How many outlets can you put on one circuit ?
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Instablaster
Years ago when wiring my small garage and with little knowledge, I bought a box that came with 10 twenty amp breakers. So I put one outlet per circuit/ breaker because that's all I need. They've never overloaded. Go ahead and chuckle.
I do the same for all circuits 50 circuits in my house. never have a blown circuit breaker.
In my house there is a new electric wires all replace and in a 20 amp I only allowed the electrician 4 receptacles per circuit breaker in each room and one 20 amp next to the window for the window air conditioning and in my basement electricals box you can install 50 circuits breakers in case I need to add my self more
TYVM! I personally don't want more than 6 circuits on 15 AMP Breaker. I also like doing one room at a time per circuit. It gives me far more control. Instead of losing two or three rooms...I lose one! Is it more expensive? YUP! Do I feel better? YUP! I am glad I caught your video!
One room per circuit makes sense. It is top down thinking instead of bottom up. Then you put as many outlets as needed. I have total about 35 devices on my room.
Good video! I designed electrical systems from 1983 to 2018 (retired). You are correct in your information. Dwelling units you have sq footage that sets the number of circuits regardless of quantity of receptacles.
Commercial NEC is as you showed as 1.5 amps divided into the 20 and 15 amp breaker size. Also correct that 80% does not apply as non continuous load. Our company standard for commercial spaces was 8 receptacles on 20 ampere circuits. The reason is nuisance tripping virtually gone, but most important was if the owner some receptacles added after construction was completed(happens quite often) we could tie into existing circuits to add them rather than having to add circuits for the distance back to the panel. Better for our customer!
Respectfully, Kevin
You have explained the load example better than any other video I've seen here. Great job!
I am an elementary school teacher. Your explanation is great! Always explain the 'why' is what I've always done with my students. Your video is much appreciated.
More importantly, don’t use the stab in holes in the back of the outlet. Pigtail your wires and tighten one wire on the screw. The stab ins become loose over time causing severe heat. I serviced two homes in the last couple months that had toasted wires and outlets due to overheating caused by space heaters. One 1500 watt heater at 120 volts draws 12.5 amps, .5 amps more than the 80% rule on a 15 amp circuit. Those heaters are dangerous, especially when using the outlet stab ins as a joint. Pigtailing the wires is the safest way and Highly recommend, especially when the chance of a full load is applied. ⚡️
My mother in law just melted an extension cord that was the wrong gauge using one of those 😂
I had an inspector tell me once the pigtails were not the best choice. I just let him talk and nodded my head.
@@submittedbymail My brother and I worked in a electrical union for approximately 40 years, running our own company the last 20+. A journeyman left our company to work as an inspector. He was a good worker but believe me, he was not our most knowledgeable employee. But one of average electrical knowledge should know this.
I put 20 outlets on each of 2 circuits in my 4 bay garage. Every 4 feet, I put a 2 gang box. Each box has two circuits, with one brown and one ivory receptacle. There are lots of outlets for convenience, but I run one tool at a time. Sometimes two if you count the shop vac. Lighting is separate. Garage door openers are separate.
That was the best example if seen , awesome 👌. I wire everything for 20 amp to future proof my electrical system.
Very good advice, I think you should state that this is for residential commercial is whole lot different.
You are a blessing of a man!
I had bring electricians to my hose cause I only have between one or two outlets per room, and they said it take a lot of money hundreds if not a thousand, they just wanted to get money out of me, so thank you, thank you so much, I found your video by coincidence, Amazing!
Many years ago we were told for redidental outside of kitchen bathrooms & garages that use 180 Watts per device ( single & duplex receptacles count as 1 ) so on a 15 amp circuit that comes out to 9 devices & 13 on a 20 amp circuit. Best pratice is to put each bedroom living, dining & family room on their own circuit.
No it's not good practice to have each room on it's own circuit. Normally you split circuits in each room. Say half the room on one circuit and half that room and half the next room on another circuit. That way if a circuit trips you still have some power or lighting left in the room for safety.
In a shop, I did 7 per breaker on the 20 amp. The refrigerator circuit, I only did 3. Outside receptacles, I did 4. It depends if appliances or machine tools are going to be plugged in. Light load, like an occasion I need to run a drill, can be more. Clocks, radios, cell phone chargers don't pull much. It's hard to judge sometimes. Welders & compressors are singles because they pull alot.
Simple and well explained, bro. You make a good teacher
Thanks
per the NEC, all general lighting circuits in a residence must be calculated at no less than 3VA per square foot. that means a 15 amp circuit can only power 575 square feet of house, and a 20 amp circuit can only power 766 square feet. you can stuff as many receptacles as you want to into that space, but a good rule of thumb is 10 receptacles per 20 amp circuit and only lights on a 15 amp circuit. (it used to be 10 lights on a 15 amp circuit, but with LEDs, you're looking at 75 bulbs on a 15 amp circuit so it becomes more about not having an electrical fault shut off all the lights in the house.)
There is no maximum requirement for general purposes receptacles in a dwelling unit. There is in a commercial building. I’m pretty sure those calculations are for sizing of the service.
@@blockisle9 it is for the sizing of the service, but it also covers circuit layout in the dwelling unit.
With LED lights, at 6 watts per bulb, a 15 amp circuit would power 300 bulbs. That would be 3 houses, lol.
