Wiring in a 220 circuit for Tankless water heater - Cunduit from behind the wall?

Users who are viewing this thread

red_lover

New Member
Messages
6
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
Oregon
Hi Folks,
I'm wiring in a new 220 circuit for a tankless Water Heater. I am pretty sure I am going to have to run it through conduit since I don't want to run the huge wires through the wall and ceiling, That would entail QUITE a lot of sheetrock work :(
My question is, where/how do I have the wires\conduit come out from behind the sheetrock above the Circuit panel? Do I run the wires all the way up to the ceiling and have the conduit just poke through the sheetrock? Or can I go up just as far as I need to and then go to the surface from there?

Here are pictures of what my setup is and what I need to do. You can see the old water heater off to the right and that is where I plan on putting the tankless unit.
I know electricians must have to deal with this all the time, do they just rip out all the sheetrock as needed and then let the homeowner deal with replacing it all :confused:

SANY0001-opt.jpgSANY0007-opt.jpg

Thanks for any help!
 

hj

Master Plumber
Messages
33,602
Reaction score
1,041
Points
113
Location
Cave Creek, Arizona
Website
www.terrylove.com
You will have to open the wall at the panel either to connect to it and then offset on to the surface, or go all the way up into the attic. Whether you run it in the attic or on the surface is immaterial. Since you do not want to cut the wall to run the wires to a junction box in the wall at the heater, just bring it down the wall to the J'box. The wire from the box to the heater. Why are you going electric when you have gas there?
 

red_lover

New Member
Messages
6
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
Oregon
Thanks hj,
I've never actually used conduit before but when you say to offset it to the surface should I do it just above the panel or is it OK to come out to the surface further up at the ceiling just to avoid having a conduit going up the wall (since I have to cut into that wall anyway)?
I have propane and it is EXPENSIVE, plus the tank is leaking. Here where I live electricity is cheaper to use.

Thanks for your help!
 

Cacher_Chick

Test, Don't Guess!
Messages
5,458
Reaction score
213
Points
63
Location
Land of Cheese
There is nothing to say that the conduit cannot come out of the wall at any given point. I would follow the general path of the blue line, bending an offset above the panel before the 90.

Be sure to read up on the truths of electric tankless heaters before you spend your money. In most homes, they will not be satisfying.
 

DonL

Jack of all trades Master of one
Messages
5,205
Reaction score
72
Points
48
Location
Houston, TX
Will your service handle the extra load ?

You will need a bit of extra power.


Good Luck.
 

Reach4

Well-Known Member
Messages
38,798
Reaction score
4,413
Points
113
Location
IL
I would pull the cover on the breaker box, and look inside. Identify the knock-out that you would want to use to exit the box. Then measure carefully to the wall surface.

Bending 1/2 inch conduit is not physically hard, but it is tricky to get the bends right. So, as I see it, you will have a piece of conduit that looks like this exiting the box. hugepipe2.png

I would bend that piece first. EMT is cheap. Bend that piece perfectly before you ever cut a hole in the wall. If you cannot make that piece, forget DIY. After you have your piece, you will know how big of hole you will need. You will use a 1/2 in. Electrical Metallic Tube (EMT) Set Screw Connector to put into the knockout from your hole, and you will use the nut to attach inside the box.

I would put in a 1/2 in. 90-Degree EMT Pull Elbow where I switch to horizontal. You could just put another bend in that same conduit, but pulling that off will take more practice than you have ( or a computerized bender).
f40d769e-b08d-4f09-a64c-691dcd48a8ef_145.jpg


I hope you get more suggestions. The preference for set-screw fittings vs compression can be regional. The compression fittings are prettier, but some areas prefer the set screw type for electrical reasons.
 
Last edited:

Bluebinky

Member
Messages
588
Reaction score
16
Points
18
Location
Des Moines, WA
I don't think drywall repair would be significantly more difficult than bending conduit in this case. It would take a little longer, but the result would look better...
 

DonL

Jack of all trades Master of one
Messages
5,205
Reaction score
72
Points
48
Location
Houston, TX
I would pull the cover on the breaker box, and look inside. Identify the knock-out that you would want to use to exit the box. Then measure carefully to the wall surface.

Bending 1/2 inch conduit is not physically hard, but it is tricky to get the bends right. So, as I see it, you will have a piece of conduit that looks like this exiting the box. View attachment 22482

I would bend that piece first. EMT is cheap. Bend that piece perfectly before you ever cut a hole in the wall. If you cannot make that piece, forget DIY. After you have your piece, you will know how big of hole you will need. You will use a 1/2 in. Electrical Metallic Tube (EMT) Set Screw Connector to put into the knockout from your hole, and you will use the nut to attach inside the box.

I would put in a 1/2 in. 90-Degree EMT Pull Elbow where I switch to horizontal. You could just put another bend in that same conduit, but pulling that off will take more practice than you have ( or a computerized bender).
f40d769e-b08d-4f09-a64c-691dcd48a8ef_145.jpg


I hope you get more suggestions. The preference for set-screw fittings vs compression can be regional. The compression fittings are prettier, but some areas prefer the set screw type for electrical reasons.



How will the correct size wire fit into 1/2 inch ?


I don't think it will.
 

Reach4

Well-Known Member
Messages
38,798
Reaction score
4,413
Points
113
Location
IL
How will the correct size wire fit into 1/2 inch ?


I don't think it will.

http://www.westernextralite.com/resources.asp?key=47 says he could put in 2 #6 AWG. That may not be enough. He could run two 1/2 inch conduits and carry one #2 in each. :)

If he has to go up to 1 inch, could get somebody to bend that with a power bender for him. I wonder if he could maybe use a large radius 1 inch EMT elbow to come out of the box at right angles to the wall, and avoid all bent conduit.

ed424923-7c6e-4a53-8790-320d692670ff_145.jpg
 
Last edited:

Reach4

Well-Known Member
Messages
38,798
Reaction score
4,413
Points
113
Location
IL
Ummmm...not quite to code.
Are you sure you should be giving electrical advice to others?

A sentence ending with :) is not advice.

My advice to him would be to determine how much power that his proposed water heater is going to take, and plan from there.

I am sure he would like to take advice from a pro beyond that which you gave.
 

Jbfan74

Electrical Contractor
Messages
135
Reaction score
1
Points
18
Location
Newnan, GA
Chances are you will need at least 2 circuits, and maybe 3.
If you think you will save that much with electric, then put in a 40 gallon tank heater.
 
Top
Hey, wait a minute.

This is awkward, but...

It looks like you're using an ad blocker. We get it, but (1) terrylove.com can't live without ads, and (2) ad blockers can cause issues with videos and comments. If you'd like to support the site, please allow ads.

If any particular ad is your REASON for blocking ads, please let us know. We might be able to do something about it. Thanks.
I've Disabled AdBlock    No Thanks