Adding wiring to basement - routing conduit questions

[dukes909]

We have a semi-finished basement in our home I'd like to add more outlets and lighting. Right now there are only a couple of ceiling lights (finished ceiling) and outlets on the walls. (The current outlets and light fixtures are wired above the finished ceiling and date to when the house was built). The person we bought the house from added a few more lights by stapling Romex to the ceiling back to the subpanel..we've taken most of that out.

My question is what is the best way to run conduit to the places where I want lights and outlets? Running it along the ceiling appears to be the easiest way as there are various obstacles running it along the walls:

Stairwell to the left of the wall mounted subpanel (not shown)..can't run along wall here:


Then to the left of this stairwell and around a corner is an i-beam that runs the width of the house:


And in this "room" beneath our front porch I want a light, but is tricky to route here as well (another i-beam and then a header over the room opening:


On the other side of the basement (and to the right of the subpanel), is a semi-circular wall:


And then, finally to the right of this is two sets of block walls that support a chimney above (we have storm windows stashed in between there here). You can also see an old piece of Romex, disconnected, that the previous owner ran along the header:


So with all these obstacles, it looks like the easiest way is to route several pieces of conduit along the ceiling instead of the wall? This is never going to be a "finished" basement while we own it, in the sense of furniture etc, but is used for storage and workshop area, so I'm not concerned in the slightest with appearance. What are your suggestions for the areas shown in these photos? Will I run conduit parallel to lighting fixtures that are outlets on circuit(s) separate from the lights? I can use PVC or metal conduit where I live.

Dukester

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Why not use MC/FMC? Its not the prettiest but is easy to run!

 

[dukes909]

Isn't MC significantly more expensive than rigid conduit (either conduit)..?

 

[wyliesdiesels]

With conduit u still have to buy the wire! And 3 or 4 separate rolls. FMC includes the wire:

http://m.homedepot.com/p/Cerrowire-250-ft-Coil-12-2-MC-Aluminum-Cable-1483-1602G/203471225/

 

[dukes909]

Thanks - thats true. That would cover one run of lights, but then I'd have to have another run for another set of lights on a separate switch, and then another 2 runs for receptacles, unless I"m missing something, whereas with conduit I could run all the THHN wires in no more than 2 runs of conduit.?

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Theres always 3 conductor MC and MWB circuits! And keep in mind that 4 or more current carrying conductors in the same raceway have to be derated!

 

[dukes909]

I'm not familiar with an MWB circuit..what is it? My Google-fu is failing me also

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Multi-wire branch circuit. 2 hots neutral and ground. Hots connected to double pole breaker or 2 single pole breakers on opposite busses with handle ties/aka 240v between hot legs so neutral isnt overloaded.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Buy a fish tape,and learn to fix a little drywall.

 

[dukes909]

There's no drywall in the basement; it's basically one big open space. Unless you are referring to taking down the ceiling?..in which case I still have the issue of the Ibeams.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

That's the part I was talking about,you can fish romex through the floor joists above the ceiling.You can use the soffit around the beams as a chase for wires depending on how its built.

 

[dukes909]

There isn't a soffit, so to speak, around the I-beams..

 

[BFBOB]

From what I can see of your pix, the joists sit on top of the I-beams. So, it's pretty easy to fish the wires above the ceiling, crossing the I-beam out of sight above. Use MC for protection from nails, mice, etc, since it'll be lying right on top of the ceiling. Yes, it is possible to jam a screw through MC, but it takes extra effort. You can also run on the surface of the ceiling until you get to the I-beam, then duck up and over, and come back out. Not as nice looking, but quicker/easier.
Going across the joists above the ceiling can be done, but involves making a hole between every other pair of joists and drilling with a long bit through each joist, then fishing the MC through the holes. In your situation, probably not worth the effort. I'd be more inclined to run on the surface right next to the wall, enclose it in a small soffit (screwed on for future access). Even though you may not care about appearance, it is a finished basement, and doing things more prettily now will help resale value later.

And, to belabor the obvious, this is why basements should NEVER have hard ceilings.

 

[dukes909]

Thanks! So going by your suggestion, would it be easiest to to run THHN inside 1/2" EMT along the surface of the ceiling, and then into a junction box from where the MC would come out the same box and duck up over the I-beam ?

 

[Alchymist]

There's always wiremold. Lowes and HD usually carry it, local electrical supply stores have it.