Just saying because it makes you think. Gotta love these led bulbs.
The sq ft rule makes sence. I'm not an electrician, but I do pay attention to the code and that is what I have read before. Good rule of thumb!
@@markchidester6239 the 3W per square foot also powers anything you might plug in - electronic reality-escape aids, vacuums, heating pads, etc. I still use 20A receptacle circuits for my 3W/foot, and now I tend to break up lighting circuits by floor or zone so I don't black out the whole house if I need to shut one down. I suppose if I wanted to be considerate, I'd divide circuits, so adjacent lights were on different circuits, but that would get complicated.
Straight to the point without over explaining and a bunch of useless babble. Loved it.
The nec does specify 180va per receptacle which works out to be 10.66 on a 20 amp, so 10 is the correct and only answer
In kitchens I always went with 5 on a GFCI and deadacated the fridge and microwave.
Finally, someone calling this what it is. A circuit containing receptacles, not outlets.
how bout that, an actual electrician...maybe city inspector as well?
Master electrician, 45 years experience, after a lifetime of learning the trade, I didnot strive to be a good electrician, my goal was to be the best electrician around, many people have magazines near their favorite chair or the bathroom, my choice was the NEC.
And to Paul, limiting the number of receptacles on a kitchen circuit is the way to go, and as required there must be two separate countertop circuits.the microwave must be a dedicated circuit, for the microwave only. I normally put a single receptacle device to avoid the urge to attach a second item to the circuit.i always install a dedicated circuit for the refrigerator, I have seen many instances where items plugged in would trip the circuit and a lot of foods we're wasted, the same goes for a freezer, where loses can be huge
Thats only for commercial application not for dwellings if you want to go by code
Really simple and easy rule of thumb. Perfect.
Let's put in a plug for this channel; it's a great outlet for current events. Cheers!
Lol
Thank you, excellent logic for the outlets installation 👍🏼👍🏼
I bought a rental that still had knob and tube for the living room. When I ripped it out and replaced it, I went with two 20A circuits and no more than 6 outlets per circuit. It may have been overkill, but I hate it when breakers trip and I figured I should try to prevent it up front.
You can put a hundred outlets on one circuit if nothing is plugged into any of them. Or you can put only 1 item on an outlet if the load is rated for 15 amps and you have a 15 amp circuit breaker controlling that outlet. So the only real answer is it depends on the load that you are plugging into the outlet and the size of the breaker controlling the outlet.
Exactly! I am an electrician. I try to imagine what the home owner may plug in, to determine how many outlets per circuit. For general bedrooms, I stop at 8 outlets, for 15a circuit (2 rooms)
Logic and practicality = winning duo ! You hit it on the nail !
you aare absolutely correct. my opinion, follow the 80% rule and you won't go wrong.
I always do, even like above, they aren't continuous loads. Who wants to go in the basement and reset a breaker? lol
IMO the 1.5 number, fundamental to the whole thing, is automatically suspect: most outlets I’ve seen draw 0.0 year-round. More than half of the ones that do get used are for small electronics that draw continuously in the milliamperes range, or rarely run at all . Exceptions are fixed uses like microwave ovens, entertainment clusters, and washing machines, plus some floating infrequent uses like drills or vacuum cleaners that will generally go into otherwise empty sockets anywhere, briefly. I just don’t think you can give a standard number to every outlet. It depends on its location and what is likely to be plugged into it. For instance: I once very consciously built an office space where I put 2-gang outlet boxes every 6 feet all the way around the 14x14 room on one circuit. The max 2A computer cluster was only ever going to plug into one of them at a time, but it allowed me to rearrange the layout and to plug other smaller or transient things in anywhere that was convenient, with plenty of headroom. The only risk was of the same kind of idiot who would plug together an octopus of extension cords and splitters on a single plug. There’s nothing you can do about idiots, though.
Location is most important and usage. Determine the usage and load in a location.
I’m a first time homeowner and I’ve been installing new lights and switches at our home. And this was by far the most helpful video I’ve found. Thanks so much!
Only a carpenter, but I work with enough electricians and try to keep up with their code. I have gone with the 20/13 15/10 rule. I think that is a hard number for commercial/industrial. Residential no limit, but I don't want to get crazy. And from my vocational school training days, that number helps cluster the outlets. Bedrooms, living room, good to have 2 circuits for kitchen, etc.
When helping with maintenance at a previous church I belonged to, they had an a-hole contractor for expansion. Many problems, liked leaky roof, crushed sewer line... When I got there, I started noticing each circuit had about 3 outlets. That felt like a waste of excessive write run, and necessitating about twice the breakers and load centers needed. Maybe to run up the bill to make more money? There is playing it safe, and then there is being beyond stupid.
I guess not many people here live in Ontario Canada. The code in Ontario limits the outlets, including light points, to 12.
The load on 2 outlets can trip your breaker of 15 amps if they are drawing current at capacity. I really don't agree that the limit of outlets should be calculated on a percentage bases. Who can predict what the use of any outlet will be? Unless a circuit is dedicated for a particular setup.
Two 1500 watt appliance on one duplex outlet should trip a 15 or 20 amp circuit.
