Can you hook up a 30amp breaker to a 20 amp outlet for an air conditioner?

STOP! DON'T EVEN THINK OF DOING THIS!

It is foolish, dangerous and probably illegal to "hook up a 30 Amp breaker" into a 20 Amp wiring circuit feeding a 20 Amp socket outlet.

Leave the present 20 Amp circuit alone!

Someone who knows what he or she is doing must run a new30 Amp circuit with the correct type of socket outlet , the correct size of wiring and the correct size of circuit breaker to provide a safe and legal supply for your 30 Amp Air Conditioner unit.

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If you asked this question because you have no experience of working on the latest household power circuits and you hope to get enough information on this site to be able to do the job properly and safely, it is best to warn you not to rely on getting accurate information from this site about such a potentially dangerous subject.

By asking this question you probably aren't quite ready to take on this particular task.

Really, don't do this one yourself. Electricity is far too dangerous to handle if you don't already know your local Wiring Codes or Regulations or you have not been trained how to do this work.

How to do this job depends entirely on the Wiring Codes or Regulations for the locality (Town/State) and on the exact location of the appliance you wish to hook up. If it is anywhere that is subject to water splashes or spray - such as in any room supplied with running water pipes, like a kitchen, bathroom, shower room, etc., or in a pool-side area - in many places nowadays it is actually illegal to attempt to do this kind of work unless you are already a licensed electrician.

For your safety and that of anyone else who may to use the appliance, ask a professional licensed electrician to advise you or to do the work for you.

ALWAYS CHECK WITH YOUR LOCAL WIRING SAFETY OFFICE BEFORE YOU ATTEMPT TO CHANGE ANYTHING ON POWER MAINS OUTLETS

IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB

SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY

REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.

If you do this work yourself, always turn off the power

at the breaker box/fuse panel BEFORE you attempt to do any work

AND

always use an electricians test meter having metal-tipped probes

(not a simple proximity voltage indicator)

to insure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.