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Just got a new NV51K6650SS Samsung wall oven on eBay. The oven looks new but I'm puzzled with its power connection. So far every single oven I seen had either a 4-wire conduit or a 4-prong plug, and was supposed to connect to 240V. This one seem to have just a regular 120V plug:

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The label inside the oven says "120/240V 60Hz 3.8kW"

The original installation instructions don't make it clear at all as they talk about 3-wire and 4-wire connections. Is it normal, and if yes, how is it supposed to be connected? Just into a regular US plug?

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    Something is not right. You can't run 3.8kW through a normal 120V three prong plug (NEMA 5-15). Not even through the 20 Amp version (NEMA 5-20).
    – mkeith
    Apr 26 '18 at 6:02
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    I just looked the manual up on the Samsung website. There is no mention of a 120v cord. The length of wire there also adds to the mystery. I wonder if you’ve been accidentally shipped a non-working demo model, made for a showroom which isn’t actually wired for heating.
    – Tyson
    Apr 26 '18 at 9:42
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    Brilliant, Tyson. l wasn't aware such things existed, but it makes good sense. I think that's an answer. The only question is whether it's fully equipped to have a proper cable installed. George, photos of the connection area would be helpful.
    – isherwood
    Apr 26 '18 at 12:07
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    How about a link to the ebay listing? There may be some hints there in the description of the item.
    – brhans
    Apr 26 '18 at 12:23
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    @Harper appliance stores like things to light up when people open doors and push buttons, but they don’t actually want heat for safety reasons (little kids not being closely enough for example), they also don’t want the overhead of a 30/40/50 amp circuit for every model that they sell. It’s really quite common.
    – Tyson
    Apr 26 '18 at 16:46
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I think everyone commenting on this question agrees it is not the correct cable. I am assuming that what you call a label is actually the nameplate rating of the oven. The 120/240V rating means it operates on both voltages. 240V requires to phase conductors A & B and the 120V operates on a single phase and a neutral, and the you have to include a grounding conductor. So that would be 4 conductors two would be any color usually black and red, and one white for neutral and one either bare or green for ground. 3.8Kw means it needs at least 15.8A to operate or a 20A Breaker.

You don't state whether you are installing this oven at a new location or replacing it so I am assuming it is a new installation. If that is the case you will need a NEMA 14-20P for the cord cap and a 14-20R for the receptacle. You need to feed the oven from a 20A 2 pole breaker with minimum #12 conductors. If you are using NM the it would be a 12/3 cable with a ground.

For the record, I would never recommend to buy this type of appliance from ebay. Don't be surprised if you did all of this work and it doesn't work. You might take this to someone and have it tested before installing it.

Hope this helps and good luck.

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  • I would just add that it's entirely common to hard-wire this sort of appliance into a junction box rather than use a plug and receptacle. Either way, if the existing cord is not correctly rated it should be replaced.
    – Stanwood
    Apr 26 '18 at 14:05

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