People are usually asking you the wrong question. What they really want to know is how many circuits do I need for a room or outdoors in which case you need to know what they plan to use in the room or outdoors. Not just maximums or minimums. Telling them they need to put one in for every 6ft of linear horizontal wall space. The fridge needs to have its own because it needs to be on a non GFCI circuit. The garbage disposal needs its own as does the dishwasher. Plus the kitchen needs to have at least two GFCI 20 amp circuits. If you decided to put window A/C in each bedroom you will need a single circuit for each A/C. If you want a garage or basement workshop you'll need more than one circuit if you want to operate multiple machines. A bedroom with two kids using desktops for school and lighting is one 15 amp circuit. Think circuits and think more is better saving on a few feet of wire and breakers is being penny wise and pound foolish.
The NEC does not require a receptacle outlet every six feet. It requires that no point along an unbroken wall be more than six feet from a receptacle outlet. Also, refrigerators are not exempt from the requirements of GFCI protection.
@@dburt1 Okay on th 6 feet but I seem to remember the exception for the fridge because of leakage current due to capacitance between the motor windings and equipment ground. The GFCI will trip if the current isn't opposite and equal in both the hot and neutral circuit.
@@kimobrien. The NEC requires GFCI protection for all receptacles serving countertop areas and all receptacles within 6 ft from the edge of a sink. There is no exception if one is used for a refrigerator.
@@dburt1 Well I'm thinking about years ago. If the fridge makes the GFCI trip do you move the receptacle so it isn't within 6 ft of a sink? If its a single receptacle for a standing fridge than it isn't serving a countertop area.
It depends on the draw. Bedroom type areas are not equal to garage/shop type areas. Consider 2 bedrooms on 1 circuit. You have 2 clocks, we’ll assume 2 radios or televisions running, 2 desk lamps, and 2 laptops. You could doo all of that on 10 outlets because most of it is lower draw.
A garage by comparison, you (or future homeowner) could have a saw running, an air compressor running, a radio running, plug in lights, battery chargers (including vehicle battery chargers), drills, welders, it’s difficult to say how many of any of those kinds of things may be running simultaneously. That’s not considering a possible (and common) freezer. In a garage/shop I recommend 2 circuits with 8 outlets each maximum, a 15A & a 20A circuit.
Regardless, it comes down to what the projected draw is likely to be. A kitchen & bathroom are not equals.
That works in normal situations but consider what if the heating breaks and you have to resort to space heaters before you can get it fixed? 10 outlets? You can have several chargers. I have 10. My TV system uses some 6 sockets.
It depends what you’re using the outlets for. If you’re going to use a 13 amp heater you should have a dedicated 15 amp circuit. A washer needs a dedicated 20 amp circuit. A microwave needs its own circuit etc..
The dedicated washer circuit is mandated. A permanently installed 13 amp heater cannot reside on a 15 amp circuit because it is considered a continuous load (but there is nothing technically wrong with plugging such a heater into the dwelling's lighting receptacles either, except it may trip the circuit). A microwave that is not simply plugged in to one of the two mandated kitchen appliance circuits does not need a dedicated circuit - unless it draws more than 50% of the available power from that other circuit.
My theory is give the appliances that use the heaviest amount of amperage their own circuit. Refrigerator, space heater, electric stove/oven electric clothes dryer, air conditioner, and in the garage or shop a separate circuit for a welder and or air compressor. You'll most definitely prevent an over load and gain piece of mind by preventing an electrical fire. Believe Me It Is Worth Every Dollar Spent.
Been an electrician for 45 years , by using gained knowledge of construction and typical use of each outlet would determine the number of outlets on a branch circ. Knowing where the homeowner may plug in an air conditioner or electric heater is important. You would not run a circ. under multiple windows where more than one ac unit might be used. Common sense and experience makes for a correctly and safely wired house. With the high cost of arc fault breakers (around $50 +) that are required on all res. branch circ. some people will try to put as many outlets as poss. on a circ. to save money. I do not recommend this practice , you would be asking for trouble.
Whether you put two receptacles in a room or two hundred, the load used in that space is likely to be the same. The NEC considers general use receptacles to be part of the lighting load and bases that load on square footage. I try to think what kind of load a customer is likely to use - will they be plugging in an electric space heater or air conditioner, etc. Outside of items like this, the majority of plug-in use in a home will be in the kitchen, where small appliance circuits are required, bathrooms which are required to be on their own circuit and usually don't exceed two, and garage/basement shops where power and bench tools/machines may be used. In the end, I think the correct answer to the question of how many is - how many so that you can be sure you never get a call from a customer saying they keep tripping a breaker whenever.....
The 1.5 amps per outlet comes from the code for commercial installations.
80 per cent comes from the same commercial code sections.
Use your answers as they are the right ones for commercial wiring installations.
The number of plugs makes no difference, it’s how much load is on the circuit
I’ve been electrician for 20 years and you are 100% right
@@thomasknightknightjr9407 agreed
@@happydogg312. Why is that necessary?
@@happydogg312 But wouldn’t you still need multiple outlets for each circuit to handle the plugging in for all of the equipment?
@@happydogg312 Gotcha! Makes more sense now. I had no idea those systems were so power hungry. Like having three or more 1500w hair dryer’s going at the same time.
