Max receptacles per 20 amp circuit

[hunt4679]

Why doesn't the NEC care about a breaker always tripping, and a wire that keep being overloaded? Sounds kinda like a hazard to me?

We do 10 outlets on a 20 amp circuit so whats stopping the homeowner from plugging 10 heaters into these outlets? the only way they could regulate it is 1 outlet per circuit!

 

[mivey]

We do 10 outlets on a 20 amp circuit so whats stopping the homeowner from plugging 10 heaters into these outlets?

Physics .

 

[Cold Fusion]

We do 10 outlets on a 20 amp circuit so whats stopping the homeowner from plugging 10 heaters into these outlets? ...

Why stop at 10? They are likely duplex receptacles - so plug in 20.:roll:

cf

 

[LarryFine]

Wow. Radiant walls.

 

[charlie b]

. . . so whats stopping the homeowner from plugging 10 heaters into these outlets?

Physics .

That wouldn't stop the HO from plugging in 10, or even 20 heaters. The breaker would trip, but not until after the HO sucessfully plugged in all that stuff.

 

[mivey]

That wouldn't stop the HO from plugging in 10, or even 20 heaters. The breaker would trip, but not until after the HO sucessfully plugged in all that stuff.

I guess they could plug in 1,000 heaters with enough adapters, but the idea is to plug in working heaters. Reason dictates that if you are going to go to the trouble of plugging it in that you would also make use of it. I suspect the breaker would trip long before we added the load from 20 heaters. It is reasonable to figure that the homeowners would not keep plugging in devices to a dead circuit.

To quell any further opposition, I guess I should also clarify that these would be conventional space heaters, not some micro-circuit heaters drawing fractions of amps since the post was addressing over-loading the circuits.

I guess we should also figure that the rooms are cold enough that the thermostats on the units would be calling for power and that they would not cycle off before we got all the units on or plugged in. Again, working on the over-load scenario.

 

[LarryFine]

One duplex or two single receptacles can have enough load plugged in to trip a breaker, so there's no quantity that magically prevents the possibility.

One could have a commercial building with 50 hallway receptacles that will only be used for vacuum cleaning, and could function fine on a single circuit.

On the other hand, a single residential kitchen duplex receptacle could be overloaded with a toaster oven and a coffee maker or microwave oven.

Even those here who believe that Art. 220 calculations also apply to actual design and installations must admit that any limit is really arbitrary.

Every circuit should be designed according to actual use, and not to rules of thumb that have no basis in fact. A 13-receptacle limit is no guarantee.