4 prong dryer hook up question

why not just go get a longer copper screw?

yes...what is important is that the wire makes good contact with the connection point. Just be sure that the threads on the screw you use are exactly the same as the threads on the original screw so you don't screw up the female threads.

Thanks

Can I use a 2 prong to 3 prong adapter to run a 3 prong washer and fridge?

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an I use a 2 prong to 3 prong adapter to run a 3 prong washer and fridge?

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yep, just slightly less safe. Just means you don't have a ground.

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Can it burn the house down?

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It's more of a shock hazard than a fire hazard. If you get a short to the appliance case and touch it, it may go through you to ground (or a child or pet). I would recommend against it unless you're planning to run a ground wire to the adapter, but people do it all the time and odds are you'll never shock yourself.

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It was many decades after the advent of electricilty in homes before anyone saw the need for a 3 wire system with ground, I wonder home many people actually died because of the lack of chassis gound. There are literaly houndreds of thousands if not millions of older homes that have never been re-wired, still using the two wire system, but hearing about someone being electrocuted in their home is pretty rare.

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That is true, it is rare. I do think if you look at the rate of electrocution relative to the use of electricity and electrical appliances has probably decreased. The fact is, a 110 AC shock is usually not deadly and often no more than a frightening jolt. People with heart conditions and small children are probably most at risk. The main issue here is that modern appliances are built with grounding as the primary protection against stray voltages. Older appliances (designed for the two wire systems) were designed the way many hand tools are now, double insulated. Of course if you go back far enough, you'll find even that wasn't in place.

Codes are there for a reason ands it's usually best to try to follow them.

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It's more of a shock hazard than a fire hazard. If you get a short to the appliance case and touch it, it may go through you to ground (or a child or pet). I would recommend against it unless you're planning to run a ground wire to the adapter, but people do it all the time and odds are you'll never shock yourself.

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You can run a jumper wire between the ground and the neutral(common) connection on the back of the dryer. In fact, that is how you do it. That way if there is a possible shock it directs it down the common wire and treats it like a ground. In the breaker panel, a lot of the time the neutral and ground bus are connected anyway. Outside where your meter socket is, the neutral and ground are always connected with a jumper rod of sorts. So using a 3 vs 4 prong plug is no different, it's all in how you connect the wires.

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You can run a jumper wire between the ground and the neutral(common) connection on the back of the dryer.

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Bridging the neutral and ground at the outlet is against code. That is because if the neutral becomes disconnected between the outlet and box at any point, the ground circuit will becom energized, just waiting for a path to ground. Do not do this.