grounding screw but I can’t seem to figure out where the original green wire goes. I have a before and after picture to email you if you can tell me where to email them too, Thanks!
I have a maytag neptune with left side light blue, middle white, and right with black, and a yellow wire, and the bonding strap is bent as suggested. I will try to submit a image for your reference.
MY NEPTUNE IS A MDE4000AYW
I HAVE BLACK WITH BLACK AND YELLOW, WHITE WITH WHITE(MIDDLE), AND RED WITH BLUE…..I AM WAITING FOR ADVICE BEFORE THE FIREWORKS SHOW.
Hey, thanks for the useful tips on rewiring dryers. I notice several people asking about the loose ground wire when switching to 4-prong from 3-prong. I believe if you look inside the dryer you will see that the old green wire is joined to the neutral white. I think this is how some models are grounded through the neutral rather than using a bonding strap. It sounds to me like Wayne is advising people to reconnect this green wire to the chassis ground? – but wouldn’t that cause possible shocks??? I think the old green wire (like the bonding strap) needs to be removed. I just tucked mine back into the machine. Is this right or not?? Thanx – J
@ Eugene – You wire a range the same as a dryer. You just use different guage wire. A range requires 50 amp wire and a dryer requires 30 amp wire. Send me a picture of the terminal block on your range and I can tell you how to make the connections.
@ Brenda – You need a professional. You probably ruined a bunch of safety switches and possibly more on your dryer. The existing wires to the dryer are color coded and you should match color for color. Typically, the outer terminals are for the “hot” wires and the center terminal is for the neutral wire.
@ John – Send your pictures to info at ezdiyelectricity dot com.
@ Marc – This sounds correct, providing the yellow was terminated with the black wire and you did not move it there. Other than that, black to black, white to white and red to blue are correct. Is there a bonding strap or ground wire connected to the neutral terminal? If there is you need to remove them. If there is a ground wire, connect it to the dryer’s frame.
@ Joel – This is incorrect. Your ground wire needs to be removed from the neutral terminal and connected to the dryer’s frame when changing to a 4-wire configuration.
The reason for this is the neutral wire is a current carrying conductor and the ground is not. In a 3-wire configuration, the dryer’s frame is bonded to the neutral to prevent it from becoming energized by a hot wire. However, in a 4-wire configuration, the neutral and ground need to separated.
We moved into a brand new home that has a 4 prong outlet. We purchased a 4 prong plug to swith out our 3 prong plug but it didn’t fit. We took a picture of the outlet and showed it to the hardware store and they sold us a plug that looked like it would work but it doesn’t. How many different 4 prong plugs are there?
How about doing the reverse? My dryer has 4-prong wiring and the receptical has 3 prongs. I know white-white, green-green, but I only have one extra line for the black and red from the new light grey cord. Any help before fireworks would be helpful!
I bought a new 3-prong cord and am trying to figure out how to re-wire the dryer that has wires for a 4-prong receptacle.
ok I have changed my dryer before from a 4 to a three prong and my dryer worked fine I don’t remember having ever moved any green wire at all but I now need to change back to a 4 prong. I have black and yellow, green and white-with the green grounded to the metal exterior, and blue wires on the posts inside the dryer and I have a black green white and red 4 prong cord that Im trying to attach. From questions before I get the black and yellow goes to black and the red to blue and the white to white but if the white wire is with the green neutral on the post and is already grounded is there anything I need to disconnect and where do I attack the green part of the new cord?
I have the same problem as Linda McD. my house has a 3 prong plug & my dryer was 4 prong, I hooked it up & the dryer runs, but no heat & the timer stays right where you set it?? suggestions?
I have a Maytag Legacy dryer and am converting from a 3 to 4 prong. There isn’t a bonding strap but there is a white wire connected to the frame of the dryer. Do I connect this and the green wire to the frame when installing the new cord? It looks like the wires on the terminal are red,black and white. Thank you in advance for your info.
To everyone that is trying to convert from the 4-wire cord to the 3-wire cord, I will write an article about this in the next few days and post a link to it at the bottom of this article.
