I have a 240v radial arm saw powered by a 240v outlet installed by a licensed electrician. This outlet is powered by 2 20 amp breakers ganged at the panel. The wire to the 240v outlet only has 3 wires. 2 are insulated (white and grey) and the third is a bare ground wire. There are 120v between each insulated wire and the bare ground wire. Can I add a 120v outlet by splicing it to one of the insulated wires and the bare ground wire or is this unsafe because I actually need an insulated neutral wire plus the bare copper ground wire?
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Was this wiring run using a cable, or individual wires inside a conduit? – ThreePhaseEel Sep 5 '18 at 11:35
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Welcome to the community.
No. you need another insulated neutral wire. You should not use a ground wire as neutral, and you should not use bare wire as a current carrying conductor.
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In addendum - You are describing 2 different circuits. One a 240V circuit which operates on 240V and requires 2 - phase (hot) conductors and a ground. The second is a 240/120V which operates machinery with the need for both a 240V circuit and a 120V circuit. This will need 2 - phase conductors, one neutral and a ground, and the ground cannot be used as a neutral. – Retired Master Electrician Sep 5 '18 at 11:55
