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15 AMP circuits & lighting
- Thread starter NCtim
- Start date
bczygan
Well-known member
26 is my guess.
15x120=1800x.8=1440/54=26.6
But why on earth would you?
Cans are a terrible way to light a garage or shop.
Bill
15x120=1800x.8=1440/54=26.6
But why on earth would you?
Cans are a terrible way to light a garage or shop.
Bill
Last edited:
Not cans. 4' with two flourescent style strips per unit. Just like T5s but with LEDs and brighter. 4200 Lumens and only 40 Watts per unit. Sorry, I was reading specs off of another box. This is the unit: http://www.ebay.com/itm/181168802444
bczygan
Well-known member
Note the color temperature of 4500.
And if you are lighting a space, you want a couple of circuits anyway.
Hey, where in WNC are you? I used to live in Asheville.
Bill
And if you are lighting a space, you want a couple of circuits anyway.
Hey, where in WNC are you? I used to live in Asheville.
Bill
Hey Bill,
I'm in Fairview. I used to live in AVL until it really started to get pricey (tax-wise). I know 5000K is daylight and 4500 is very blue/white, but I looked at them in Lowes and you can't stare at them. They'll blind you. They are for a 24 x 28 garage that I'll use for working on my sports cars.
NCtim
I'm in Fairview. I used to live in AVL until it really started to get pricey (tax-wise). I know 5000K is daylight and 4500 is very blue/white, but I looked at them in Lowes and you can't stare at them. They'll blind you. They are for a 24 x 28 garage that I'll use for working on my sports cars.
NCtim
bczygan
Well-known member
Hey Bill,
I'm in Fairview. I used to live in AVL until it really started to get pricey (tax-wise). I know 5000K is daylight and 4500 is very blue/white, but I looked at them in Lowes and you can't stare at them. They'll blind you. They are for a 24 x 28 garage that I'll use for working on my sports cars.
NCtim
5000 is bluer than 4500, which is yellower.
Was a hippie there in 68-70.
My ex was from Arden, and I lived all over the area as a young man, Montford, Tunnel Road, downtown, Swannanoa, Arden, Webb Cove, Albemarle, Haw Creek, even an abandoned shack at the end of a ridge, behind a church graveyard off the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Worked as an Architectural Designer and designed homes in Biltmore Forest and on Sunset Mountain. apartments south of town, etc..
Ah youth!
Bill
Shiftless
Well-known member
Not cans. 4' with two flourescent style strips per unit. Just like T5s but with LEDs and brighter. 4200 Lumens and only 40 Watts per unit. Sorry, I was reading specs off of another box. This is the unit: http://www.ebay.com/itm/181168802444
Sounds OK to me. If for some reason you can't go to 20 amps or can't go to 2 separate circuits. Do you already have 14 ga. wire in place? Are there no more empty spaces in your panel?
As bczygan has said, more than one circuit is desirable. If a breaker pops, the entire place goes dark all at once. Might be a safety hazard.
You can have 2 or more switches controlling different banks of lights fed from the same breaker. I wouldn't put all the lights on just one switch. Light different areas used for different purposes at different times and get control with switches for those areas.
As far as color temperature is concerned, I am running the FEIT LED shoplights which have a color temp of 4000 and it seems just right to me.
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ssbtech
Well-known member
You may be OK amp/watt wise, but wouldn't you be exceeding the number of allowed fixtures on a circuit?
tfi racing
Well-known member
You may be OK amp/watt wise, but wouldn't you be exceeding the number of allowed fixtures on a circuit?
Huh?
ssbtech
Well-known member
Huh?
Doesn't the electrical code limit the number of fixtures (receptacles, lights, etc, or a combination thereof) on a circuit to 12 or 14 or something?
OP wanted to put 30 on a circuit.