To everyone having problems with their connections, please send me a picture of your terminal block on your dryer; similar to the last picture in my article. I will post your picture in this article to help others with a similar dryer. Your picture will tell me if your terminations are correct or not and I will be able to help you further.
I am very glad I came to your website, I went to Home Depot & they explained how it works, but i felt better looking at the picture samples on this website. I want to say Thank You….
I’m a little confused. I know you’ve answered this question a couple times but my dryer has the green ground wire to the right of the other 3 wires. There isn’t a bonding strap. At first I thought you were saying to keep it connected and then just put the new one over it but after you responded to Waynes email, it sounds like it is supposed to be removed completely. If I undo it and attach the new green one, then I will have a hanging wire which you said to re-attach so do I just put the green wire from the 4 prong cord over it and screw it in. Thanks for your help!!
i am tryin to change my dryer from a 4 prong to a 3 prong and dont know what to do can you please write a article explain how its done thank you so much in advance
First off, thanks for being such a huge help to all of these folks, Wayne. That’s extremely generous of you to share your know-how.
I think I might have the same problem as Denise. I bought what looks to be like the standard 4 plug type cord, but it doesn’t seem to want to fit into the outlet. It goes in about 1/3 inch and then gets stuck. I feel like I may break something in the outlet if I try to force the plug in there.
Can’t figure it out!
I have a Maytag de212 dryer and was attempting to convert my 3-prong adapter to a 4-prong using your above instructions.
I hooked it all up like shown, but nothing happens when I hit the start button on the dryer. Is it possible that I have a faulty cord? I plugged it up, checked the breaker to make sure it was on, so I just don’t get it now.
Oh and also the bottom wire is blue not red on mine, I do not see a red.
I am in the group looking to take a 4 wire range back to a three pronged plug..I am looking for the post on this topic Wayne mentoned on 2/2/2008
Wayne,
Thanks for all the help so far, if nothing else I’ve learned that I do have a safety issue.
I have an older home with a three prong, three wire receptacle installed. I am attempting to put in a range that was installed as a four wire new construction installation.
I possess both the three and four wire pigtails, and both the three and four wire receptacles. My question… Which should I use?
My confusion centers on how to attach a four wire pigtail and receptacle to a circuit that has only three wires going back to breaker panel. Am I not a short one ground wire and going all the way back to the breaker box?
I understand you pictures on how to change the cord on my dyer, however the wire on the far left side is green not red on my dryer, the middle wire is white and the far right wire is black. If I connected the 4 prong as instructed in the picture it would put the red wire on top of the green wire. What should I do?
MS Johnson,
It sounds like your dryer is only 120 volts. Do you have a gas dryer? DO NOT connect the red wire to the terminal with the green wire, this will create a short circuit and possibly damage your dryer.
Check the voltage rating on your dryer to ensure it is 240 volts. You may also email me a picture of the terminal block. info at ezdiyelectricity dot com
Okay im not sure if the question has already been aske but i have a green wire coming out of the top of the middle thing where i put the white wire. (in the middle slot), and i have a green wire that comes off the new cord i bought . What do i do with the green wires? i have the white in the middle can i just hook both of the green wires to the same ground or no?
Thanks for helping me with this, but i do not understand why there isn’t any power at all. The breakers are on and the cord has been changed correctly. What do i do next
wayne,
thanks for your instructions!…quick question….going from 3 prong to 4 prong…my 3 prong had a bonding strap attached to the white wire….where do i attach the green wire from the 4 prong? i don’t have a green screw attached to the dryer frame as illustrated in your picture above. Thanks!
Hey!
Thanks so much for the instructions!! I only have a minor question or two. There is a small white wire already attached to the neutral terminal. Can I put my white wire from my plug directly on top of that and use one screw or do they have to be seperated?? If they do have to be seperated, what type of metal screw do I use (I am short one if they need to be seperated)? Okay, three questions…my connector is not doing it’s job because the cord hole is not large enough to insert the connector to stabalize it. Do I really need this or can it just hang??
