Re: Any reason for 10/2 over 14/2?
Thanks everyone! I just went with 12/2 and probably went over kill on all the breakers. It's a new garage 28X32 with a 100 amp box, fed from my main 200 amp in the house.
OK, now that I have a better handle on the context, a few unsolicited comments on the job in general...
First, you earlier said something about "8 65w canned lights". Leaving aside the LED/CFL/Incandescent debate for the moment, I'll note that while that MIGHT be adequate for the loft area alone, it won't be nearly enough for the main garage/shop area. You need to figure on MUCH more lighting than this. This is further exacerbated by the fact that "recessed can" lighting (pretty much regardless of what type bulbs you fill them with) tends to be rather "spotty" and directional, meaning each one covers less floor area.
I'm guessing from the pics that your lower-level ceiling will finish out at about 12 feet. That will help somewhat (as compared to the more typical 8-10 feet), as the light will have more chance to spread out before it gets down to "working height", But it's still not a panacea; and it also means you need brighter light sources (the intensity of light diminishes with the square of distance, in a free field).
If you're willing to forego dimming capability, then the lower level solution becomes relatively easy: Some form of fluorescent strip lighting, placed carefully to remain useful when you actually have vehicles in that space (generally meaning NOT directly overhead), and wired into several independently switched "banks", to provide at least some control over both brightness and coverage pattern. Personally, I like four-foot twin-tube fixtures, such as this one (which I've pointed to several times here):
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia-Lighting-2-Light-Utility-Light-3348-2L32W-WRAP/100654395
They're cheap; they look half-decent; they can be strung together in more-or-less continuous "strips" when appropriate; the polycarbonate lens both helps to evenly distribute the light and provides some impact protection; and the 4-foot size makes placing them where you really need them relatively easy. There's also a matching two-foot version:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia...hite-Fluorescent-Light-Fixture-3324/202192968
if you need to fit into really tight spots, or fill out a specific-legth run.
And finally, since you're NOT trying to get something like 20-50% of your total lighting requirements out of each fixture, you can use enough of them to easily form into multiple switched banks, yet still maintain relatively even distribution, even when only using 1/3 or 1/2 the lights. Without running any calcs, or even beginning to address the specific interior layout (i.e., wherever the workbench, stationary machines, storage cabinets, etc., will be located), I'll offer a "starting guess" that you'll probably want 20-30 of these fixtures to cover your "general" lighting needs on the lower level, plus additional "task lighting" in specific spots as required.
I had a electrician ($1,600.00) do the job and already signed off by the inspector.
I presume you are referring here to the sub-panel and the feeder from the home's main service panel? That doesn't sound too bad, presuming you didn't lift a finger for that part of the job.
The quotes i got for lighting and receptacles seemed pretty high for mostly grunt work, so i'm setting out to do it on my own....and am almost done.
Will you need another inspection after you have those rough-ins done?
I live in the seacoast of New Hampshire and all contractors are pricing in premiums here. I just got quotes for insulation and sheet rocking. First quote $6,200 insulation and $5,800 sheet rocking....thought that was a bit high until i got my second quote, 12k insulation, 10k sheet rocking.....ok, HD here i come!
The insulation depends somewhat on the type of system you're going with. For that loft area, at least, I would suggest you seriously consider spray-in closed-cell foam. You apparently have little or no effective attic space above at least most of that area, and not much space to cram insulation into. Combine that with your coastal New Hampshire location, and you'll want the most efficient insulation you can get. And if you were to have them do the whole job (including the lower-level sidewalls) while they're there, that $6,200 figure MIGHT not be completely outrageous.
The drywall bids, OTOH, do sound unreasonably high to me. But then, I also recently got "sticker shock" from a quote of about $2,500 just to rip out and replace the (approx. 12x15) ceiling in one room, including taping/mudding/sanding to "ready for paint" status.
Finally, not really related to any of this... That looks like a VERY nice floor you have there. I sure hope you put lots of insulation under it (and hopefully some PEX tubing into it, even if you aren't planning to use it right away), while you had the chance.
I went to HD and bought a 250 foot roll every time i needed some
If yours doesn't have it, maybe try a local electrical supply house. The only problem though is that they may be higher priced.
