Should a refrigerator be on its own fuse?
An electrician came into my home to fix some wiring and disconnected some wiring because he claimed it was unsafe. He said the fridge should be on its own fuse, and the type of wiring (lamp cord) used to wire to the electrical outlet for the fridge is incorrect.

Do you mean that lamp cord was use to wire the refrigerator?

Apparently the electrician found that lamp cord was wired into the outlet for a light switch. When he disconnected that, the electrical outlet for the refrigerator stopped working. He thinks when previous owners finished the basement, they used the wiring for the fridge to wire the electrical for the basement room, and then somehow used the lampcord to connect back to the refrigerator electrical outlet.

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Originally Posted by hkstroud

Do you mean that lamp cord was use to wire the refrigerator?

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Apparently the electrician found that lamp cord was wired into the outlet for a light switch. When he disconnected that, the electrical outlet for the refrigerator stopped working. He thinks when previous owners finished the basement, they used the wiring for the fridge to wire the electrical for the basement room, and then somehow used the lampcord to connect back to the refrigerator electrical outlet.

Yes, the refrigerator should be on its own circuit.

Lamp cord is not rated as permanent wiring and is not to be used as you describe per the NEC.

Looks like you found a good electrician. Pay him want he wants as he just saved your house.

Lamp cord is not approved for permanent wiring. It is neither the correct size (usually) and does not have the proper insulation.

It is a general practice to put a refrigerator on a circuit by it self. This is not a safety issue, just that if you over load the circuit, the refrigerator goes off and you don't know it, you loose a lot of food.

Thank you for the prompt response. I will try to get the wiring fixed asap.