My question is the same as Justin’s dated March 6, 2008 at 7:54 p.m. In changing the drying to a 4 prong, there is a green wire attached to the green screw outsite the terminal already. This green wire was split off from the white wire way back inside the dryer, before the terminal. Do I attached the green grounding wire from the plug to the same green screw, or do I attach it to a “new” screw (drill another hole or use another existing screw on the dryer)?
when changing my 3-prong cord to a 4-prong type
i noticed that all 3 wires were the same color.
do the prongs on the plug indicate which is red and black. is there a way that i can figure this out?
The colors on the terminal do not match my Four prong cord. Their is a Black with a red strip, a white one in the middle, and on the bottom thier is a blue. Also their is a ground strap and a hole on the back that says “ground”. How do i connect them to enshure nothing bad happens to me or the dryer?
Great information here. On my dryer, I am converting from a 3-prong to a 4 prong wire. I have a green wire that connects to the frame (grounding screw) and that green wire is spliced into the white wire about 4 inches back from where the white wire connects to the terminal. Is it my understanding that if we have a green wire that is serving as the bonding strap, then we leave that connected to the grounding screw and just attached the green wire from the 4 prong cord to the same screw? If that is not the case, then do I just cap that green wire that is spliced into the white wire? Thank you.
Should I remove the green wire (bonding jumper) completely or just insulate the other end that was originally connected to the dryer’s body/frame?
Is it a good idea to leave the green wire (bonding jumper) as is and just attach the 4th green wire from the 4 prong plug directly to the same screw on the dryer’s body where the bonding jumper is also attached? Thanks for your help.
Hello…great info, thanks. My new used dryer (which is 3 pronged…and I am converting to 4 pronged cord) is missing the grounding screw and the bonding jumper…though it has a spot for the screw and the insructions on the dryer talk about the bonding jumpber…is there a certain replacement screw I need to use…and or a certain bonding jumper? Available at local hardward stores?
Thanks…
I’m doing some kitchen renovations and the wiring to the old range is 3 wire 220 (2 hot 1 gnd) I’ve pull new 6/3 wire to the new range which a 4 pronged plug. I wanted to just junction at the old range location but do not know if I can connect the new 6/3 (4 wire) to the old 3 wire. Can I splice the gnd and neutral(wht) together at the junction? With the way the house was wired originally I can not pull all new 6/3 back to the box without some serious work. Suggestions?
Never mind on my previous post. I decided to do it right and pulled new 6/3 wire all the way back to the box. A total of about 75 ft of wire that thick was not easy but it’s done the right way now. Great site by-the-way!
didn’t see this listed, but i have a four prong dryer cord and a three prong outlet in my recently purchased 1966 built home. is it ok to change the cord or do i need to completely change the outlet.
I didn’t see a response to a similar question I asked to Matt’s 5/5 question. I have a 4-prong dryer and 3-prong outlet. Can I change the cord? I think I sent a picture awhile ago of the back of my dryer. Thanks so much!
I have a frigidaire electric dryer with a 3 prong cord. I just moved from an apartment which had a 3 prong outlet. I have now moved into my 1st house & the outlet is 4 prong. I purchased a 4 prong wire from home depot & connected it 2 the dryer & it is not working. I have the red with the red, green with the green, & black with black. The groung wire is green i guessing since it the one that is connected to the inner wiring of the dryer. What do i do with the white cord thats on this 4 prong wire? What am i doing wrong b/c really need to wash clothes?…
I changed a 4 prong dryer cord to a 3 prong cord. I dryed two loads of wash then the dryer stopped working. The original cord connected at three spots on the block – then had forth cord that connected to a different area on the back of the dryer. The 3 prong cord only had 3 connections. Do you know what could have happened to make it stop working?
i did it! thanks so much for your website; i couldn’t have changed the 3 prong to 4 without this valuable knowledge!!
I am trying to change from a 3 prong to a 4 prong plug on a electric dryer made for JC Penny’s. I am confused because because both the top and bottom hot wires are red.
I am changing a 3 to 4 prong cord for my dryer. In the middle it has a white and yellow wire. There is no green wire or bonding strap. The man who sold me the cord said to place the green and white wires from the cord to the same spot. Is this correct or should I connect the green to the frame. Do I need to remove the yellow wire.