Thanks so much for this video. This is something that has come up several times over the years. I just happen to find this and simple information to you but to us old plumbers, it was very important and I’m grateful to you for sharing.
differences between minimal requirements (code), practical ( price restraints ), and what you really want or need can be huge . Always discuss what you want with your contractor. example; you can have four receptacles on one circuit for your counter top but in most cases you can't power a microwave, toaster, and a coffee pot at the same time
yes there is a way. Run 3 wire (4 with ground)red, black, white 240 volt 10 gauge metal shielded cable to the counter top from the fuse/breaker box. Wire up the HIGH AMPERAGE outlets, with the white common to both sides of 2 silver screw socket receptacles. Wire up red to hot (brass) side of one, and black to the other receptacle. You may want to consider having one receptacle, switched, so as not to wear out/stress the metal connectors in receptacle.
In 240 wiring, white is common to 120 volts of each side of 240 (red, one side: black the other 120) It will save you alotta grief, in the future.....even utilize GFI receptacles...
@@petersack5074 microwaves require a dedicated circuit per nec.
You can put 100 outlets on one circuit, but it is not the recepticles you have to calculate, it is the LOAD that is going to be put on that 1 circuit.
Fantastic video! I watched a bunch of videos on how to add an outlet but the burning question remained: how many can I use? Thanks for answering it! You have saved me a big bunch of $$$!
I agree 180va for commercial per nec. I don’t think nor does the nec require you to use same guidelines for residential. If you want to use the same commercial guidelines for resi that’s fine but nothing in nec says you have to use the 180va per receptacle
No it doesnt but you will have people argue that with you till they are blue in the face. :)
There is no specific wording saying "for commercial receptacles". There is also no wording saying " for dwelling unit receptacles". You need to know how to use and interpret the code book so you can do the correct math.
if wiring a house put each room on it's own circuit. Each major appliance should also have it's own circuit. This is a more logical way to wire than counting outlets. It also makes it easier to troubleshoot problems. I personally don't like using 15A circuits as they are easy to overload. 20A is my minimum.
Would you recommend separating lighting and outlets on different circuits for the same room? For instance LED can lights for a living room
The code for kitchens is a minimum of two app. Circuits of 20a , doesn't mean you have to follow the minimum, each plug in the kitchen counter counter be dedicated if you want the would be the maximum side .
The code for kitchens is a minimum of two app. Circuits of 20a , doesn't mean you have to follow the minimum, each plug in the kitchen counter counter be dedicated if you want the would be the maximum side .
Personally I put light in each room on separate circuit and if 4 outlet in a bed room 2 on one circuit and 2 on another this way if you have issues with any outlet you have lights having light on separate circuit is code around here on the other hand if you need to change the light switch or fixture you can plug in a work light into the outlet.
Also if running 14awg wire 15 amp breaker max 12awg 20 amp breaker max however you can put a 15 on 12awg also if running a very long run 15 amp circuit should be on 12awg kitchen outlets need to be split by removing the joiner between the two hot terminals and connected to a 2 pole breaker and dedicated breaker for each kitchen outlet because of the demand of most kitchen appliances like toaster and other cooking equipment refrigerators should be dedicated circuit unless you want your food to spoil .
Think of it you just spent 200000 plus on your home and you would be so chintzy as to NOT spend 500 bucks extra to make everything safer this is why so many houses burn to the ground every year due to wiring issues.
So do the math why would you want to try to put as many outlets on 1 circuit unless you're absolutely stupid or a stupid and lazy contractor who cuts corners but still charges for a job that's not up to par for the demand on these circuits.
And you think you don't need a high capacity circuit in a bedroom or office well my computer has a 1800 watt power supply if i have my printer going and my speaker system going it blows a 15 amp breaker before I turn the speaker on so i have 2 dedicated circuits on 12 awg wire on 20 amp breakers.
So why cheap out and burn the house down.
Obviously if the breaker blows once it'll happen again and every one thinks well just put in a 20 or maybe even a 30 amp breaker with out upgrading the wire gauge and presto instant wiener roast and lost everything you have worked for...or worse burning family members.
There is a reason why there is no set amount of outlets on circuit you need to know the load that will be used on each circuit that is why I put 12awg wire for all outlets this way it can be upgraded to a 20 amp from the current 15 amp breaker
In my garage I put in four twenty amp breaker’s. With plugs on them. Three outlets on each breaker I only have outlets on three walls. One breaker per wall. Then one breaker with one outlet on all three walls. It’s outlets are about 4 inches higher than the other outlets. That’s where I plug in the vacuum system or secondary power supply. As most of the tools are drawing 15 amps. Plus the table saw or miter saw can stay stationary and I can just open the pipe that pulls the sawdust from that tool. Vacuum system was tripping breaker’s when I had it and table saw plugged in the same breaker. Both pull 15 amp’s.
I have been using the 1.5A rule since I was an apprentice. Of course, the rule then was for general receptacle circuits and said that each receptacle on that circuit was to be calculated at 180VA - or your 1.5A per receptacle.220.14 (I) The location in the code book may or may not have changed since 2017. (My last code book.)
The 80% rule I used on dedicated circuits. Like a; clothes washer, microwave, refrigerator, or particular piece of shop equipment. Here you do not want to put a load requirement right at the trip point of the breaker.
NFPA 70 is the Fire Underwriters minimum requirements. Some jurisdictions can require tougher code restrictions but I like these.
Electricians can use their own minimum standards as well. For instance, I seldom - if ever - install a 15A receptacle receptacle circuit. Yes, there's less profit but DIY'ers sometimes add receptacles to a circuit. The copper and cable construction has changed since I first wired homes not to mention the new temperature derating they've added.
