Garbage disposal overheats when using dishwasher

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Good going Sim's Girl! We are all here to help posters with their problems. I'll let the site administrators tell you to keep your birthday money.

I'm so very happy that the issue is resolved and you are safe. I would not hesitate at all to tell all you neighbors what you've experienced and encourage them to contact the office staff of ANY electrical issues they experience. If this was done in your unit, the same or something equally bad is likely to be in their wiring as well. It sounds like the 66 volts was hanging on the line to the garbage disposal all the time, and was then connected to the neutral or the ground when you ran your dishwasher.

Hang in there and don't hesitate to ask for additional help.
 
Just because I’m curious and like to hear the final story on these kinds of mysteries (I used to have a t-shirt “Does Anal Retentive Have A Hyphen?”) did he say which plug was for the dishwasher and which one was for the disposal?
 
havasu said:
We're very happy to hear this outcome. You are the reason why I volunteered to admin here.

People helping people.

I can't thank all you experts who provide your valuable input. You all are appreciated immensely!
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If I am understanding the different ways of becoming a member/supporting member, which I thought I COULDN'T afford (not knowing the cost when I said that), I could make a payment only annually of just under $20, which WOULD make me a supporting member? Is that correct? If it IS correct, then I CAN afford to do that, and will. Forgive please, but I have to ask things a certain way, in order to make it clear in MY mind, because of how I perceive and process the world in general, and in particular, of late, since suffering a traumatic fall, and a "brief romance" with the pavement last October. o_O
 
wpns said:
Just because I’m curious and like to hear the final story on these kinds of mysteries (I used to have a t-shirt “Does Anal Retentive Have A Hyphen?”) did he say which plug was for the dishwasher and which one was for the disposal?
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Yes, the top outlet was for the disposal (at least in MY cabinet), and not labeled in any fashion, so that if a resident would unplug their appliances for any reason, they would not know which to plug in where/or why. Some of our people here are very vulnerable people mentally, as well as physically, which is a concern! Of course, mine were unplugged and plugged back in due to the numbers of people in here BEFORE I actually got the electrician ok'd to come in, but before he came, I had everything unplugged, and the breaker off for safety concerns, because of the good advice I got from you folks, and that original appliance technician, who validated my suspicion that I had a serious electrical problem, and marched down to the office to tell them so! I may have asked this another time, but what happens in a split outlet if the wrong appliance IS plugged in to the wrong plug?
 
Sim's Girl said:
If I am understanding the different ways of becoming a member/supporting member, which I thought I COULDN'T afford (not knowing the cost when I said that), I could make a payment only annually of just under $20, which WOULD make me a supporting member? Is that correct? If it IS correct, then I CAN afford to do that, and will. Forgive please, but I have to ask things a certain way, in order to make it clear in MY mind, because of how I perceive and process the world in general, and in particular, of late, since suffering a traumatic fall, and a "brief romance" with the pavement last October. o_O
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Yes, this is correct. My boss spends lots of bucks just keeping the servers working, along with the IT personnel to prevent spammers, so if you decide to become a supporting member, it would be appreciated, but not demanded.
 
It depends on the size breaker that is powering each of the receptacles, and what else is included on the non-garbage disposal circuit. If they both have the same size breaker, and the disposal is plugged into the other receptacle, the worse that could happen is the garbage disposal could possibly trip the breaker for that circuit if the other items on that circuit are drawing enough power that the garbage disposal inrush draws more than the breaker capacity.
 
havasu said:
Yes, this is correct. My boss spends lots of bucks just keeping the servers working, along with the IT personnel to prevent spammers, so if you decide to become a supporting member, it would be appreciated, but not demanded.
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And then, final question: My original plan was to donate $50, which would actually more than cover TWO annual payments, but certainly not a lifetime membership. Is there a way to purchase two years at a time and/or just add a bit more and get three years paid in advance? Does this even make sense?
 
Sim's Girl said:
And then, final question: My original plan was to donate $50, which would actually more than cover TWO annual payments, but certainly not a lifetime membership. Is there a way to purchase two years at a time and/or just add a bit more and get three years paid in advance? Does this even make sense?
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I will forward this question to @Wrench so she can discuss this with you, since I don't involve myself with any payment stuff.
 
MicEd69 said:
It depends on the size breaker that is powering each of the receptacles, and what else is included on the non-garbage disposal circuit. If they both have the same size breaker, and the disposal is plugged into the other receptacle, the worse that could happen is the garbage disposal could possibly trip the breaker for that circuit if the other items on that circuit are drawing enough power that the garbage disposal inrush draws more than the breaker capacity.
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There is only one breaker, 20amps, marked disposal, that controls the whole under sink outlet. No separate breaker for the dishwasher. Then I have a breaker marked kitchen island, that controls the two outside island cabinet plugs, and two outlets along one of my kitchen walls.
 
Sim's Girl said:
And then, final question: My original plan was to donate $50, which would actually more than cover TWO annual payments, but certainly not a lifetime membership. Is there a way to purchase two years at a time and/or just add a bit more and get three years paid in advance? Does this even make sense?
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Thank you for asking this. There is a way using the donation button and then I would manually set you up for those years. I will PM you the details.
 
Well glad to hear the problem solved. That's the end goal.
However we didn't exactly hear what the problem or problems were that would cause the symptoms. Unfortunately for us that would be the great learning experience.

We did hear:

1. "Missing Neutral" which is pretty much the same as open neutral which is what @wpns surmised.
2. "Miswired split" which could mean any number of things.

