Amount of lighting

[Bill]

>>>>>>>>> Small holes, covered by the fixture the romex feeds to.

Thanks! I'm not even sure how it would look across my aging imitation stucco'd ceiling. BTW, at this point, no bevel is evident; it was nice of you to remember though. ;)

Here's the idea I came up with during lunch.

Think of the shop in thirds: Left End/ Middle / Right End(door).

I think I'd usually want light on the Left End, near the benches, anytime I was in the shop, and the rest too if I was using the TS or other power tools in the middle or doing anything near the door. Anything less could create a hazard (for the pedestrian).

So, I could use my new already installed "master light switch" to control all of the lighting and then think figure out how to add a new switch for the latter 2/3 of the lights. The latter switch would also be dependent, of course, on the master switch.

The "master light switch" is right next to the door, so it is just where one would want it.

I still have my existing two fluorescent fixtures, powered by a separate electrical panel, as back-up for some types of emergencies.

Task lighting, extra!

Bill

[tiredofspam]

[tiredofspam]

you never run romex in conduit!!! You run multistrand wires in conduit.

[Larry Jaques]

You're very welcome, sir. ;)

Uh, oh!

"Too complicated" is my first thought.

OK.

Right.

Always.

-- Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball!

[J. Clarke]

I had one of those. He got curious about a dry-charged battery I had on a shelf and sampled the clear liquid in the plastic bag next to it. Ruined his day.

[J. Clarke]

Instead, you run Romex in a chase made out of EMT.

[clare]

Never say never - in industry everything in conduit is separate conductors, but NMS cable in conduit for protection is rather common in residential applications. And it DOES meet code.

[clare]

Wiremould surface mount raceway -half inch - PN03L08V

[clare]

That's why I pointed him towards Wiremold.

Split ballast 2 lampers are also available.

[clare]

As long as there are no "firestops" or crossbraces the insulation is only a minor inconvenience. I pull comm cable into insulated steel studded walls quite often. A lighted fish-tape makes it a lot easier, I'll have to admit. (red LED on the end so you can see which side of the hole it goes past when you shove it down the wall, )

[Bill]

[e-mail] wrote: I pull comm cable into insulated steel

That's a nice tip! Pardon the pun. Thank you.

Bill

[Bill]

Larry, Here are 2 more views of your vision implemented in SketchUp in case anyone would like to see:

had to move a few bit to accommodate obstacles (like garage door opener). The luminaires with electronic ballasts featuring "instant start" and than 10% THD are about $40 each--lamps extra.

Bill

[tiredofspam]

I know it is up to code, but it is not standard. The flexibility of romex in conduit is ridiculous. It just doesn't make the turns real well. Have plenty of lube on hand and a helper.

Romex is for installations outside conduit. It doesn't make sense to use this type of wire in a conduit.

[Mike Marlow]

I don't remember the size of your garage Bill, but mine is 36 X 26 and I have 15 4' flourescent fixtures with 2 bulbs each in it. They are configured as 6 in each car bay, and 3 in the third bay which is where things like my table saw, compound mitre, etc. sleep when I'm not using them. As well, there is a workbench across the back of the third bay that has an additional flourescent hung under a shelf.

That's ton of light - and I paint cars in my garage, as well as woodworking, butchering the occassional deer, and assorted other things. I can't imagine what yours is going to look like! Expect to hear the Halleluiah Choir when you hit the switch!

[Larry Jaques]

Total harmonic distortion in fluors? New one on me.

See if you can buy lamps and fixtures by the case from the electrical distributor for a better price.

-- Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball!

[J. Clarke]

If you're pulling it around corners in a chase then you should turn the chase into a conduit and use separate conductors. But it makes plenty of sense to use an EMT chase if the code requires that there be no exposed wiring in a particular area and you have a straight shot from where you need a fixture to a location where exposed wiring is OK--then you just run a straight piece of Romex through a chase to wherever you need the receptacle or switch or whatever.

[Mike Marlow]

Well - holes in floor joists are condidered a chase, so it's not really safe to say that if you're pulling around corners in a chase you should use conduit. It's better to just stick with one kind of wiring as much as possible. If conduit proves to be the best solution for the most of the run, then go with it all the way on that circuit. In Bill's case - from the switchbox throughout the lighting run - or at least to a minimum number of J-boxes in which to switch over to NM, assuming the required protection for NM.

[clare]

When Dad, an electrician, had to do it he pulled the wire through the conduit before installing it - goes through the bends and LBs a lot easier that way. Using stranded wire involves junction boxes and joints when transitioning from "protected by conduit" to "not requiring protection" or "protected by existing structure"

[Bill]

Wikipedia says 1% THD is supposed to be inaudible to the human ear. "Standard" (Lithonia) electronic ballasts are < 20% THD "Instant on and Rapid start" electronic ballast by Lithonia are < 10% THD.

This is ALL sort of a "new one on me"! : ) FWIW, there is $14 difference in price between a track lights with Standard ballast versus one with Instant Start ballast.

Bill

[Mike Marlow]

You are quite correct in that, but it's not a big deal to hang the boxes and tie in inside them. Using THHN offers many advantages over pulling NM through conduit, and makes the transition matter of little real value.