I've never witnessed an inspector performing an actual count but it's my name on the job performed.
Great video.
Can you put a light on the same circuit as the outlets? I have an older home with all 2 prong outlets 12 gauge wire and 20 Amp breakers. That's how they wired it.
You can legally put any number you want. Common building practice is to consider each single outlet at one amp. So a duplex outlet would be figured as two amps. Now a 20 amp breaker has a continuous load rating of 16 amps allowing for eight outlets per breaker. A fifteen amp breaker is rated for 12 amps and that would amount to six outlets per circuit.
Something that probably no one would or could know? Is what kind of load someone going to be putting on those plugs either? As I’m sure you know some people add extensions plug in or gang plug ins that add another 3-6 or more places to plug in more devices to the same plug in! So many people just don’t realize the amount of heat produce to their wiring when they overload a circuit regardless how many plug ins they have? Brings me to another point that always should be brought up talking about plug ins, never ever use those quick connect little holes on the back of plugs to connect your wires. These holes connections are a fire hazard waiting to happen cause there’s very little metal contact on each side of the wire in the holes therefore causing more heat to generate especially on heater load use! I’ve seen those connections fail many many times over the years with the black marks on the box and 2x 4 and wires burnt in two as well as plug melts as well. Extremely dangerous! Always connect wires to the side screws running your wire around the screw to get as much metal contact as possible! Which any good electrician will tell you the same thing! DIY electrician should be very careful what their doing and be sure their not setting themselves up for a disaster! Be careful with electricity!
As a DIY homeowner l recently added an outlet in my garage using the quick connect holes. I really appreciate your advice on proper/safe connection practice, I’m definitely going to reconnect the wires to the screws now. Makes a lot of sense on metal contact to avoid a possible burnt plug or worse. Thanks for your professional input.
Yup, and now we have push connectors to replace wire nuts.
Then we need to have arc fault protection on most circuits.
Seems like overprotection while allowance for laziness to me.
Simple and to the point! Love it! Thank you! You just gained a new follower. 😎
It's really hard to know what to install sometimes with all the variables to consider. If you were wiring a tract home with no idea or plan on what was needed then your best option for your circuiting is to go by the 375 SQ ft for 15amp and 500 sq feet for 20 amp. But if it's just too much bother 13 outlets on a 20, 10 on a 15.
For anyone that is watching this video that is in Canada, the Canadian Electrical code does specify that in a residential occupant the maximum number of receptacles on a 15 amp circuit is 12. Code rule is 8-304 1) for the 2018 CEC
Thanks for the info.
Not sure where this video was shot, but Canadian Electrical code limits the number of receptacles per circuit and also says the ampacity of 1 receptacle. CEC 2018, rule 8-304 covers this. 1 amp per receptacle to a maximum of 80% of rated breaker. So a typical 15A circuit could have 12 receptacles, etc.
One other problem the NEC CODE, it’s updated every so many years, however, it’s up to the local governing body (City or county) which one they follow. I have run into some smaller cities following the NEC code that is 15-20 years old. Normal is to lag 5-10 years behind the latest.....thanks. Jim
Great advice, doesn't matter what NEC 2020 says when the inspector approving your work runs off a different version.
Thanks bro, I'm very new at this and your video really helps. If I need anything else I will search for more answer. But than again thank you
It depends on if your using all the outlets at once or not. I have many outlets on my pool fence in case I want to move things around, like fans or radios or air pumps to blow up toys. More outlets are better than piggy back plug ins.
The 1.5 amp rating per outlet is from commercial load calculations where there is a limit to the number that can be used. . In a residential application there is not a limit as stated in the video. In a residence it is unlikely that multiple device will be in use at a single time and the likelihood of overloading the circuit is very low that’s why there is no limit. In practice most residential branch circuits are going to be mixed lighting and receptacles. In most modern homes the biggest load plugged into interior general purposes outlet is going to be a vacuum cleaner. Most lighting is now LED. The loads on branch circuits within a home are quite low.
Well there are kitchen appliances... Toasters, Toaster Ovens, Microwave Ovens, Coffee pots. If I remember correctly, kitchen receptacles were were supposed to be on different circuits because of this. My kitchen counter is on the same circuit, so I can't use the microwave and the toaster oven at the same time without the breaker popping.
@@swinde yes, kitchen counter receptacles are required to be dedicated circuits. This is for the assumed appliance load, toasters, coffee makers, etc. A portable microwave is considered a countertop appliance and a dedicated circuit is not required. The NEC requires two 20 amp circuits and they must be spaced every 24 inches and GFCI protected. Can’t remember when this was made a requirement. If you have an older home you may only have a single circuit and you have to be selective about what appliances are used at one time.
The question of how many outlets on a circuit. The question you need to think about is not how many outlets, but think about your intentions for the outlets what you will power up that is what determines what will trip your breaker. For example if you were trying to run electrical heaters on high on one circuit and let's say you have three heaters on high depending how large the electric heaters are more than likely you will trip your breaker, but if you take the same heaters with nothing else on the circuit put the heater on low you have a chance of not tripping the heaters that is why sometimes if you run an electric heater and a hair dryer sometimes you will trip a breaker you're pulling too much on one circuit. Especially the ones that were 15 amps.
I also think you have to consider are you installing a gfic outlet on that circuit because they are very sensitive to certain situation within that circuit.