Thanks
Please help. I see other questions like mine asked but no answers. I believe I connected all the cords correctly for converting from 3 prong to 4 prong cord. However, when I try to turn the dryer on, nothing happens. The dryer was in working condition before. Where is the breaker on a kenmore? What else could it be if the breaker wasn’t the problem? Thank you.
I’m a single mom who just moved from a new home nto an older home. My ex husband had changed our dryer plug from the original 3 prong to a 4 prong to accomodate our new home. Now in this slighly older home, I must change the plug back to the original 3 prong plug … however, the 3 prong plug is all grey … no colored wires to go by. Can you tell me how to change this back so I can start to wear soft tumble dried clothes again? Thank you so much.
PLEASE HELP. I see other questions like mine asked but no answers. I switched my 3-prong plug to a 4-prong plug today. I am still not sure about is my ground wire that was connected from the dryer, this cable goes all the way back into the dryer. I unscrewed the old ground wire and connected the green ground wire from the 4-prong plug onto the ground wire screw. Now, I have this open prong from the old ground wire just hanging there. What do I do with it? Should I cover the end of the ground wire with an electric wire cap or electrical tape? Thank you.
i have new 4 wire dyer .ineed to know how replace wall reciprocal . i have 3 wires
where do thay go on the reciprocal. do You have a diagram on this.
think you
Ken crawford
HELP! I am moving into a home and i went to plug my stove into the wall and the outlet and cord is different…. The stove has a 4 wire gounding cord on it and the wall outlet is 3 wire non grounding. Can i change the outlet to a 4 wire grounding outlet and how?? or change the cord on the range to a 3 wire?
All help is appreciated
Thank you so much, Wayne, for posting this info (with illustrations!). What you provided was EXACTLY what we needed.
Wisdom Needed:
I think I understand the process for converting from a 3 prong dryer cord to a 4 prong cord. I understand that removing the jumper strap between the green ground screw and and middle neutral terminal is important. I know that I must attach the new ground wire from the 4 prong cord to the metal frame of the dryer with a screw. The only part I am confused about is this: In the middle neutral terminal, there are really two internal wires attached to this terminal, both look to come from inside the dryer. One is white (which I assume is the neutral) and one is solid Yellow. I dont really know what this yellow wire is, or if I have to disconnect this yellow wire. Is the yellow wire part of the neutral circuit, or is it associated with the internal ground wire function somehow?
My hunch is to leave the white and yellow wires where they are since it appears that they are actually crimped together and joined at the middle neutral terminal.
Please advise,
Thanks!
Matt
I have a maytag dryer with a red, white, and light blue wire. The new cord I’m installing is has a red, green, black, and white. I don’t know which to connect to what? I appreciate any and all help, thanks.
My house was just recently wired for a dryer. After switching to the 4-prong cord, my dryer seems to work properly but the top, near the control panel, gets extremely hot to the touch in just a few minutes, even with the dryer turned off. I have re-wired it multiple times following all directions very closely with someone double checking behind me…… same result. What could it be?
I have a 50 amp plug on my older clothes dryer. …3 prong. The new apartment is a three prong but a different kind of plug..I think 30 amp. Is there a converter for the plug and can a 50 amp plug be safely changed to a 30? Thanks…whirlpool dryer
I also have an exrta green ground do I put the two green grounds together with one screw Please help me Thanks,Mona
Hi Wayne,
Question I have a kenmore dryer the green ground wire is factory crimped together with the white neutral wire. can i disconnect only the green wire and tape it up since its crimped together with the neutral wire and then connect the new green ground wire from the 4 prong cord to the dryers ground screw?
THanks a bunches. We love you now.Were neighbors, Kat just moved in, shes got a fancy dryer and we had this problem. love the diagrams those were great, such a big help.
thanks Damsils in distress.
