So what's going on here... block heater on my 96 powerstroke has been working fine up until this morning. Went out there and the plug was almost too hot to touch, it melted a big hole in the plug on the extension cord, the block heater plug itself is charred a bit as well. This is a 15 amp "outdoor" extension cord, plugged into a 20 amp circuit. It's the only thing on the circuit. Should I ditch the 15 amp cord and upgrade to a heavier duty (12 gauge) cord with "20 amp" heavy duty ends?
I'm assuming it melted the 15 amp cord because it was just trying to draw too much power through it from the 20 amp circuit... but can the block heater alone really pull that many amps by itself? The wiring is good, this is the only outlet on the circuit (it's a dedicated GFI outlet on the patio that was used for a spa or hot tub by the previous owner of my house)
How many amps/watts do these heaters usually draw? The plug has always been a little warm to the touch after being plugged in all night, but never like this.
It appears the heater was still working even with the plug melted pretty good, as the coolant was plenty warm when I started her up this morning.
I'm assuming it melted the 15 amp cord because it was just trying to draw too much power through it from the 20 amp circuit... but can the block heater alone really pull that many amps by itself? The wiring is good, this is the only outlet on the circuit (it's a dedicated GFI outlet on the patio that was used for a spa or hot tub by the previous owner of my house)
How many amps/watts do these heaters usually draw? The plug has always been a little warm to the touch after being plugged in all night, but never like this.
It appears the heater was still working even with the plug melted pretty good, as the coolant was plenty warm when I started her up this morning.