This is only my thoughts and experience behind circuits and outlets.
I was taught, it depends. Living room, bedroom could be as high as 15 because some outlets will not be used. They’re there for flexibility of furniture layout. Typically each room will have only one or two lamps with 100w bulbs. (1 amp each) Today no one uses 100w bulbs anymore, they’re using LEDs that use a tenth of that. Kitchens are 1/2 an outlet per circuit. The upper and lower part of the outlet are on different breakers. This is because electric kettles, woks, toasters, microwave ovens are all 10 to 12 amps each. Any 2 devices on together will trip a 15 amp breaker.
Someone told me it was against code to have a receptacle wired to two different circuit breakers. But, what you say makes sense: toaster oven and countertop microwave running at same time and plugged in to same receptacle. Can you refer me to a citation in the NEC?
@@glasshalffull8625 I'm not sure what the NEC is, I'm from Canada so it's a bit different. The trick is on the hot side of the receptacle there is a little breakaway bar between the two brass screws. By breaking this it allows you to wire a breaker to each half of the receptacle. To make it safe each breaker must come from different sides of the breaker/fuse panel. The service coming in to the house consists of two hots and one neutral. Each hot goes to a different bus bar in the breaker panel So the breakers must be on different hots. You then run a three conductor (Black/Red/White) cable to the receptacle where you have to remove the connecting bar between the two brass screws. Here's where it gets interesting. The two hots are out of phase with each other. If you measure the voltage between them it's 240v but only 120v between either hot and the neutral. When you're using the receptacle and have two devices plugged in that both take 15 amps, you would think the neutral would have 30 amps and get hot, but since the two hots are out of phase they cancel each other out in the neutral and the neutral actually has zero amps running through it. The neutral only ever has the difference in amperage between the two hots. So if one device is drawing 15 amps and the other 10, the current in the neutral is only 5. Cool physics.
@@bcreason The NEC is the National Electrical Code for the US. I did a little research and it appears the NEC changed re split receptacles. You can split them, as you described, but they have to be on the same breaker. So, instead of two single pole breakers, they have to be on a double pole breaker. This is an added safety code so that you only have to throw one breaker to cut the electricity to that receptacle. (For safety, after the breaker is switched off, everyone should be testing both sides of a duplex receptacle to make sure it’s not hot and then the same with all the wires coming into the box)
@@glasshalffull8625 Makes sense. I think the breakers in my house are physically linked together as well. So you have to switch them both.
@@glasshalffull8625 all good advice......but, perhaps, the '' glass is TOO BIG ?? """...................
You did make it easy to understand. Thank you!
UK electrician. We can put unlimited amount. As long as your conductors are rated higher than protective device, its safe. To avoid nuisance tripping the load is normally split over 3 or more circuit's.
Quick and easy to understand. Thanks.
I'm in the process of installing outdoor outlets this was very informative thank you
Careful on those....the video refers to general purpose circuits only; outdoor outlets are dedicated circuits with special rules, especially if within a certain height from grade level. Check your local code or seek advice from an electrician in your area. (I could tell you what the code is in my area, but the chances that we're in the same jurisdiction are extremely low)
OMG thank you so very much. This video was simple and to the point. Thanks!
You're right about alot. If yo go by watts per square foot in accordance with nec 220.12 for residential dwelling units you use 3va per SQ ft. So for 500 sq feet that would be 1500 va. For a 15 amp circuit at 3,va per SQ ft you can cover 375 SQ feet. So going by code you are required to have a wall outlet every 12feet. So your number of outlets will be determined by the minimum spacing. You can space closer as need be. You can have as many outlets you want in 500sq feet on a 20 amp circuit or as many as you want in 375 sq feet on a 15amo circuit. So a 3 bedroom house if the total of the 3 bedrooms add up to 500sq feet or less they could all be put on one 20 amp circuit. This would also include the ceiling light fixtures. So because #14 wire is easier to work with than #12, you can put as many outlets on that circuit limited by 375 sq feet. If you're over 375 sq feet you would need 2 - 15 amp circuits. So now what to do. One solution is put the two smaller bedrooms on 1 15 amp circuit and the master bedroom on another. So in a 1500 sq ft house you would only need 3 general purpose circuits at 20 amps or 4 15 amp circuits , each covering 375 sq. Feet. You could combine lights and recepts if you want or split them up.
Th code book is correct. It does NOT matter how many outlet are on any size circuit breaker. What DOES matter is how many appliances are connected to that circuit breaker. Vacant outlets add zero load to a circuit breaker. That’s why outlet multipliers, those devices that allow you to plug many devices into a single outlet or power strips WITHOUT overload protection are potentially dangerous. They can easily cause a dangerous overload to a circuit breaker. 100 vacant outlets will draw zero amps of electricity, but one outlet with five or six appliances each drawing 5 or so amps will overload a 15 or 20 amp breaker if all are turned on at the same time. The reason that there is a potential danger is that circuit breakers DON’T ALWAYS WORK, and when they don’t a fire usually breaks out. Remember, circuit breakers are not there to protect equipment. They are there to protect the wiring, and electrical fires in wiring occur INSIDE the walls. Oh yeah, and DON’T throw water on an electrical fire.
