Thank you Lisa for Sharing!!! Sheri ~ if u don't have enough, its okay if I don't get all of them. Sharing is caring :) Mammoth Yellow Sunflower Luna White Hibiscus zone 5-10 Balloon Flower Sentimental Blue Helenium "Helena Red Shades" Liatris spicata Purple Blazing Star Liatris floristan White Herb: Spilanthes oleracae HAVE A WONDERFU WEDNESDAY!!

Wow, this is a real friendly DIY forum. Don't know if anyone noticed, but this is an old thread. Not real sure why it is continued to be discussed. I posted this question basically to settle a difference of opinion my DH and another guy had over this project. They had been discussing it at work and he was told "he was told he could run four 12 gauge single conductor wires and one 12 gauge neutral single conductor wire". He obviously questioned their judgement, which is why I posted. Thank you to those who offered sound advice and not just ridicule. For those of you concerned with our stupidity and well being, we did hire a professional to do this job. I will definitely think twice before ever asking for advice on this forum again.

All previous posters on this subject have somehow missed the 500# gorilla in the room. Multiple branch circuits cannot be allowed to âÂÂshareâ a common neutral conductor run without increasing the current carrying capacity of that run (larger size, DO NOT DOUBLE RUN WIRE, gang breakers). In such application power lost to heat more than doubles for a doubling of current, following square law (I-squared-R), dangerously violates code and it will burn down. This is the very reasoning behind licensing of electricians; if you donâÂÂt understand this, do not perform wiring and do not shuffle the load centerâÂÂs runs. However, âÂÂbalanced neutral/phaseâ is valid for load runs and mandatory on the supply-side of the bus; and is taken advantage of, by discriminating technicians. Balanced is green, more efficient, reduces losses, brownout, etc. When a load is balanced between legs (2 just happens to work out to be single phase; and 3, three phase), it is NOT sharing a run, but current is mutually excluded from the common neutral run (i.e., current does not circulate to the neutral runâÂÂs lug) to the extent that each leg mirrors the other(s). Hexus, think exclusive OR (XOR, only analog). Each circuit when used alone has exclusive use of that run. Under no circumstances does current exceed the runâÂÂs rating, ANYWHERE. When the circuitâÂÂs legs have matched loads (in current mirror, reactances in quiescence), think about identical hot plates on each leg, then the neutral run to lug will be cold, out of circuit and may be snipped to no affect. The neutral run BETWEEN hot plates will carry just one circuitâÂÂs current for either/all leg(s) (in series for 2-leg circuit; 3-phase âÂÂmotorsâ have all neutrals removed--there is no need for them with no current to run). Instead of I-squared-R loss over MULTIPLE neutral runs to lug; the loss is over a short distance ONLY between hot plates. Circuit interrupters (breakers) are now required to be âÂÂgangedâ (hence branch circuit fuses are not allowed) in order to arrest all branch neutral current. Sleeping rooms (including family/den/living rooms) require a 'split circuit' AFCI. GFCI's will de-energize with PROTECTED neutrals in common.

Since the entire circuit was bad (nothing was working, and all outlets and fixtures were showing the same weird voltage readings), I checked the neutral connection at the panel, and it was rock solid. So then I followed the circuit to the first fixture (one of those pull-chain ceramic bare-bulb fixtures) and found a branch circuit coming off that fixture's j-box, in addition to the main circuit continuing downstream). So basically there were three penetrations of Romex into that box, and therefore four neutrals wire-nutted together (the neutrals from the three Romex penetrations plus the fixture's neutral.) The connections looked twisted together very solidly...HOWEVER, something was amiss. The wirenut (which looked plenty big for the four wires) was slightly melted, and a couple of the neutrals were pretty badly singed. I saw no evidence of bare wire exposed beyond the wirenut, or any evidence that the neutral had made contact with the metal shell of the j-box. Anyway, I removed the melted wirenut, clipped away the singed ends of the neutrals, and re-did the connection with a new wirenut, and then taped the open end of the wirenut. That done, the circuit appears to be OK now (normal voltage readings from H-N, H-G, and N-G...with one weird exception - another downstream ceiling fixture (same ceramic, pull-string type) won't operate some of the light bulbs I put in it. I've tried a couple CF bulbs which won't work and a couple filament bulbs (some of which do work and some of which don't). Bulbs that don't work in that fixture do work in other fixtures on other circuits. I checked H-N voltage in that fixture and it is normal. Weird. Thanks again. Any insight into what might have caused the singed neutrals or the malfunctioning fixture downstream would be greatly appreciated.