Hello Group,
I will soon be framing and wiring a portion of my basement in order to finish it. I have extremely limited wiring skills, but I am doing a lot of reading. I plan on installing the fixtures, switches, and boxes myself, wiring them, and then have an electrician inspect before he actually ties my work into the box.
The finished room will most likely be TV, stereo, lights, computer and recepticles. However, I want the capability to perhaps run tools on the circuits, as well as whatever future heavy duty electronic equipment we have 10 years down the road.
Here's my questions:
1) I'm assuming that I can run 20 amp circuits, instead of 15 amp, as long as I use 12/2 wire and a 20 amp breaker. Is this correct? Would it make more sense to go with 20 rather that 15?2) If I use 20 amp circuits, can I use 15 amp recepticals, or do I have to use the funny lookin' 20 amp one's with the horzontal slot on the side?
3) Stupid question #3 - are switches rated for amp loads, or is a 15 amp wall switch the same as a 20?4) Any problem with using 20 amp circuits, and then end up with plugging nothing more than small lamps into them?
Thanks for any advice for this novice!