Will this heat pump work on a 60A subpannel?

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From what I can see from the pic.....
You need a 100 amp panel, new wire, and maybe conduit as it looks like the feed is 3/4 and plastic.
I also do not see a ground from the main panel.

I agree you need a licensed electrician to review your existing load, look at wire size to your subpanel, and they can give you the best options.

If it was me, and my gas heater was still in good working order, I would keep using it, instead of switching to a heat pump
 
It looks like the wire is too small. I definitely would not add any additional load to it, especially a heat pump.

Check with an electrician to review if you really want a heat pump.
 
Poolnewb105 said:
Yes, there is definitely a 60amp breaker in the main panel. So I'm guessing the consensus here is to stick with the natural gas heater then? Running a new wire would be too difficult unless it could be pulled through the same conduit. It's a long run.
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It's often very practical to pull new wire in conduit and if the conduit was properly installed pulling new wire can be reasonably priced. Check the conduit size and NEC fill table. Could be a very cost effective solution. Electrical contractors I've worked with in the past will offer next size up conduit as an option so future expansion can be performed. I rarely decline this option.

Chris.
 
blazer58 said:
From what I can see from the pic.....
You need a 100 amp panel, new wire, and maybe conduit as it looks like the feed is 3/4 and plastic.
I also do not see a ground from the main panel.

I agree you need a licensed electrician to review your existing load, look at wire size to your subpanel, and they can give you the best options.

If it was me, and my gas heater was still in good working order, I would keep using it, instead of switching to a heat pump
Click to expand...
The heater is 10 years old so we are definitely on borrowed time with it. Just debating whether it makes sense to stick with gas or go through the trouble of adding a heat pump when the time comes. If the wiring cannot support the heat pump and pulling one through that conduit to support a 100A Pannel isn't possible, I guess I'm stuck with using gas.
 
Gas in normally cheaper to run, and with your solar panels, you will probably not be using the heater all that much anyway.
 
blazer58 said:
From what I can see from the pic.....
You need a 100 amp panel, new wire, and maybe conduit as it looks like the feed is 3/4 and plastic.
I also do not see a ground from the main panel.

I agree you need a licensed electrician to review your existing load, look at wire size to your subpanel, and they can give you the best options.

If it was me, and my gas heater was still in good working order, I would keep using it, instead of switching to a heat pump
Click to expand...
So it was confirmed today that it is a run of approximately 130ft of 8 guage THHN wire from the main Pannel to the 60A subpannel.

When using an amp meter, the pump and salt water generator combine for 11A. The running amps of the Hayward HP21404TC is 36.2A (minimum ampacity of 42A).

The booster pump is 6A and not sure about the light.

Given this information, does it look safe to run this heat pump on a 50A breaker in the 60A subpannel? The conduit is not large enough to pull bigger gauge wire through. Thanks for the input!
 
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With #8 wire, you should have a 50 amp breaker feeding the subpanel, not a 60 amp breaker.

So, that means that you really have a 50 amp subpanel and the design load should not exceed 40 amps.

I would recommend a minimum of #6 AWG (copper 75°C or 90°C).

If you had #6 THHN and a 70 amp breaker feeding the subpanel, I think that that would be ok.

This assumes a maximum continuous load not exceeding 56 amps.

With everything running, you could be close to 55 amps. So, #6 would be the minimum wire size and there would be no room for any more equipment.

If you wanted extra capacity in reserve for future equipment, you would need to go to larger wire.

Note: Confirm any design with an electrician to make sure that it is code compliant.
 
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#6 copper for a run less than 75ft, #4 for runs less than 150ft
I went app. 30 feet and pulled #3 in 1 1/4 conduit for my 60 amp sub panel

volt drop, and heat needs to be considered in wire size and length of run.

At your run and #8 wire, personally I would not use more than a 40 amp breaker.
 
JamesW said:
With #8 wire, you should have a 50 amp breaker feeding the subpanel, not a 60 amp breaker.

So, that means that you really have a 50 amp subpanel and the design load should not exceed 40 amps.

I would recommend a minimum of #6 AWG (copper 75°C or 90°C).

If you had #6 THHN and a 70 amp breaker feeding the subpanel, I think that that would be ok.

This assumes a maximum continuous load not exceeding 56 amps.

With everything running, you could be close to 55 amps. So, #6 would be the minimum wire size and there would be no room for any more equipment.

If you wanted extra capacity in reserve for future equipment, you would need to go to larger wire.

Note: Confirm any design with an electrician to make sure that it is code compliant.
Click to expand...
I apologize, it is 6 gauge copper wire, not 8. It is Romex Stranded Simpull 7411129 wire. Attached is a picture. It is that middle black wire.
 

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I think bottom line is your already maxed out with the run and wire size just for a 60 amp sub with what your running now.
Removing the heater and adding a 50amp heat pump your over with your run and wire size.
Will it work, more than likely yes, would I do it, no
 
blazer58 said:
I think bottom line is your already maxed out with the run and wire size just for a 60 amp sub with what your running now.
Removing the heater and adding a 50amp heat pump your over with your run and wire size.
Will it work, more than likely yes, would I do it, no
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What would be the major risk here? Premature equipment failure? This is assuming the breaker would trip in an overload situation of course.

If the heat pump requires 36A and the pump and swg run at about 11A that's 47A. If I forget to turn off the heat pump and run the booster pump at the same time, that would bring me to 53A when cleaning.

I calculated voltage at Pannel to be roughly 233v for what it's worth.
 

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Poolnewb105 said:
What would be the major risk here? Premature equipment failure? This is assuming the breaker would trip in an overload situation of course.
Click to expand...

The major risk is an electrical fire. That is what the NEC looks to protect you from. Assuming your breaker will save you is a big assumption.

The NEC is looking to protect people and property, not equipment.
 
Can you find the wire size and type printed on the black wires visible in the subpanel?

The power wire on the left connector looks like it might be aluminum.
 
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The wire looks like it might be aluminum.

Can you verify that it's copper?

Also, the number on the black cable that looks like a 6 actually looks like an 8 with part of the number rubbed off.
 
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I would suggest that you have an electrician check everything and decide what to do.

In my opinion, there's too much uncertainty about what you have there.

The number that looks like a 6 might be an 8.

I would not add a heat pump to that subpanel without an electrician verifying that it is safe to do so.
 
The wires look like #8, not #6.

You can get a short piece of #6 and #8 from a hardware store to hold up for comparison to see which one matches.

It looks like there are 4 large black wires coming in. 2 go to the power lugs, 1 is wrapped in white electrical tape going to the neutral bar and one looks like it's going to the ground bar.

The color of the power wire at the end where it connects to the power lug looks like aluminum, not copper.

You can verify by just looking at the exposed metal.
 

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