OT: 230v welder wiring, using a dryer circuit Options

[bondo]

I just got a millermatic 175 welder. 230v, 19.5 amps. I'm going to make an extension cord for it and was wondering what guage wire I should use. Is 12ga enough? (going about 30 feet, just enough to get all the way around the garage, and into the driveway a bit)


Also, the dryer outlet is neutral grounded. Should I use it as is or add a second outlet with a real ground?

[TravisNeff]

If the welder has two hot leads and a neutral with no dedicated ground, what's the point in changing your plug type at the dryer, to supply a ground (and then you need to make sure that your dryer wiring has a ground lead) to a welder that doesn't have a provision in its plug for that ground? Sure it would be safer to make a ground lead for the one that doesn't exist on the welder you are plugging in?

When I did the last garage I used 4 conductor wire, two hots, nuetral and a bare ground wire. First it went into a 220V outlet, then I used one branch of that hot lead to run 1 circuit of 110v, and the other hot lead to 2nd circuit - used brown and grey outlets to tell which circuit is which - on a 30 amp breaker. Saved my bacon on wiring expenses. However the first time through I bought 3 conductor wire and once I ran it and realized my goof, I replaced it with the 4 conductor stuff and the 3 conductor went into a coil in the corner - till I added a separate sheilded wire to it and made a 220v extension cord out of it.

What people are saying is DO not use the bare copper ground wire for your neutral, use a sheilded wire. Which you only get by getting 4 conductor wire, 3 conductor is hot, nuetral and a ground wire - which you need an additional sheilded wire for your 2nd hot to make 220v