Should the hot wire be attached to the thermostat controller or the heating element terminals?

Thaddeus · Feb 1, 2021

The electrical cord on my Holmes Ceramic Heater (HCH-4051) frayed at the entry point to the heater and while removing the frayed cord, I forgot to pair (mark) the wires on both sides of the enclosure before snipping the cord.

Upon inspection, I determined one wire from the electrical cord went directly to heating element terminals and the other wire went first to a thermostat controller, then to a hi-temp trip switch, and finally to a mode controller; i.e., an OFF/Fan Only/Low Heat/High Heat switch.

Before I incorrectly connect the hot and neutral wires, I am hoping to hear a few opinions on...

If the hot wire is typically connected to the (main) ON/OFF switch, does it make sense for me to connect the hot wire to thermostat controller or should I connect the hot wire to the heating element terminals?

Thanks!

Thad

Darkwood · Feb 1, 2021

The Hot wire as you call it ( Live/phase wire here in the UK) needs to go to the thermostat first, this ensures that when the stat is not calling or the thermal trip operates that the element does not remain at a high potential relative to ground or you in effect if you accidently touched it.
Hot - stat
Neutral - element.

To note here that it will function function the same if you connect it up backwards and that is why we always test polarity, you should never assume it was connected ok before regardless of what colour the insulation might suggest.

Thaddeus · Feb 2, 2021

darkwood said:
The Hot wire as you call it ( Live/phase wire here in the UK) needs to go to the thermostat first, this ensures that when the stat is not calling or the thermal trip operates that the element does not remain at a high potential relative to ground or you in effect if you accidently touched it.
Hot - stat
Neutral - element.

To note here that it will function function the same if you connect it up backwards and that is why we always test polarity, you should never assume it was connected ok before regardless of what colour the insulation might suggest.

Thank you very much.

Cheers!

Thad