Dryer Outlet

[michaeljshannon]

I just bought a new 240-volt dryer which was delivered with a three-prong plug.

Two prongs are flat and the third is L-shaped.

The old dryer plug is also three-prong but all of them are flat.

The outlet has what I believe are two hot wires (black) with a bare braided wire in the center.

I was told that this is a range outlet and could not be used. However the old dryer worked ok for 20+ years. The house was built in 1986.

Do I need to have an electrician rewire the outlet?

Is there a plug adapter available?

What are my options?

Thanks for your time.

[HayZee518]

that receptacle is a range outlet rated at 50 amp. the correct dryer would be a four wire with an L shaped ground. new code says new installations require a four wire pigtail. this NEW code started way back in 1996. so..... you'll need to change the pigtail and receptacle. the pigtail connections are: GREEN - chassis ground, WHITE center dryer terminal with jumper strap removed, RED one outer terminal, BLACK other outer terminal.