If you upgrade the cable to #10 copper (10/2 will suffice), then you can reset it as often as you please. That is because of this particular situation - we know exactly why it is tripping, so the consequences of resetting it too soon are also known. The only Code-correct solution is correct cable and breaker, but you knew that. This use on 120V is safe, and it's safe indefinitely.Īll of the advice to follow violates Code. You'll want to follow the conservation tips in my last paragraph. And it will take 4 times longer to get there. What does that mean for heater performance? Assuming it's Energy Star, the insulation is tip top. However since useful power = voltage x current, and both those are halved, useful power is 1/4. That means on 120V, this same water heater will draw 11.5 amps, and will be within safety limits of a 15A/120V circuit, and will not trip breakers. Well, since Resistance is fixed - if Voltage drops by 50%, so must Current. Resistance is defined by how the heater is built. Now I said "resistive" - the heating element is a resistor, which is the simplest electronic device on earth, and it follows simple rules, starting with Ohm's Law: Voltage = Current x Resistance.
The trick I'm about to describe won't work with a hybrid. I'll describe this difference inside this box.įirst, make sure this is a "plain old resistive heater" and not a hybrid or heat-pump heater. If this is in fact a 120V heater, that changes things. However, you didn't tell us the old service was 240V (meaning a 2-pole "double" breaker in the panel). A 30A hot water heater implies that it is 240V, because it's cheaper to bump volts to 240 before amps to 30. The reason is they want it as fast as possible while falling within a statutory 24A limit.Įdit: ThreePhaseEel brings up an interesting point. That is how all such hot water heaters are sized. The standard 240V water heater only has one speed (choice of amp draw): 23A.
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