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60 amp sub panel for garage8/18/2023 ![]() ![]() Generally speaking, If you are planning to use one or more 240 voltage appliances, such as a refrigerator or central air conditioning unit, you may need more than the standard 12 openings in your subpanel. ![]() The number of amps that you need will greatly depend on your needs and the power of your main circuit breaker panel. However, it’s not necessarily a case of “the more amps the better”. When it comes to garage sub-panels, they are not created equally. What Kind of Amps Does a Detached Garage Subpanel Need? Reduce the risk of your voltage dropping, which occurs when power travels long distances.Cost-saving and efficiency over time, mostly because you are using a shorter length of wires.Introduce multiple lines into your home even if your main breaker is full.Benefit from multiple circuits without requiring multiple lines.Power resource-intensive tools and appliances without worrying about straining your main circuit (i.e., reducing the likelihood of tripping a breaker).However, there are other benefits to this installation that goes beyond this, including: What are the Benefits of a Detached Garage Subpanel?Īs previously mentioned, a garage sub panel can save you many a trip into the basement. If this is the case for you, a garage sub-panel might be a good investment. For many people, their main circuit breaker box is located in the basement of their house, which may prove insufficient for those of us who spend a lot of time in our garage, whether it be for handwork or entertaining. Deciding to install a subpanel in your house or garage is often a matter of convenience. Or measure across the incoming lines.Head’s up: although the information in this article can offer practical advice and tips, for the safety of yourself and others it is always recommended that you contact a licensed electrician before performing any electrical work.Ī “ subpanel” is sometimes also known as a “ breaker box” or a “satellite circuit breaker panel”. If you have a multimeter, you can also pretty easily measure voltage across two adjacent breakers in the subpanel to see if you show 220. If it's wired correctly, ground and neutral should be on separate bus bars inside the subpanel. ![]() Either case will also have a white wire for neutral and should be a bare or green ground. The hot wire for 110 only is normally black. You connect across the two hots to get 220v, or using either on its own to neutral gives you 110v. With 220 you have two 110v hot legs (normally one red and one black) which are opposite phase. If there are 4 wires coming in (may be 3 insulated wires and bare ground) you likely have 220. How to check? Assuming there is a breaker in the main panel for the garage subpanel, is it single pole (one space) or double pole (two spaces, with a bar connecting the switches)? If it's on a double pole breaker, it probably has 220v available even if it's not currently being utilized.Īnother visual check would be to pull the cover off the garage subpanel, and see what wires are coming in. Hopefully the actual situation is that you have 220v at the subpanel but it is currently only populated with 110v breakers. If you truly only have 110v going to subpanel in the garage you will have to go back to the main. With electrical, if in doubt, hire a pro. Wire gauge needs to support the max amps of the breaker so that the breaker trips before your wire starts to melt down. Your limiter should, obviously, be your breaker. Space in you sub panel, amps used already in your sub panel, your sub panel main breaker size. There really isn't a one size fits all answer here. If your electric heater is 40 amps, and you have space for a 220 breaker in the box (usually two spots are needed), then you might be OK. If you have 50 wrapped up in heater and 20 on a separate circuit, you'll run out of amps. Typically, that kind of equipment needs a 20amp breaker (and appropriate wiring to support 20 amp service). And, if you plug in a shop vac or a table saw, then expect a breaker trip. If that is the case, you will run out of amps really quickly. I'd guess your electric heater to be 50amps. If you run out of amps (60), your main breaker on the sub panel will trip on amps. Assume the heater is on full amps draw as well as lighting, etc. How many amps does the heater draw? You need to add up your loads on the current sub panel. ![]()
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