No limits, you now have solved my circuit breaker problem...🤔
Im the farthest thing from being an electrician and really only dabble in some light wiring. I dont see any issue with going with your higher number though seeing as your never going to be maxing out all 10/13 outlets in a home. That being said i could see being in a shop it would be more beneficial to go lighter on your number.
Go election!
Here in Canada, by code, 8-304 Maximum number of outlets per circuit would be 12, but if you know each outlet not more than 1 amp like some switches for the led light, you can put more than 12 outlets and no more than 80% load. In my experience, you’d better separate plugs and lights , cus you can save afci breakers.
From my younger years doing cable prewiring on new construction, some electricians believe it's as many as you want.
Actually it is true, you can put an many as you want per code. It is wise? no.
When I wire a place, I try to keep in mind that the home will outlive it's inhabitants. People move and needs change. The 1.5 rule of thumb is good for this anticipation. I up it to 2.5 per plug in the kitchen and bathrooms with a GFCI.
120v x 20amp = 2400va[w]
Divide that by each recept.[180va]
You got a maximum =13 reeptacles
That's NEC code +Math
Each receptacle is calculated at 180va. By using your math you would be at full ampacity for the 20a circuit. If code requires you only put 80% on a 20 a circuit, 16a , then you could only put 10 receptacles on a 20a circuit.
Like he says it doesn't matter how many outlets there are. What matters is how much current or load you have on the circuit. Let me give you my experience. I one lived in a very old trailer. It was at least 30 years old. It was made in the days before microwaves, toaster ovens, and it even had a gas stove. Probably because they didn't anticipate a lot of electrical load in the kitchen, they put all the master bed and part of the Livingroom and the kitchen on the same circuit. However, the bedroom only had 3 outlets and the kitchen The Livingroom had only 2 of its 4 on this circuit and the kitchen only had 2 of its 4 on this circuit. So, 3+2+2=7. Good right? NO! Always blowing the breaker. Why? The 2 in the kitchen had a microwave and a large toaster over. Obviously the microwave and toaster drew a lot of amps. Plus the gas stove went out so I ran a hot plate for a while. If you ran the microwave and toaster oven, and had multiple things on in the Livingroom and bedroom, it would trip the breaker. Obviously when cooking I might have at lest 2 of 3 things drawing a lot of amps on in the kitchen. Too much load!!! Solution was to move the microwave and Toaster oven to one of the outlets not on that circuit.
8 outlets on a 15a circuit is enough. Anyone putting more is asking for trouble.
Yup. I put six in my garage. I thought that was excessive LoL
Dan, it completely depends on situations.. I can give you a situation where 120 outlets or more on one 15 amp circuit is perfectly fine...
You simply can only use a limited amount of wattage per circuit, no matter how many outlets are on it
@@chrisb6866 A long hallway where the outlets are used, 1 at a time, for the vacuum cleaner.
As many have already stated, the number of outlets isn’t important, it’s the total load. If you have 2 dozen outlets on a 15A breaker you’re fine as long as the total load stays under 15 amps. If you want to run more things on that circuit, be prepared for a lot of breaker trips (and no, you can’t just replace the 15A breaker with a 20A breaker unless you’ve also upgraded the wiring)!
This is an interesting topic that I've been thinking about for a while. When I was a kid we used to see warnings against "octopus outlets" but when I look around my house today I see lots of power strips and those 6 outlet plug in thingies all over the place. But it's ok since all the lamps have 10 watt LED bulbs, and people plug in laptops that are less than 50 watts typically, USB phone chargers that use less than 10 watts, and even the TVs today only use a fraction of the power used by the old home heating CRT TVs. Except for the obvious stuff like kitchen appliances, hair dryers, vacuums etc., our device power requirements are way lower than a few decades ago. So the convenience of having lots of wall outlets in living rooms and bedrooms seems perfectly fine to me.
In some states, licensed electricians are not required and the owner of the house sometimes wires his house. I don't think that many of these owners follow the codes all the time.
Im no electrician but my guess to not overloading a outlet is buying a GFCI outlet or afci, cause it has a off reset test button. The cheap $0.60 or $0.80 ones don't. And sometimes catch fire especially if you push it in instead of putting the line and load on the gold and silver screw. I don't think those wire outlets prevent fire, 🔥, instead I think they catch fire however a AFCI or GFCI may prevent electrical fire buy shutting off electricity on that particular outlet. However sick of breakers the breakers usually turn off anyway but not all the time especially not with them cheap outlets. Jesse I should be the leader of the outlets then you can put the cheap ones after. Then u can plug in 1 of those wire outlets. Any other suggestions or opinions?
AFCI and GFCI are required by code now so I agree, instead of using receptacle protection code allows you to install AFCI/GFCI breakers.
one can put as many as one has wire to reach. outlets use no current but should be limited according to what will be plugged in to them. some circuits only have one outlet, others have many. i am sure there is a rule of thumb but i prefer the load assessment way of determination...............g
There is absolutely no limit to the number of outlets on a circuit---at least not practically speaking---but there can be a limit to the number of receptacles.
Oh, geez. Glad you pointed that out.
Per code, there is no limit to the number of receptacles on a residential circuit.
Interesting subject....i am dealing with it now since i am doing a complete kitchen renovation with a new location for the refrigerator and a dedicated outlet for it...new recessed lighting and more counter space which means more electric outlets...an island with lights on top of the island...my way of handling the amount of electrical outlets needed is like this....no more than 3 to 4 outlets per line that way the people that use the outlets don’t overload them that way they never blame you for a shabby job...in theory you can put a100 outlets if you want to....just don’t overload the line...
