How to wire up water heater element?

[tysonmatc2]

My buddy and I lost our band heater tonight, it got too hot and melted the switch and band together. We were going to try to use some 110V 2000 watt water heater elements (2 in each tank?). We have the initial tank that the oil needs to be heated up to 120 degrees, and then after we wash the biodiesel we wanted to put it into another 55 gallon steel drum and heat up to 200 to 220 to evaporate any water in the fuel. Looking for some in site as we are sitting idle right now without the band heater. I am no electrician but with some simple guidance I can figure it out. Thanks!

[erbilabuc]

are you going to run it to 110 or 220?
real simple, there are only 2 wires needed really (positive and common ground). Most hot water heater elements are labeled but it really doesnt matter. Just to let you know: you can hook up a 220v water heater element to 110v but you cannot hook up a 110v to 220v.

[tysonmatc2]

It will be hooked up to 110 and I found some 2000watt elements for $8 at menards. The tank for initially heating the oil I was not worried about hooking up a thermostat, just wire up the elements and once it gets to 120 degrees unplug them, but the other tank I was thinking of putting 2 elements hooked up to a thermostat if I can get one that can be set at 220 degrees to boil off the water at the end of the wash process.

[erbilabuc]

Originally Posted by tysonmatc2

It will be hooked up to 110 and I found some 2000watt elements for $8 at menards. The tank for initially heating the oil I was not worried about hooking up a thermostat, just wire up the elements and once it gets to 120 degrees unplug them, but the other tank I was thinking of putting 2 elements hooked up to a thermostat if I can get one that can be set at 220 degrees to boil off the water at the end of the wash process.

sounds like a plan but just to let you know that at 90 degrees outside temperature it takes my barrel about 10 hours to get to 200 degrees and I have a 1500 watt 110v heater hooked up to 110v outlet. If you want to get your oil hot enough to boil then a 220 outlet is what you are going to need.

[tysonmatc2]

I seen somewhere that you can hook up a larger (220V) element to 110V and it will be ok, but not heat as high as a 220V would, so I might give that a shot for the barrel I need at 120 and just let it keep heating for a while one day to see how high I can get it. I might just take a peace of threaded pipe and put a fitting on the end and screw the element into that with an extension cord and hook the peace towards the top of the barrel to a 2x4 hanging across the top of the barrel to hold the element far enough off the bottom of the barrel, make 2 like this so we can move them from our initial barrel we are heating to 120 then onto our barrel we are trying to evaporate the water off with.