Plugs and lights on same breaker

[Tarheel Slim]

Hi ,im just wondering what the pros and cons of having lights and plugs wired on the same breaker VS running them separate ? Asking because i have a 30x44 pole barn with 60 AMP feed from house,Im going to use 2 lathes, milling machine, drill press, compressor,12 lights, roughly 30 outlet plugs,all lights will be plug in not hard wired.

 

[rlitman]

I have four 120V circuits in my garage, and two 240V circuits on my 60A feed.

1) Freezer. I don't want anything accidentally leaving me with rotting food, so this one is dedicated.
2) Lights. This circuit runs the lights, television, and stuff like cordless battery chargers, but each outlet is labeled "no tools".
3) Loft. This covers the garage door opener (because it was there), dust collector, shop vacuums, etc. Basically, stuff that might be used at the same time as tools, that I don't want sharing a circuit.
4) Tools. This is what most of my outlets are on.
Then, there's a 240V circuit for the compressor, and one that is shared between the plasma cutter, TIG welder, and tablesaw.

Anyway, I've found that the chop saw can sometimes trip the 20A breaker it is on, with nothing else on that circuit. As bad as it is to see the saw come to a stop unexpectedly, it's far worse to have the lights go out at the same time.

 

[CoogarXR]

I had a basement shop in a house I used to live in. I bound up a circular saw and the breaker popped. All the lights went out too. At night. That sucked, lol. Nothing like finding your way to the breaker box, stumbling over wood scraps, saw blades, wood screws and drill bits...

 

[N_Jay]

Just think about how long the tools spin down in the dark and the answer is obvious.

 

[bochnak]

Best to have all lighting on separate breaker.

 

[dave*99]

I had a basement shop in a house I used to live in. I bound up a circular saw and the breaker popped. All the lights went out too. At night. That sucked, lol. Nothing like finding your way to the breaker box, stumbling over wood scraps, saw blades, wood screws and drill bits...

YUP! My parents house had one circuit for the entire basement. Lights and the solitary receptacle that my table saw was plugged into all on one 15amp circuit. Popped that sucker and I just froze until the saw spun down.
Not a good feeling.

 

[bjcouche]

The NEC allows you to place lights and outlets on the same breaker, but I NEVER do. When working with power tools, you WILL trip a breaker at some point and you don't want to be stuck in the dark. The only lights that I have connected to outlet circuits are lights like task lights, drop lights etc. Also I keep other essential devices on dedicated circuits like refrigerators, freezers, sump pumps etc. Anything that you'd be upset about finding out that the breaker tripped 2 weeks ago and you hadn't noticed....

Brian

 

[acer66]

As mentioned above put the lights on a dedicated circuit or put one half of the lights on one dedicated circuit and the other half on a second dedicated circuit, that is what I will do when the time comes.

 

[Speedy Petey]

In a small bedroom/den/LR it's fine to have them on the same breaker, especially in a newer installation. In a detached barn/shop/garage, there is NO reason at all to have them on the same breaker.

 

[alien]

The NEC allows you to place lights and outlets on the same breaker, but I NEVER do. When working with power tools, you WILL trip a breaker at some point and you don't want to be stuck in the dark. The only lights that I have connected to outlet circuits are lights like task lights, drop lights etc. Also I keep other essential devices on dedicated circuits like refrigerators, freezers, sump pumps etc. Anything that you'd be upset about finding out that the breaker tripped 2 weeks ago and you hadn't noticed....

Brian

Saved me a lot of typing.