That rule does not apply to kitchens because small appliances can be plugged in there. Best to read article 210 and 220 carefully.
If it’s living room, bedroom, study/den, I have always gone with a limit of 11. Other rooms may have specific reasons why NOT to do that due to appliances and likely use.
Before you do anything, check with your inspector, if the inspector is a 80% person, go with lower number. Remember, if the inspector doesn’t approve what you did, you’ll have to rip it all out and redo it. And with electrical, it’s always best to be conservative.
Inspector abides code. He cant just make stuff up because he likes the number 80.
Lovely video. Thank you.
Depends on how many National Lampoon Christmas lights you’re plugging in? Approximately all of them on one extension cord.
Thank you for making it clear!
Thanks a lot! You explained in a easy way with a lot of common sense!
I live in a manufactured home. The builders put a lot of stuff on a single breaker. Lights for multiple rooms and receptacles for 3 rooms. I don't agree with it but apparently it's up to code. I would rewire it if that didn't require tearing out the walls. I'm just careful about where I plug in higher current loads.
In my garage the most I put on one circuit is 4 receptacles hahah
That is code for general purpose outlets
I'm replacing old receptacles after moving into a house, and on one 15A breaker there are lights for 3 bedrooms + 1 bathroom, plus 4 outlets per bedroom and one outlet in the bathroom. That's 5 lights and 13 outlets, seems like a lot.
Great video keep up the good work
Good info, I got a license and degree. In addition, part of a circuit might include a ceiling fan which will reduce rule of thumb by one or two.
I was under the idea that the wire size determined the breaker size and outlet rating. The number of outlets does not come into the picture except for a practical matter of the circuiting being able to supply the demand of the users.
What really matters is what kind of loads you want to support. If you are wiring a room where tiny loads are going to be plugged it, like phone chargers, use as many as make sense. If you are wiring a room where multiple loads like space heaters, ACs, or hair dryers will be plugged in, two outlets might be too many. Another critical thing often overlooked: If you are using a 20 amp breaker, don't use 15 amp outlets! Just plugging two 10 amp loads into a single 15 amp outlet will overload it but not trip the breaker. Pay the extra money for 20 amp outlets.
Well, if you're like Clark Griswold in Christmas Vacation or the father in Christmas Story, the answer is 16 plugs in one outlet.
16 plugs. Hmm since each duplex receptacle accommodates 2 plugs then you mean eight duplex receptacles.
That was very helpful
Good to know. I’ve herd about this too. And technically to my knowledge you can have 200 outlets all is if no one plugs 🔌 too much stuff 👍😎 I enjoyed the video
Yes as a outlet has no load :)
@@BevinsBuilds thanks for that. Im going to put 14 on my 20 amp circuit but they will only have some LED lights on them and most wont be used at all.
200 plugs, how big is the house?
That was a really good and concise explanation!
Thank you for the info. Been wondering about that. Excellent video.
The thing i disagree with is this, and I lived in a house that had this problem. One breaker, outlets in multiple rooms means you shut down a breaker you take down several rooms, now let's think of this in load, let's say window AC units, unless you know for certain that you have this group of outlets on one circuit and you put a AC unit in, then you have to figure out where can I plug in a vacuum cleaner at that will not be on the same circuit. Spider circuirs are well and good for saving breakers and runs back to the box, but from a real perspective they are a nightmare and try as you may unless you have it documented you are never going to remember which ones are on which breaker. And trying to label your breaker box then becomes a problem to keep track of. I tend to prefer the one circuit one room approach to circuit design, this way you know ok I kill power on this room and only this room. Yes the max loading and short runs is nice, but if take into account you put one cable from the breaker panel into a junction box and split off that you still gave one main cabel holding a full load from that j box back to the breaker. Yes the breaker will trip. But how much heat is that single line from the j box to the panel taking as you load up the circuit? While its easy to keep track the spider concept for your own house, what about the second or third owner? Are they going to know that 13 difference outlets in three rooms are all on one breaker? In the before mentioned house that was a rental, the light switch in most rooms also killed outlets in the same room so turning off the light shut your TV off or your AC off. Save the next guy who has to figure out t a breaker problem from hours of trace work. Don't Spider
Jeez you should go make a RUclips video you practically wrote a book in the comments😂
Trying to understand this correctly, wondering if what I've done is, I understand this is my responsibility and not asking for legal or electrical advice just your opinion,
20 amp breaker in a 200-amp house panel,ran 10 3 wire 75 ft to a outbuilding, put that into a metal enclosed metal junction box which then wired 12-2 wire to the 10 3 wire then ran 12 two wire two receptacles in building, jumped 14/2 wire off of one of those receptacles to run some lights
That was a perfect video. Thank You!
This is very good and straightforward. The best explanation I've heard. Send more.
Great info, thanks!
UK we can have unlimited outlets. You can overload circuit on 2 outlets. As long as the cable is rated higher than circuit breaker, splitting the load onto more circuit's saves nuisance tripping.
longest its max to circuit breaker amp load...20amp this case, its the wire that matter on the load...you can have many electronics tied together that add up to 20amp...usually fridge runs best on separated breaker that share with lights while another breaker for outlets...