csiinspections Posted January 13, 2015 Report Posted January 13, 2015 Can someone tell me if 15 amp circuits are required. Inspected a panel today and there were 29 20 amp circuits and no 15 amp. I thought 15 amp was required for lighting circuits or is that just typical?
plummen Posted January 13, 2015 Report Posted January 13, 2015 Its just more common to see 15a lighting circuits,Were there no 14g wires inside the panel?
Marc Posted January 13, 2015 Report Posted January 13, 2015 They are not required unless a 14 amp single receptacle is the only receptacle on that circuit, as well as I remember. Marc
csiinspections Posted January 13, 2015 Author Report Posted January 13, 2015 All 12 gauge - good point. I guess I got hung up on not seeing any 15 amp breakers.
Garry Sorrells Posted January 13, 2015 Report Posted January 13, 2015 It's more about what the wire will handle, not what you plug into it. All of the outlets and switches have to be rated for 20 amp on a 12g wire with a 20amp breaker. One basic reason you usually see 15amp breakers and 14g wire is that it is cheaper than 12 ga wire and the underlying thought is why waste the money.
Jim Katen Posted January 13, 2015 Report Posted January 13, 2015 It's more about what the wire will handle, not what you plug into it. All of the outlets and switches have to be rated for 20 amp on a 12g wire with a 20amp breaker. As long as there are two or more receptacles on the circuit, you can use 15-amp or 20-amp receptacles on a 20-amp circuit. Check out 210.21(B)(3). Switches are a little more tricky. If their loads are fixed, then they only need to be sized for the load that they control. If they control receptacles, then they should be sized to match the breaker that feeds the circuit. Check out 404.14(A) and (F).
tom2tone Posted May 18, 2015 Report Posted May 18, 2015 12 gauge wire with 20 amp breakers are fine. are the receptacles and switches rated for 20 amps?
Jim Port Posted May 18, 2015 Report Posted May 18, 2015 12 gauge wire with 20 amp breakers are fine. are the receptacles and switches rated for 20 amps? Even a duplex 15 amp receptacle is rated for 20 amp feedthrough. Also see JK's response above. Twenty amp devices are not usually needed.
Douglas Hansen Posted May 20, 2015 Report Posted May 20, 2015 14 gauge wire can be bent with your fingertips. 12 gauge wire requires the ability to work with tools. As Jim and Jim are saying, unless you have a single (not duplex) receptacle and it is the only receptacle on the circuit, 15-amp receptacles are fine on 20-amp circuits. The feed-through ampacity of 15- and 20-amp receptacles are the same. The purpose of using a 15-amp receptacle is to reject a plug that is suitable only for 20 amps, such as you might find on a portable air conditioner.
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