A Question For An Electrician

[Yvonne G]

I have some 15 amp breakers and some 35 amp breakers in my breaker box.

I'm in the process of converting my library bedroom over to be a reptile room. There are only two outlets in that room and I'm assuming the breaker for that room is one of the smaller ones, a 15 amp, but I don't know for sure. On one outlet I now have four vision cages, with tube type fluorescent bulbs or LED lights and RHPs. On the other outlet an extension cord goes out the window to Dudley's shed, which has a pig blanket and a 250 watt brooder lamp. I'm not sure, but I think the back yard greenhouse may be on this same breaker, and the greenhouse has a night box with three RHPs in it.

If I add three more enclosures in that bedroom will I be overloading the 15 amp breaker?

This house was built in the '50s, so old wiring, but the breaker box was replaced about four years ago.

 

[Blackdog1714]

Scary! You most likely have knob and tube wire in the walls which Is already being overloaded. Only newer copper wire can safely support a 15 amp breaker. The room and the outdoor should be on separate breakers until you upgrade the wire. If you upgrade/rewire then I would add true 20 amp wire and outlets and that would handle your room okay. The outdoor shed should have its own as that brooder lamp is a nasty power/amp draw which gets worse the longer/thinner the extension cord. I wish I could help you personally for all the wonderful advice you have given me.

 

[jaizei]

Regular outlets can only be on a 15 or 20 amp breaker so it would have to be one of the 15. If you can list everything and their wattages, you should be able to ballpark it. Ideally, you'd want to stay under 1500 watts.

Do you know what type of wiring? I'd assume if it was dangerous they would have said something when replacing the breaker box. Not knowing the wiring is the only part that gives me pause. If it was 'normal' wiring, I'd say to try it and you'd know it was too much when the breaker tripped.

 

[Yvonne G]

Regular outlets can only be on a 15 or 20 amp breaker so it would have to be one of the 15. If you can list everything and their wattages, you should be able to ballpark it. Ideally, you'd want to stay under 1500 watts.

Do you know what type of wiring? I'd assume if it was dangerous they would have said something when replacing the breaker box. Not knowing the wiring is the only part that gives me pause. If it was 'normal' wiring, I'd say to try it and you'd know it was too much when the breaker tripped.

Ok, so I'll add up the watts of all the things being used in that room and hopefully it won't add up to more than 1500. I don't know what type of wiring is here. But I don't think it would be the knob and tube referred to above. It's a fairly 'modern' style house as opposed to an old knob and tube type house. When I got the solar they had to replace the breaker box because the other one wasn't big enough to handle the solar. So I remember they asked me what I used in the garage - drills, etc. and I explained that I DO use power tools out there, so they put a larger breaker for the garage.

It looks like I may need to re-think making my library bedroom into a reptile room. Maybe it can be half reptile room and half library! I was hoping to get the kitchen turtle/tortoise enclosures out of the kitchen and into the reptile room.

Thanks for the tip on the watts.

 

[Blackdog1714]

1950’s homes still had knob and tube. Just hope the didn’t update anything in the 60’s because you could have aluminum wire. Do you have a junction box you could open and take a photo?

 

[Yvonne G]

1950’s homes still had knob and tube. Just hope the didn’t update anything in the 60’s because you could have aluminum wire. Do you have a junction box you could open and take a photo?

Do you mean the circuit breaker box? Like I said, that's new, so I don't think that would help. I opened the cover and it looks like all the plugs are 20amp. I don't know how the installer determined which wire came from the outlets and which came from the lights, but he's the one who labeled "plugs, lights, etc." in perm. marker on the left side. The lights are shown to be 15 amp. But I really don't think we can go by that because when I had an electrician here to run a wire from the outlet in the doll room to the new greenhouse (he piggy backed onto the doll room outlet), I was standing in the doll room and hollered at him when the light in the doll room went out (light went out/piggy backed onto outlet??? According to the writing in the breaker box, 'lites' and plugs are separate and my electrician guy didn't get a shock when he messed with the outlet)


Next time my friendly, neighborhood tortoise partner comes to visit I'm going to ask him to help me determine which circuit breaker is attached to which outlet or light and I'll mark them all correctly.

 

[Maggie3fan]

I have some 15 amp breakers and some 35 amp breakers in my breaker box.

I'm in the process of converting my library bedroom over to be a reptile room. There are only two outlets in that room and I'm assuming the breaker for that room is one of the smaller ones, a 15 amp, but I don't know for sure. On one outlet I now have four vision cages, with tube type fluorescent bulbs or LED lights and RHPs. On the other outlet an extension cord goes out the window to Dudley's shed, which has a pig blanket and a 250 watt brooder lamp. I'm not sure, but I think the back yard greenhouse may be on this same breaker, and the greenhouse has a night box with three RHPs in it.

