NEMA 5-20 is an abomination that should die, and I'll die on that hill fighting it. It makes ZERO sense. If your appliance actually needs a 5-20 plug, then it should be in a dedicated circuit, and L5-20 should serve just fine. But once you've decided that a duplex 5-20 is fine, you've now left space for a 12A heater to get plugged in adjacent to an 18A copier, all on a circuit that someone will plug a 17A vacuum into somewhere down the line. Insanity! Just as dumb as duplex 240V receptacles. What's next, this ****?
"JUST BECAUSE"
A 5-15 single receptacle is supposed to be limited to a 15 amp circuit though I know of no instance of that being enforced but what about a 5-15 duplex receptacle with two eight amp loads into it? To add to that, 20q amp 120 volt receptacles look stupid. We all know that you're an advocate for using 14 gauge wire for everything because it's cheap but there are places where that just ain't gonna happen; there are even places with amendments that state 12 gauge is the minimum wire size allowed.
Anything for a rant. That's why.
43,657 posts. I wonder how many of those have been quoted.
It happens quite often. I've asked many shock jockeys why they used 20 amp devices; usually the answer is because it's a 20 amp circuit but there have been a few times that they were spec'd. I had a service call once and the old timer proudly showed me how he had changed every receptacle in the house to a 20 amp. I asked why and the answer was "because they are more heavier duty".
I bet it tracks with the level of…..
I actually checked the Leviton website and they say a 5-15R is spec'd at 15A ! So if you have a 20A breaker, 12AWG NM-B and you MIGHT pull 20A, you really should use a 5-20R ! (Although, as previously stated, non-commercial electrical equipment that comes with a 5-20P is unusual !)
I UNDRESTAND THAT ! I am NOT advocating against that.
No kidding? That's what my post said, but in a different way. My statement about not knowing of an instance of it being enforced was about an inspector catching it. A company I previously worked for used single 5-15's on a 20 amp circuit for sump pumps, garage refrigerators, and central vacuums located in a garages for every house they wired; hundreds of them a year. Now all of those things are supposed to be GFCI protected so now we're back to duplex receptacles.
Commercial equipment with a 5-20 is rare as well. I've seen a total of three factory installed 5-20p's in my 32 year career.
Didn't say you are, but pay attention to the context of my post. If a municipality insists on 12 gauge wire at a minimum (they don't require 20 amp circuits, 15 amp breakers are ok even if it's dumb) should every receptacle in the house be a 20 amp? According to post #2, you think they should be.