Thanks so much! The past week has been a nightmare trying to sort this out. I was told that there was an “adapter” to turn my 3 prong dryer to convert into my new home 4 prong wall socket, but no luck with finding this mystical adapter anywhere, checked 2 Lowes and 2 Home Depot’s, but each one I went to they looked at me strangely and informed me that there is no such device. A gentleman at Lowes explained that my replacing the cord would be easier. I was getting so frustrated, I was going to purchase an new dryer for goodness sake! Thanks to this, I was able to do it just now with no problem and it works! I bow to you!
signed,
“Such a girl” from IN
Hi. I too appreciate your website.
I have a Maytag DE212. I too wish to switch from a three prong to a four prong plug. The bolts that I need to attach the new plug to are oriented vertically. Black on top, white in the middle and lt blue (or green) on the bottom (I had poor light in the room and difficulty seeing the exact color.) Questions: (1) Do I connected the red to the lt blue? (2) The connection for the ground wire is outside the box. There is no bonding jumper. Do I run and connect the green ground wire to this connection outside the box?
The favor of your reply is appreciated.
Scott Fallows
Your info helped us convert the dryer cord so easily and quickly….Thank You!!
We just bought a new house and my husband hurt his back during the move. He just had surgery and can’t do much. We have been without a dryer for 2 weeks, because the cord needed to be changed, and my husband was up to doing it. So, I realized I was going to have to do this by myself. This information was so helpful; I changed it out successfully! I really appreciate it! Thank you
I’ve just changed the cord to my dryer but the green ground bolt is at quite a distance from the black, white and red hookups and the green cord won’t reach that far. I’ve grounded it to another screw and the frame of the dryer but I’m not certain that’s good enough?
Wayne,
I have a Kenmore Dryer and I tried following your instructions above, but the wire colors dont match. The 3-prong dryer has connections that are red, green(middle wire), and blue, with another green wire coming out of the dryer and connected to the outside frame, I am assuming this green wire is the ground. With the 4-prong that I am trying to hook up, the middle wire should be white, correct? Should I go ahead and follow your directions above, replacing the middle green wire with the white wire? I should then use the green wire on the 4-prong to connect to the ground screw? I am a little confused if I lam to eave the existing ground wire jthat I disconnect just hanging there or what?
Thank you! This was very helpful. My husband just had to change ours, our only problem is one of the screws wont go all the way back in. The metal touches but isnt tight & now the screw is stripped & he can’t get it in or out. Anything we can do to fix it on our own? We tried it & it works but i dont want it to start a fire or come loose. Thanks!
I ran 6-3 wire in my new addition for the range. It has 2 hots, a neutral, and a ground. We are wanting to temporarily use the old range we took out, however it is a 3-prong. How do we wire up a 3-prong non-grounding receptacle to 6-3? Where does the ground from the wire attach or does it need attached? Thanks.
I am trying to attach a 4 prong to a kenmore 70 series equipped w/ a 3 prong. It has the typical red/white/black and then a green wire that is attached to the frame from somewhere in the dryer. I understand to attach the 4 prong cord’s green wire to the frame, but what do I do with the original green wire in the dryer that is attached to the frame? Let it float, keep it where it is on the frame, or attach it to the white wire connection? Thanks for the help!
Absolutely Awesome. I stumbled across your website using Ask.com due to my dryer wire dillema. Your website and detailed illustrations neede to be commended to the highest degree~! Thank you so much for your services. I’m sure you saved me a few hundred dollars. BTW… the dryer works awesome after following your advice~! Cheers
Glenn
I have a well house with 220 breaker that the well runs off of but I need to install a 110 light into the well house can it be wired into the breaker to work at 110 coming out of the breaker to make the light work?
Hi
I test plugged my new 4 prong power cord, to make sure it fit and heard a pop and saw a spark from the outlet. I than connected everything as instructed. Now the dryer wont work. Do you thing the problem is the cord or the outlet?
Thanks RaeLynn
I am installing GFI receptacles in my bathroom and kitchen. Should I use a receptacle rated at 15 Amps or 20 Amps.
I am trying to change the dryer cord from a 3 prong to a 4 prong. The 3 prong is all gray and I can’t see the wiring inside the back of the dryer. What do I do now?
How do I determine how to hook up the 4 prong?
I had to do the proceedure in reverse. New dryer–old house. Mission accomplished. Thanks.
