Simple Wiring Question

[m123]

Easy question for a newbie. For a simple wiring job in new garage, can I just put a electric box above the ceiling at every location I want to have an outlet, and use it as a splice point. Run a 12-2 down to the outlet, so they are not daisy chained together. Do this all the way around the 3 sides of the garage?

See Diagram

 

[Falcon67]

Sure, if you like buying and running more wire that you need too. You'll save a lot of $, wire and time by dropping to the first (make that on an GFCI) and running through holes in the studs to the rest. If one (or more) of the walls is where you might plan to do work of some sort, make the boxes quads. Outlets tend to fill up.

 

[PelicanPines]

An expert will chime in... but

You can only have so many outlets connected to a breaker.

Those splice boxes must be accessible from the attic space? or accessible at the ceiling.

 

[AntonLargiader]

If that is the actual layout, and everything will be recessed into a finished wall, I would daisy-chain everything on a horizontal line through the studs.

But if there's more to the story, let's hear it.

EDIT: you're talking about three sides of the garage. Yes, do the same thing except you obviously need to go around obstacles. How many outlets are you thinking about in all?

 

[ard]

Maybe tell us WHY you want to do this. Sure you can, provided the splices are accessible (not easily accessible, jsut 'possible' without cutting Sheetrock.)

 

[exranger06]

That's exactly the way I'm running my conduit, but my walls are unfinished, and they're going to stay unfinished, and everything is surface-mount.
Edit: I should add that one of the outlets is a GFCI, and the rest of the outlets will be connected to the load side of the GFCI, so they basically are daisy-chained.

 

[m123]

Yes, the attic is accessible. My thought was if this way I could add a new feeder cable from another breaker in the panel at some point if I needed to. I'd end the existing line somewhere (say at the end of wall 1) and splice the new feeder wire onto the wall 2 outlets to continue on. Or if I wanted to remove a box, it would be easy to disconnect and pull out and not affect existing string of outlets. Once I finish the wall I could easily replace the cable on a single outlet with larger if I needed (disconnect it first, of course). The other string of outlets would continue to function as normal.

I thought I read somewhere its a bad idea to run electrical in a garage horizontal, so wanted to keep everything out of the way and in the ceiling.

 

[Eslader]

I can't think of why it would be bad to run electrical in a garage horizontally. Maybe that came from the downstream outlets from a GFI limitation - more than 4 can cause false tripping.

If you run it horizontally then you can have one GFI outlet followed by 4 non-GFI outlets. If you run it the way you're doing it then you either need a GFI breaker or you need all the outlets to be GFI - both options will cost you more money, but NEC now says that all outlets in a garage - even the ones on the ceiling for the door opener, must be GFI protected.

 

[Falcon67]

I can't think of why it would be bad to run electrical in a garage horizontally. Maybe that came from the downstream outlets from a GFI limitation - more than 4 can cause false tripping.

No such thing in my experience. I've got 10~12 outlets on my runs, lots of quads and all start with a GFCI. No false trips.

The OP can do it any way he likes, his drawing is perfectly fine. I didn't, used the shortest path possible and still managed to use nearly 1000' of 12-2. That runs into $$$ is all I'm saying. In the work area where I keep the tool box and benches, there are single drops to a GFCI/quad box then surface runs to other quads using MC cable. Makes for easy changes of layout vs wires in the wall. Every run should start with a GFCI, and the OPs layout adds double the wire in the first drop because there will be a feed and a load run from the GFCI.

 

[rsieracki]

I did something similar to the OP in my "shed" ... i used conduit and wanted to make it easier to do changes in the future as i rarely have a helper the "Splice boxes" for me a 4" boxes in my attic... i ran them as a "belt" around the building with all 3 conduit KO's connected to the next box.. way overkill but it beats having to empty out half the attic and run a pipe later.. i figure i spent less than a $100 extra that i didnt need too between fittings n boxes etc but the labor to add or change a feed later is just pulling wire and worth it for me... my building is 40x12 and i have around 80 lineal feel of my attic (a large U) set up this way.. once i empty all the **** out of the attic i will continue for the rest)

 

[wyliesdiesels]

An expert will chime in... but

You can only have so many outlets connected to a breaker.

Those splice boxes must be accessible from the attic space? or accessible at the ceiling.

That is incorrect for a residential application.

 

[m123]

Thanks all, that gives me some options. For some reason I just feel better about centralizing the GFCI in the panel and using regular outlets throughout the garage. I'm thinking of using two 20 amp breakers for the outlets and a separate 15 amp breaker for all of my LED lighting.

 

[klassenl]

That is incorrect for a residential application.

Quote from the code book?

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

That is incorrect for a residential application.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Quote from the code book?

How about a code reference for the other way?

 

[ard]

Is too
Is not
Is too
Is not.....

 

[teamextreme]

How about a code reference for the other way?

Seeing as how the NEC for the most part restricts what you can't do, not so much what you can...
There is no code restrictions on number of outlets on a residential circuit. A common sense restriction should be used, but you won't find anything in the NEC.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Quote from the code book?

Code is permissive.

There is no code that says u CAN put any number of outlets on a circuit.

Its the other way around. If it WASNT allowed then there would be a code saying so.

So how about you provide the reference that says there is a limit.

 

[mm08822]

Quote from the code book?

Read NEC articles 210 and 220 and you will find lots of requirements for receptacles:
where req'd,
spacing,
dedicated ckts,
gfci/afci protection,
ckts/sq/ft, etc.
In no place will you find a residential requirement limiting the number of general purpose convenience recepts on a ckt.

Obviously the expected simultaneous use of connected loads should determine how many you want.