An open or missing neutral will not allow a device attached to an outlet to power up; you NEED the neutral to complete the circuit. However--and this is the dangerous part--despite the fact that the appliance or whatever isn't functioning or won't power up, it's still "hot". Not certain an open neutral would cause a device to heat up; the circuit isn't completed.

I'd be interested to hear more (but probably won't) about a mis-wired split. Anything that can possibly cause a voltage drop to 66VAC is trouble. I've seen loose wires, those infernal back wire connections, improper wire connections with wire nuts but THANKFULLY nothing I've seen has caused a fire or such a voltage drop.

Your electrician is done, @Sim's Girl and the problem solved. Just wish we knew more!

My three previous homes were built in 1927 (but updated in the 80s) 1992 and 1996. None were wired with a single cable, double breaker and shared neutral for the dishwasher/disposal circuits. When I bought a 2019 home in NC it was and thought it was a pretty stupid idea to save a one single run of wire. The 1992 home, though, had GFCI outlets outside run downstream from distant bathroom outlets all to save what was (at the time) a $10 GFCI outlet, at the cost of dozens of feet of additional and complex wiring runs. Sometimes I just shake my head at these cost savings.
 
Mitchell-DIY-Guy said:
Well glad to hear the problem solved. That's the end goal.
However we didn't exactly hear what the problem or problems were that would cause the symptoms. Unfortunately for us that would be the great learning experience.

We did hear:

1. "Missing Neutral" which is pretty much the same as open neutral which is what @wpns surmised.
2. "Miswired split" which could mean any number of things.

An open or missing neutral will not allow a device attached to an outlet to power up; you NEED the neutral to complete the circuit. However--and this is the dangerous part--despite the fact that the appliance or whatever isn't functioning or won't power up, it's still "hot". Not certain an open neutral would cause a device to heat up; the circuit isn't completed.

I'd be interested to hear more (but probably won't) about a mis-wired split. Anything that can possibly cause a voltage drop to 66VAC is trouble. I've seen loose wires, those infernal back wire connections, improper wire connections with wire nuts but THANKFULLY nothing I've seen has caused a fire or such a voltage drop.

Your electrician is done, @Sim's Girl and the problem solved. Just wish we knew more!

My three previous homes were built in 1927 (but updated in the 80s) 1992 and 1996. None were wired with a single cable, double breaker and shared neutral for the dishwasher/disposal circuits. When I bought a 2019 home in NC it was and thought it was a pretty stupid idea to save a one single run of wire. The 1992 home, though, had GFCI outlets outside run downstream from distant bathroom outlets all to save what was (at the time) a $10 GFCI outlet, at the cost of dozens of feet of additional and complex wiring runs. Sometimes I just shake my head at these cost savings.
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Can you tell anymore by looking back at the pictures I previously included of the open outlet, etc., before the electrician arrived? If not, I will TRY to get more info. I too have so many questions still! :rolleyes:
 
So with the “Disposal” breaker off neither the disposal nor the dishwasher outlets work? Can you post a picture of the breaker?

It _looked_ like the two hot wires were different sizes but that kind of circuit should be wired with 4-wire cable (two hot, neutral, ground). 🤷‍♂️
 
If this were an electrical problem with an outdoor lighting circuit, service entry, or some other sole electrical issue--sure. Worth a question at least, a laugh at best. However this is with a garbage disposal (requires connection to a proper plumbing system drain) and a dishwasher (requires connection to a proper plumbing system drain as well as hot water). Around these parts if someone wants to install these items, they may call a plumber first, rarely an electrician. So, it's an entirely likely scenario that @Sim's Girl came here first. And, most gave her sound advice: get a good electrician. She did. So the forum worked.

Just happy she has it solved, and for those with less experience than others, always something to be learned.
 
wpns said:
So with the “Disposal” breaker off neither the disposal nor the dishwasher outlets work? Can you post a picture of the breaker?

It _looked_ like the two hot wires were different sizes but that kind of circuit should be wired with 4-wire cable (two hot, neutral, ground). 🤷‍♂️
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That's correct. Tested that again. Disposal plugged into top/dishwasher plugged into bottom. Neither one has power with the 20amp breaker off. I took a pic which I couldn't email to my desktop from my $35 Tracfone. Sent to my son's phone, then he emailed to me, bit blurry. Breakers on, all 20amp except the two on the bottom, double breakers, 30/30 for water heater and 40/40 for range. Included that info in case you can't see them. Breaker1.jpg
 
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Mitchell-DIY-Guy said:
If this were an electrical problem with an outdoor lighting circuit, service entry, or some other sole electrical issue--sure. Worth a question at least, a laugh at best. However this is with a garbage disposal (requires connection to a proper plumbing system drain) and a dishwasher (requires connection to a proper plumbing system drain as well as hot water). Around these parts if someone wants to install these items, they may call a plumber first, rarely an electrician. So, it's an entirely likely scenario that @Sim's Girl came here first. And, most gave her sound advice: get a good electrician. She did. So the forum worked.

Just happy she has it solved, and for those with less experience than others, always something to be learned.
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And don't forget, my fine feathered forum friends, that in my original internet search for help/information, it brought up this plumbing forum, because Lori on page 1 of this thread had posted pretty much the identical problem I was having.
 
We have some very seasoned plumbers AND helpers here. I'd rather try to help anyone who comes in here, than to lead them elsewhere. After all, we've all been stumped and need help one time or another.
 
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