My question is aim going to install 2 wall unit a/c units one in bedroom and the 2 one in the living room can use 30 amp breaker for for both units or dedicate a 20 amp for each unit ?
I have purchased a combination heater/exhaust/light fixture and the three way switch to replace a light with a single switch in my bathroom . How do I run the wire to operate these independently? I have done some diy electrical work before.
All that I can say is “I love you man!”. As a single woman trying to save expenses this helped me out so much. Easy to do even with having doubts that it was going to be as easy as it looked. Great article & I really appreciate having pictures noting what you are describing in each step.
excellent directions…thx vry much
I have Maytag Performa MDE2300AYW. I am switching from 3 prong to 4 prong. I connected Black to black, white to white, red to blue but have nowhere to attach the green from the cord. there seems to be not bonding strap, no green screw, etc. Any help is appreciated.
Many thanks for the great advice that made replacing my 3 prong cord with a 4 prong very easy.
We switched our 3-prong cord to a 4-prong cord to use in our new home (there is a 4-prong outlet). The only problem is that the new, 4-prong plug only slides about halfway into the outet…it won’t go in any further. Any ideas?????
Hi,
I just bought a home with just the 2 hot wires and a neutral hanging from the ceiling in the basement (3 prong). My dryer has a 4 prong cord so I bought a 4 prong receptacle and put the two hot wires in the corresponding holes in the receptacle and put the neutral wire where it goes so there is nothing in the ground in the receptacle end, but the dryer turns on. Should I hook that ground up to the ground screw in the dryer panel or just buy a 3 prong cord and 3 prong receptacle and bonding strap? I don’t want to use it til I know it’s safe.
Thanks , John
went from 3prong to 4prong plug,in a old house wired blktoblk white to wite,
red to blue green to out side of body and heating element get hot and does not shut off. do i hook up the white and the green and put them on the white post on block or hook them both togather and hook them up to ground on frame?
thanks russ
Thank you! Thank you! I followed your very easy directions and it worked. I did it myself without any electrical knowledge or help from my husband. He is going to be impressed when he comes home from work. Your directions were great and easy to follow.
This article is so cool. I had no idea how to do this but now i feel confident enough to try. thanks
How do I change from just a light switch in a single box to a double box that includes the light switch and a plug in receptical?
Thank you for the tip of shutting off the breaker, inserting the plug, then click the breaker on. That’s just smartness at work!
i have a the same problem as kelsey above. The green wire is not attached to the strip where the white is but is actually factory crimped to the white wire. Do i disconnect the green wire from the white and discard it and then attach my new green wire on the 4 prong plug to the green screw? Help would be greatly appreciated
Thanks for the great info! I just joined the club here. Even though my dryer’s wiring has the standard black-white-red, it’s always nice to be reassured before connecting a different electrical power cord (going from three to four).
Hey i really appreciate what you have posted on here. My local hardware store was about as helpful as a hole in the head. I have put this job off for weeks now because i was unsure how to do it and didn’t want jump in it and try things. Your pics and wordings were just what i needed.
Thanks so much for the information! We have had trouble getting the washers off of the original dryer’s cords. In our efforts to take them off, the plastic peice holding the last cord broke and now is only connected by the wire. What should we do now?
I just want to say thank you for the picture step-by-step. It was very helpful.
Hi,
I have a really big problem; I have a Signature 2000 Dryer by Norge! I was going to change the power cord to a four prong but, can’t cause I lost the bolts for the wires! I’ve bought all different size bolts and can’t find the right size and just wondering if you can help me with that. I would be very thankful cause I got some clothes I would like to dry at home instead of a dang laundry mat lol
Till later,
Angila
I changed my 3 prong to a 4 prong today. I tested it when I finished and it ran fine, so I put a load in to dry. It stopped working not long after it started judging by the wetness of the clothes, though they are still almost completely wet. Now it will not start. I saw a couple of others with this same question but no answers. Thank you!
i have an estate dryer when i went to convert it to a 4 prong there is 2 white wires one on the board with the red and black one and the other is conected on a screw. what do i do with the other white wire and the green wire?