20 amp wiring for 15 amp receptacke

14 years ago

Hi everbody

I am putting in a new whirlpool tub. The old tub had a dedicated 2 pole 20 amp GFCI breaker with 12/2 wiring. The new tub has air jets, whirlpool and heater. The tub calls for 1 pole dedicated 15 amp GFCI breaker attached to an outlet that the air blower is plugged into and a 2 pole 15 amp GFCI ciruit that the heater and whirlpool plug into,

My question is can I use the existing 20 amp GFCI circuit for heater/whirlppol requirement and then run the 1 a new 20 amp GFCI circuit with 12/2 for the heater and blower - I did not know if having a higher amp ciruit than called for is OK. Or for the new cirucit stick with 15 amp single pole breaker as required and rung 14/2 to the outlet

Thanks very much - glenn

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (10)

jakethewonderdog
14 years ago
Glen,

You will be fine running a couple of 20 amp circuits.

That said, you have a double pole 20 amp GFCI. Why not just replace the 12/2 wire with 12/3 wg. That would give you two 20 amp 120v circuits with a common neutral and you don't have to replace the GFCI breaker.

Having a single power source is probably safer also. Nothing like turning the power off to something only to discover it's got two separate power sources.
davidandkasie
14 years ago
jake, since the equipment MANDATES a 15A OCP, why would you advise putting in a larger circuit. sure i cna see reusing the existing cable with a lower amp breaker, but i thought that you were required to use no more than the max amperage OCP the manufacturer states if they state one?
Related Discussions
Microwave -20 amp and 15 amp questions
Q
Comments (7)
If the microwave has a 15 AMP cord cap (plug) then a short 15 AMP rated extension cord will be fine. If the cord cap had one blade turned 90Â° then you'd need the 20 AMP cord. The circuit needs to have a 20 AMP breaker (and #12 wire) because of the microwave's rating and the fact it can be a continuous load (defined as 3 or more hours). The rules change at the receptacle. The microwave wouldn't have a 15 AMP cord cap on it if a #14 cord wasn't acceptable to use on it for at least a short distance.
...See More
15 amp recptacle on 20 amp wiring?
Q
Comments (3)
Its not legal if its just a single outlet not duplex receptacle you used ( one place to plug into vs. two places to plug into). Also watch out if your newer dishwasher has a deeper comparment than your older one making it very hard to unplug the cord (if the outlet is located directly behind the dishwasher) and should no longer be considered a disconnect. This does not apply though if you already have a disconnecting means within sight of the dishwasher usually found as a switch above the countertop or also could be located in the sink cabinet.
...See More
14/2 15 amp for lighting and 12/2 20 amp
Q
Comments (6)
all the lights in my house are on 12/2, heck there ain't a 15 amp breaker anywhere in teh panel. but i promise you i WISH there was at times! week before last i decided to put up secutiry lights since we were going out of town and the lady house sitting for us did not like how dark it was around the house(plus my wife has been asking me to do it for 3+ years). anyway i decide to put the switch right next to the back porch light switch and use that circuit to feed the lights. well, turns out that the reason they used 12/2 is that 1/3 of the lights are on 1 20A ciruit, 1/3 on another, and roughly 1/3 on another. only the bathrooms have dedicated lights! the way teh panel is in the wall will require that i rip open the sheetrock to pull new feeds, so that will be saved for later this summer when we redo the cabinets in there anyway. back to my point, 12/2 is great in that you can have more load per circuit, but i really sucks when you are trying to stuff three 12/2 feeds back in a box behind 2 switches! and yes, i use the largest box i can for ease of use and wirefill.
...See More
Question about going from 15amp circuit break to 20 amp
Q
Comments (18)
Hi David, I can't remember all the different situations that the failures occurred in. We would just notice that a whole circuit was out. Once we changed the breaker, everything was fine. (They never kept tripping, and we ignored it. They would just go out all of a sudden). The problem yesterday seemed to be the switch was broken on the breaker. You could feel, when you'd toggle the switch back and forth, that it didn't have any snap. We have the usual kind of breaker box. The only things I can see on it are "EQ load Center", and "ITE". It has 40 breakers. When I say they go out at the worst times, I mean the most inconvenient times. (But when is it ever inconvenient to lose power?) We have had a couple lightening strikes that hit our well pump, and our geo thermostat, so maybe that has been involved in the past, but I can't remember for sure. Maybe they get dust in them and wear out sooner?? Maybe we have inferior breakers in this area of the states? Maybe my 8-10 guess was a little high. We do have one "bad buss", which we can't use.
...See More
jakethewonderdog
14 years ago
The code police might slap my hands on that one... but I don't use 15 amp circuits for anything - certainly not a motor or a heater. Neither would I provide dual feeds to power a piece of equipment unless the breakers are tied together: that's how people get killed.

