Electrical Capabilities

[tristan1986]

Just wondering, if i want to increase the amount of amps that can go through to a room from the power box..
what is actually needed to be done?

Has anyone here done this before?

[khazoth]

Say you have a 15 amp circuit, and you want a 20 amp circuit.

Unfortunately there is a good chance the wires running through your walls are only for a 15 amp circuit, so you would have to obtain a 20 amp breaker to place in your breaker box, attach a 20 amp wire to it, run it through your walls to the oulets in that room, as well as any switches/lights.

[b0110ck5]

Typically in the US, 14-gauge, 2-conductor or 3-conductor (for n-way switched circuits) is used. This allows the use of up to 15 amperes of electricity over a given, safe distance of wire run. (I don't recall off the top of my head what that distance is.) So, if you want to increase either the total wiring distance -or- want to increase the amps over the current, unchanged wiring distance, you'll have to increase the thickness (or gauge) of the wire you're using. For most applications in the US, 12-gauge is used for 20-amp circuits of typical length (something like up to 75', I think.)

To upgrade the amperage capacity of the circuit in question, you'll likely have to change the wiring (to 12-ga or bigger) and the circuit breaker itself (to 20 amps service.) Many outlets are already rated up to 20 amps, so you'll have to check your outlets or just replace them with ones that are known to handle 20 amps. Your lighting and switches should be fine on a 20-amp circuit, unless you've got something rather unusual. To be safe, check both for any ratings stickers on the device to ensure its rated for 20 amps.

The potential bummer in all of this is that, unless you're working in an unfinished space, you'll have to pull the new wire through the existing walls, which is a rather painful feat for me. I usually pay the electrician to do that magic trick, while I'll wire everything else myself later on to save some extra $$$.