60 AMP SUB PANEL PROFESSIONAL

If you already know the ampacity (60 amps), it won’t take you long to identify the appropriate wire size/gauge. Add their wattage together before dividing it by the system’s voltage. To determine a conductor’s ampacity, you must take into account the electrical devices you intend to connect to the circuit, not just their number but the type. If that term is new to you, Cerro Wire describes the ampacityĪs the maximum current a conductor can continuously carry without exceeding its temperature threshold. AWGĪs was mentioned above, you should match the gauge to the ampacity. In other words, the smallest gauges are associated with the largest diameters and the largest gauges are associated with the smallest diameters. It has a numerical designation that gets smaller as the diameter of the wire grows. Assigned by the American Wire Gauge System, ‘gauge’ is the term that professionals use to describe the physical size of a wire. Of all the labels associated with wires, the gauge is one of the most important. Related Post Can I Wire Lights And Outlets On The Same Circuit? How? What Do I Need to Know About Wire Sizes? But how do you identify the right wire gauge for your circuit? This is why you are better off matching the gauge of the wire to the ampacity of the circuit. However, this approach exposes you to certain inconveniences, especially where the cost is concerned. There are no dangers associated with the use of wires with the heaviest gauge. The obvious solution to this problem is to use wires of the largest possible gauge. They can fail to function as required, leaving you vulnerable to potentially fatal catastrophes, particularly in situations where an appliance has drawn more current than the wire can safely carry. As you now know, the smaller the gauge, the greater the diameter of the wire.įor a thorough look, you can check out this table GuageĬircuit breakers are supposed to protect your home from fires and electrocutions that may occur as a result of overheating and overloading.īut breakers are not perfect.

60 AMP SUB PANEL PROFESSIONAL

Precluding the cost consideration, there is no downside to using wires of much greater size for your 60-Amp circuit.Īs this G&G Electric and Plumbing Distributors chart has shown, there are certain rules of thumb that professional electricians adhere to whenever they are tasked with identifying the right gauge for a particular ampacity.įor instance, 14-gauge wires are expected to work with 15 amps, 12-gauge wires with 20 amps, 10-gauge wires with 30 amps, and so on. However, I’m convinced that a 4-gauge wire is far superior. The common practice is to assign 6-gauge wires to 60-amp circuits and appliances. If you want to wire or extend a circuit, you have to ensure that the size of the wire matches the amperage rating of the circuit.

60 amp sub panel