outlet within a specified distance from the sink. Seems like overkill to me, I don't plan on using an arc welder in the bathroom. The building inspector is coming out tomorrow so we'll see what he says.
I'm building a bathroom in my basement based on installed rough-ins. I shall need lighting and a low output outlet (for toothbrush, hair dryer, etc.).
Is it allowed to use ONE circuit for both lighting and low output outlets? I shall use a 15 amp breaker and wiring.
Peter.
Yup, just make it a 20a
My wire feed welder works on 120v and less than 20 amps, usually. Even works on a GFCI circuit without tripping. Unless I get carried away
It has to do with hair-dryers,
Yes, you can use the same circut for the lights and outlets, as long as that circut doesn't serve anything BUT that bathroom. No, you can't use a 15-amp circut, it has to be 20A. This has nothing to do with arc welders, which typically pull 50-60A. It has to do with hair-dryers, which frequently pull between 14 and 17 amps.
If you've got lights, exhaust fans, a hair-dryer, some electric thingus to clean your contacts, a radio.. you can run up over
15A in a hurry.
You can just use one circuit.
But for the cost of a bit of extra wire, run to two, or more.
If you plug in a shorted hairdrier and trip the breaker, you may appreciate not being left in the dark.
AMUN
Cool.. What kind is it, where can I get one, and how heavy a weld will it do?
Per the 2002 NEC, Section 210.11(C)(3), Exception,: "Where the 20-ampere circuit supplies a single bathroom, outlets for other equipment within the same bathroom shall be permitted to be supplied in accordance with 210.23(A)."
Translation: if you bump this up to a 20A circuit, it's permitted (subject to whims of your local code, of course).
WRONG code requires dedicated, GFCI protected circuit for outlet, separte from lighting. Lighting can be shared with other circuits but the outlet must be dedicated (can have more than one outlet in the bathroom on that circuit tho).
-Tim
A hairdryer is not a "low-output" device. It's one of the single-most power hungry devices you'll plug in to a household outlet -- more than your washing machine, refrigerator, vacuum cleaner... Many pull 15A.
-Tim
Well at least that's what the electrical inspector told me when we did a bathroom remodel in 2000. Someone else quoted the 2002 code elsewhere in this thread, which seems to allow the single circuit -- so maybe they relaxed the requirement?
-Tim
The NEC is constantly changing. You can wire the bathrooms either method currently
The rule for the last 2 cycles is you can use one 20a circuit to serve all of the bathroom receptacle outlets in all bathrooms, (not picking up the fart fan and light) or one 20a circuit to serve all the loads in one bathroom.
Why is doing the wiring? If you are then put in two lines. If it was an electician and they wanted alot more for a second line...
OR
You dont have enough space in your meter box then only put in one.
I personally used two lines in my bathroom. One takes care of the lights (4 in the ceiling and 7 or 8 in the vanity) and also the exhaust fan. The other is dedicated to JUST the outlet (20 amp gfci)
If you do the math its amazing how much power a simple hair dryer can pull out of an outlet..... 110volts X 15amps = 1650 watts. Many hair driers use more than that. (at least my wifes does) so at 20 amps X 110volts we have 2200 watts.
It sucks if you have to do things over again down the road. I rather just get it right once and forall.
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