I'm not suggesting a 30 amp circuit. But I can't imagine too much blow back with going with a 20 amp circuit rather than 15.
petey_racer
14 years ago
Sure, wire it with #12 if that floats your boat, but if the instructions require it to be on a 15A you MUST do it.

A "piece of equipment" fed with two circuits at 240v or 120/240v would require a 2-pole breaker in the first place now wouldn't it.

Jake, I get the impression that you mainly do commercial/industrial work. Am I wrong?
Typically you guys are the "minimum 20A circuit" guys.
I do all kinds of work, but mostly residential the past few years. Do enough houses and you'll get real attached to 15A circuits in some areas.

Commercial/industrial I agree with this philosophy. I also use MWBC's whenever possible.
jakethewonderdog
14 years ago
Nope, mostly residential. I hate 15 amp circuits for outlets. Too easy to overload with regular appliances when a vacuum cleaner or a space heater can pull 10 amps.

I miss-read the post. It still sounds like two feeds, a 120 v for the blower and a 240 v for the pump and heater. What the hell? If you look again, it calls for a single pole 15 amp and a separate 240 v circuit.

No way I would do it that way and sure wouldn't do it with a 15 amp circuit.
petey_racer
14 years ago
It calls for a 120v 15A GFI protected circuit for the blower, and a 240v 15A GFI protected circuit for the heater/pump, yet you would not install a 15A breaker for either???
What is your rationale?
ginclar
Original Author
14 years ago
Hi guys- the OP here

Petey said as clear I should have
1 15amp single pole GFCI required for the blower
1 15 amp double pole for the whirlpool/heater

In summing - I take it 2 seperate cicuits with either #12 or #14 wiring is the way to go

and just for reference the tub in question is an Aquatic Whirlpool - the Luxaire22 model

Many thanks for taking the time - glenn
texasredhead
14 years ago
The 15amp/20amp circuit debate continues. My city in the Dallas/Ft.Worth Metroplex, now requires that all circuits in new residential construction or remodels must be 20 amp. This is a new requirement as I am on the electrical code board of review for the city. I was the only member of the panel to vote against the requirement. Basically, I think 20 amp for lighting circuits is over kill.
kensnh
14 years ago
If it's plug and cord, you're probably OK, with an amatuer lawyer.

If Mfr calls for 15A OCP, and you INTENTIONALLY put it on 20A...........Check with your, hopefully not amatuer, lawyer.

In court the Mfr WILL win. You are the qualifeid elctrician.

Just my 2cents..........

KEN
mike_kaiser_gw
14 years ago
Basically, I think 20 amp for lighting circuits is over kill.

I don't know about new residential construction in DFW but around here there are usually pretty few "lighting only" circuits with the exception of maybe the kitchen. It seems that the incremental cost in minimal and certainly represents a tiny fraction of the total cost of a new home.

From the electrician's point of view, 12 ga. is a little harder to work with but your ability to be competitive in the bid process isn't impacted because everyone is required to do the same thing. And you don't need to carry two different sizes of wire (cable) and breakers.

20 amp wiring for 15 amp receptacke

Comments (10)

jakethewonderdog

davidandkasie

Related Discussions

jakethewonderdog

petey_racer

jakethewonderdog

petey_racer

ginclar
Original Author

texasredhead

kensnh

mike_kaiser_gw

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

20 amp wiring for 15 amp receptacke

Comments (10)

Related Discussions

ginclarOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

ginclar
Original Author