Adding Garage Outlets
The code-minimum standard is at least one 20-amp branch circuit supplying a separate receptacle outlet for each vehicle bay in a garage.
I want to add a couple of outlets in my two-stall garage—one up high for a television and another near a small workbench below it. I already have two 20-amp outlets installed on the back wall, one in each stall, but it would be easier for me to pull the power for the new outlets from the garage lighting circuit. The garage lighting circuit is only supplying six LED lights, so it can handle the extra capacity, but it’s only a 15-amp circuit. Does every outlet in a garage need to be 20 amp, or can I add a couple 15-amp outlets?
—Mark Liverly via email
Electrical consultant John Williamson replies: The short answer to your question is “no”— not every receptacle outlet in a garage must be supplied by a 20-amp branch circuit. To better understand this answer, let’s turn to the code. The term “outlet” is defined in the code as a point on the wiring system where current is taken to supply utilization equipment. Common types of outlets are receptacle outlets, lighting outlets, appliance or equipment outlets, smoke alarm outlets, etc.
With respect to branch circuits, the National Electrical Code (NEC) requires at least one 120v, 20-amp branch circuit be dedicated to the garage receptacle outlets. That circuit needs to supply at least one receptacle outlet for each vehicle bay, neither of which can be installed more than 51⁄2 ft. above the floor.
The NEC is a minimum standard, so if you have at least one 20-amp branch circuit supplying a separate receptacle outlet for each vehicle bay, you have complied with the code. The intent of the code is to ensure that each vehicle bay be supplied by a receptacle outlet that will provide sufficient power for modern tools and equipment commonly used in a garage. Once you’ve met the minimum code requirements, you can install additional 15-amp or 20-amp branch circuits and receptacle outlets in your garage to meet whatever needs you may have, provided that each receptacle outlet is protected by a ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) and all the equipment you install and the wiring methods you use are code compliant.
One thing to consider about your proposed project: While there’s nothing in the NEC that prevents one circuit from supplying both lighting and receptacle outlets, by combining the two on the same circuit, you do risk being left in the dark if you trip that circuit by overloading one of your newly installed receptacles.
From Fine Homebuilding #311
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