Be careful with lights of america, my experience with there stuff is that it's ****. Don't know about those particular lights but with some othersNot cans. 4' with two flourescent style strips per unit. Just like T5s but with LEDs and brighter. 4200 Lumens and only 40 Watts per unit. Sorry, I was reading specs off of another box. This is the unit: http://www.ebay.com/itm/181168802444
CJ7VFR
Well-known member
Put in two lighting circuits. The first time you need to replace a fixture after dark you'll thank me.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Plus, with the lights being on multiple circuits, you don't have to have every light on in the garage for doing quick things, like just going in there to get a tool, or to put stuff in your garbage/recycling cans.
I hated having all of my lights on one circuit with one switch. Every time I wanted to toss something into my garbage bin at night I had to turn everything on, and then immediately turn everything off again. That was not good.
I now have the lights on two different circuits for the exact reason Pwrgeek said, plus the situation I was having with turning on all the lights.
I also installed a simple motion sensor with a daylight sensor in it, and wired that up to a single screw in bulb fixture, that has a 100 watt bulb in it.
This way, no one in my house has to turn on the garage lights in order to just take out the trash, or get something from in the garage and come right back out.
Jim
Cmreschke
Well-known member
Doesn't the electrical code limit the number of fixtures (receptacles, lights, etc, or a combination thereof) on a circuit to 12 or 14 or something?
OP wanted to put 30 on a circuit.
No limit per nec aside from load limits set by the fixture and figured by ohms law.
Find a quote for that...I know up here in Canada there's a 12 device limit per circuit.No limit per nec aside from load limits set by the fixture and figured by ohms law.
tfi racing
Well-known member
Find a quote for that...I know up here in Canada there's a 12 device limit per circuit.
Really?Show us the rule please.
Cmreschke
Well-known member
Find a quote for that...I know up here in Canada there's a 12 device limit per circuit.
I said nec not the other code north of the border. BTW the code doesn't tell you what you can do. It tells you what you have to do and what you cannot do. So tell me where it says in the Nec that I can't go higher than 12 devices on a circuit.
I was more surprised that the NEC wouldn't list anything because we do have restrictions up here.I said nec not the other code north of the border. BTW the code doesn't tell you what you can do. It tells you what you have to do and what you cannot do. So tell me where it says in the Nec that I can't go higher than 12 devices on a circuit.
I did a quick search and found some mentions of 180VA restrictions and 13 devices per circuit or something in the NEC but it doesn't apply to residential and this was just forum posts that quoted bits and pieces, so grain of salt.
I think in the end though, I wouldn't want to put that many devices on one circuit even if it was within amperage limits and code...just seems like a bad idea. 30 lights I'd go probably 3 circuits personally or a circuit per zone or something.
sberry
Banned
Some of it is for calculation purposes but for Joe home garage and maybe others, yes, if there is space I like 2 circuits, and maybe several switches, a way too change them a bit and some headroom, additions, lamp changes etc, about half loaded in continuous use and on 14 wire is ok. Figure lights at 100 watts per amp for installation and forget most of the rest of the formula.
Cmreschke
Well-known member
I would figure not taking the circuit past 12 amps. I would in my own load that ckt to the 12 amps and move on to next ckt.
nh_yota
Well-known member
The CEC has a rule about number of outlets or fixtures but the NEC does not.
As always, check with you AHJ to see if there are local amendments to the code.
As always, check with you AHJ to see if there are local amendments to the code.
CJ7VFR
Well-known member
I was more surprised that the NEC wouldn't list anything because we do have restrictions up here...
The CEC has a rule about number of outlets or fixtures but the NEC does not....
Only 12 fixtures on a single circuit? Would that include those low voltage outdoor lights that people put along their sidewalks or around a patio or pool? A lot of those have 15 or 20 fixtures to the set, and they don't pull a lot of amperage. So if you are limited to only 12 fixtures, then would that mean that you would have to run a set of those low voltage lights on their own separate circuit?
Do the Canadian codes specify 12 fixtures of a certain size? Or just 12 fixtures in general?
Jim
nh_yota
Well-known member
I believe the CEC rule is based on a load calculation and not an arbitrary number. It's not like they took a vote and picked 12 as the max number of outlets.
