Rewiring & Reorganizing Shop/Barn Revisited?

[Steve Mathews]

Thanks David. Doesn't make sense but no arguing with the Code. I'll use a 20 amp breaker. I assume the 10 gauge wiring is OK though. And double no doubt now about a single wire on a terminal.

[Steve Mathews]

Put a little effort into the wiring today. 10 gauge is definitely more difficult to work with than 12 or 14 gauge. Getting the wires to pack neatly in a junction box is challenging.

[John K Jordan]

Put a little effort into the wiring today. 10 gauge is definitely more difficult to work with than 12 or 14 gauge. Getting the wires to pack neatly in a junction box is challenging.

Do you use the deep and even oversized boxes? You can use a double gang box on a duplex receptacle if you need working room. This is the only way I know to put in a 50 amp receptacle for welders, etc. I pack by first pushing the wires to the very back with a blunt rod on a handle. If you use pigtails you can usually pack everything before connecting the receptacle.

In the panel I like to use those little 4" black wire ties to keep the wires from the same cable straight together until they split off at their destinations. I hate a rats nest in a panel - it makes it harder to trace and triple-check.

Don't you just love working with 14ga after fighting with 10ga a while! I ran some 8ga and 6ga to the welding room and to a sub-panel. That was a PAIN.

The worst I ever had was some short pieces of surplus 0000 wire given to me by an industrial contractor. I used this to wire a new service entrance on a house I used to live in. Hey, it was free. The copper is huge. I had to use an iron pipe as a cheater just to make the bends. The electrical inspector asked me if I was crazy but had no problem approving and connecting it to the utility. No problem with voltage drop... I pity the next guy who works on it but maybe it will last forever.

I ran #1 underground into my shop and that was so much smaller but still a pain in the neck, even handling it.

JKJ

[Steve Mathews]

John - Even the 12 gauge was a joy to work with compared to the 10 gauge.

I always thought it a good idea to wrap wire nuts and part of the wire in electrical tape after connections were made. It just occurred to me why not use heat shrink tube instead? Has anyone done this? Any downside to it?

[Jim Becker]

I've used heat shrink on low voltage, but never on line voltage stuff. I guess if you can find something large enough to slip over the wire nuts yet still shrink down far enough to positively grab the wire, it might do the job instead of tape, but tape is quick, easy and doesn't require the heat.

[John K Jordan]

I agree with Jim - stick with the tape. I use heat shrink a lot and I don't think most of it would shrink enough to grip the wires tightly, the reason to use it. I don't remember seeing its use recommended in any of the books I've read. Heat shrink might be more work to get off, too. When I have use it on things with relatively large changes of diameter I tend to use several layers to build thickness on one. I do use it from time to time on soldered and crimped splices (recommended) on 12v trailer wiring but no wire nuts there.

BTW, although relatively uncommon, almost all of the trouble I've had with electrical wiring has been in farm buildings like the chicken house where there are big swings in heat and humidity which can loosen and corrode things. I've had to re-tighten screws on receptacles and wire nuts occasionally. (I don't trust the slip-in connectors) More recently I've been using dielectric grease on nearly all connections to keep air and moisture away and minimize corrosion. This was discussed in another thread not long ago.

Speaking of heat shrink, I pulled a telephone man's truck out of the mud with my tractor once and he became my best buddy for a bit. One of the things he gave me was a length of the big heat shrink tubing they use on exterior cables, the biggest I've ever seen. Man, what amazing stuff. I'm not looking at it right now but the ID to shrinkage ratio is huge, probably something like 1-1/4" shrinking down to 1/4" or so. As a result the wall thickness on the shrunken part was quite thick and very strong, like heavy-wall hard plastic tubing. I've been waiting for the perfect excuse to use it.

JKJ

[Rollie Meyers]

A 20A, receptacle can have 20A, overcurrent protection not 15A, nor 30A.

[Chris Merriam]

In regards to 20amp being enough, I have a 240v 2HP Oneida DC and a Sawstop 3HP that require a 20amp. If you ever step up to 5HP machines (Minimax, Hammer, etc), they call for 30amp. i went with the twist lock 30amps (yes, very expensive) because I didn't see any other choices at the store!