Question on wire size?

[Mike W1]

Think I want to put new power cords on my Lee Production Pot IV's so the chassis is grounded. I can't tell looking at the existing cords what gauge they are.

Is #14 adequate for this?

[kencha]

Lee says the Production Pot IV is 500W. 14ga is more than sufficient, especially if it is a relatively short run.

http://www.powerstream.com/Wire_Size.htm

Following the above link, 14ga is good for 5.9A, conservatively for power transmission, and 32A for chassis wiring. A short power cord is going to fall closer to the chassis wiring ampacity.

Unless you're running 100s of feet of power cord, 14ga will do fine with room to spare, since 500W at 110V is just over 4.5A.

ETA: Here's another link that has a copy of the NEC cord/cable charts to verify 14ga is more than enough: http://www.houwire.com/products/technical/article400_5.html (18ga should be sufficient according to the NEC charts).

[Mike W1]

Lee says the Production Pot IV is 500W. 14ga is more than sufficient, especially if it is a relatively short run.

http://www.powerstream.com/Wire_Size.htm

Following the above link, 14ga is good for 5.9A, conservatively for power transmission, and 32A for chassis wiring. A short power cord is going to fall closer to the chassis wiring ampacity.

Unless you're running 1000s of feet of power cord, 14ga will do fine with room to spare, since 500W at 110V is just over 4.5A.

Thought it ought to be OK. Used #14 on my PID's and only need a couple feet of cord to reach them. Handy link BTW.
Thanks.

[georgerkahn]

Yes to all re wire size. One thing I'd "add" is re the type of wire -- e.g., insulation -- you're planning on using. If you're "buying", perhaps you may wish to elect cordage as used on electric frying pans, coffee makers (e.g., old style Presto), and the similar? The newer Presto cords are 3-wire. Ordinary "zip"-type insulation will get brittle and often cracks in short order; conversely similar occurs with pure-rubber. At a local electrical supply house, hi-temp rated 14-3 cordage is 73 cents a foot...
BEST!
georgerkahn