For instance, they assume each outlet will use 180 VA and since a 20 amp circuit can handle up to 2160 VA at 80% load, it means the max outlets would be 12.
For instance, they assume each outlet will use 180 VA and since a 20 amp circuit can handle up to 2160 VA at 80% load, it means the max outlets would be 12.
nh_yota
Well-known member
When it comes to light fixtures, if you know the max rating of the fixture you don't need to use an assumed number like 180VA. If you're installing 6" cans with a max bulb rating of 100W each, you can theoretically install 19 fixtures on a 20 amp circuit at 80% load.
Even if you were only going to use a 50W bulb in the 100W fixture you still have to use the max rating of the fixture because someone could screw in a higher wattage bulb. Now when it comes to LED fixtures I think you can get away with more fixtures if they do not use Edison base bulbs.
The general idea is known load vs. unknown or assumed load. Stuff like this is what differentiates an Electrician from a guy running romex.
Even if you were only going to use a 50W bulb in the 100W fixture you still have to use the max rating of the fixture because someone could screw in a higher wattage bulb. Now when it comes to LED fixtures I think you can get away with more fixtures if they do not use Edison base bulbs.
The general idea is known load vs. unknown or assumed load. Stuff like this is what differentiates an Electrician from a guy running romex.
bczygan
Well-known member
When it comes to light fixtures, if you know the max rating of the fixture you don't need to use an assumed number like 180VA. If you're installing 6" cans with a max bulb rating of 100W each, you can theoretically install 19 fixtures on a 20 amp circuit at 80% load.
Even if you were only going to use a 50W bulb in the 100W fixture you still have to use the max rating of the fixture because someone could screw in a higher wattage bulb. Now when it comes to LED fixtures I think you can get away with more fixtures if they do not use Edison base bulbs.
The general idea is known load vs. unknown or assumed load. Stuff like this is what differentiates an Electrician from a guy running romex.
This is a key point. I don't know if code limits it because of this, but you should. If he was putting Edison base 17watt LED bulbs in, he should still limit the fixture count as if 100watt incandescents would be installed. For me, the limiting factor would be how many lights I wanted for switching purposes, and since you could still switch banks, but put them all on one circuit, I would still want some headroom.
Bill
finn
Well-known member
So, where do you find 100W incandescent bulbs these days?
The calculations may need some contemporary adjustments.
The calculations may need some contemporary adjustments.
bczygan
Well-known member
So, where do you find 100W incandescent bulbs these days?
The calculations may need some contemporary adjustments.
https://www.1000bulbs.com/category/100-watt-standard-shape-light-bulbs/
Cmreschke
Well-known member
100 watt halogen spots could potentially be used.
Be careful with lights of america, my experience with there stuff is that it's ****. Don't know about those particular lights but with some others
what was your experience? Lots of people have bought them from Sams and seem to have good luck. The ones at Sam's have been rebadged as Honeywell. They have a 5 year warranty.
finn
Well-known member
100 watt halogen spots could potentially be used.
They'll be gone in a couple of years too, considering how cheap efficient LEDs are becoming.
Power supplies smoked but they weren't these lights.what was your experience? Lots of people have bought them from Sams and seem to have good luck. The ones at Sam's have been rebadged as Honeywell. They have a 5 year warranty.
Cmreschke
Well-known member
I would think that low voltage lights would be considered 1 opening. That being the power supply. It is a transformer and can only draw what it is sized for.
Dave Carney
Well-known member
Be careful with lights of america, my experience with there stuff is that it's ****. Don't know about those particular lights but with some others
Me too!. Had 2 brand new LOA fluorescent torchiers go up in smoke, literally, also had a number of LOA dusk to dawn fluorescents from them that were junk....would just light here and there as they saw fit.
Fishplate
Well-known member
Would that include those low voltage outdoor lights that people put along their sidewalks or around a patio or pool?
The code treats low-voltage differently.
klassenl
Well-known member
The 12 outlet limit applies in a house where the load is unknown. The assumption is 1 amp per outlet. When the connected load is known that is what is used for calculations.