If I add three more enclosures in that bedroom will I be overloading the 15 amp breaker?

This house was built in the '50s, so old wiring, but the breaker box was replaced about four years ago.

Oh Lord...hell musta froze over again...she's moving reptiles into the house...and...and...she's using the room I sleep in when I visit...she tryin to tell me something???

 

[Maggie3fan]

Ok, so I'll add up the watts of all the things being used in that room and hopefully it won't add up to more than 1500. I don't know what type of wiring is here. But I don't think it would be the knob and tube referred to above. It's a fairly 'modern' style house as opposed to an old knob and tube type house. When I got the solar they had to replace the breaker box because the other one wasn't big enough to handle the solar. So I remember they asked me what I used in the garage - drills, etc. and I explained that I DO use power tools out there, so they put a larger breaker for the garage.

It looks like I may need to re-think making my library bedroom into a reptile room. Maybe it can be half reptile room and half library! I was hoping to get the kitchen turtle/tortoise enclosures out of the kitchen and into the reptile room.

Thanks for the tip on the watts.

What are you gonna do with all the books...I'm wondering if they would handle the humidity...

 

[Yvonne G]

Oh Lord...hell musta froze over again...she's moving reptiles into the house...and...and...she's using the room I sleep in when I visit...she tryin to tell me something???

No, this is so I don't have an incubator over here, an enclosure for a sick turtle over there, a baby enclosure in this room and some other sick or injured enclosure in this area. This way I will have all that stuff in one place. Your hide-a-bed is still in the new reptile room.

 

[Yvonne G]

What are you gonna do with all the books...I'm wondering if they would handle the humidity...

I've got over half of them boxed up and half of those boxes already delivered to the Clovis library for their book sale. Saturday I'm taking five empty book cases to the Good Will.

 

[Blackdog1714]

The box is a good update but it’s the wiring in the house that could be an issue. I have an updated 200 AMP box but the wires in the walls and ceiling is knob and tube. All wiring that I have done is the new copper with plans to update the old, but ensure it is used way under capacity on the breaker. If you can see where the wires go into the panel that would give us a clue to the type. BTW easiest way to test a breaker for what it serves is a plug in radio(old) turned up super loud. No music no power. Slow but safe and sure

 

[Maggie3fan]

I've got over half of them boxed up and half of those boxes already delivered to the Clovis library for their book sale. Saturday I'm taking five empty book cases to the Good Will.

Wow...?...even Janet Evanovich????

 

[Yvonne G]

The box is a good update but it’s the wiring in the house that could be an issue. I have an updated 200 AMP box but the wires in the walls and ceiling is knob and tube. All wiring that I have done is the new copper with plans to update the old, but ensure it is used way under capacity on the breaker. If you can see where the wires go into the panel that would give us a clue to the type. BTW easiest way to test a breaker for what it serves is a plug in radio(old) turned up super loud. No music no power. Slow but safe and sure

Or wait for Will to come visit, plug in a lamp and yell to him when the lamp goes out.

 

[Yvonne G]

Wow...?...even Janet Evanovich????

Yup. I'm keeping a couple collections - D i c k Frances, Tony Hillerman and J.A. Jance. I've got a couple book cases set up in my bedroom.

 

[jaizei]

Do you mean the circuit breaker box? Like I said, that's new, so I don't think that would help. I opened the cover and it looks like all the plugs are 20amp. I don't know how the installer determined which wire came from the outlets and which came from the lights, but he's the one who labeled "plugs, lights, etc." in perm. marker on the left side. The lights are shown to be 15 amp. But I really don't think we can go by that because when I had an electrician here to run a wire from the outlet in the doll room to the new greenhouse (he piggy backed onto the doll room outlet), I was standing in the doll room and hollered at him when the light in the doll room went out (light went out/piggy backed onto outlet??? According to the writing in the breaker box, 'lites' and plugs are separate and my electrician guy didn't get a shock when he messed with the outlet)
View attachment 287975

Next time my friendly, neighborhood tortoise partner comes to visit I'm going to ask him to help me determine which circuit breaker is attached to which outlet or light and I'll mark them all correctly.

Its common for lights and outlets in a bedroom to be on same circuit. And those circuits are referred to as "general lighting" if they're not specific. So lights don't necessarily mean only lights.

Im surprised theres no arc fault breakers, tho.

 

[Maggie3fan]

Yup. I'm keeping a couple collections - D i c k Frances, Tony Hillerman and J.A. Jance. I've got a couple book cases set up in my bedroom.

Did she stop writing, or did we just stop buying?

 

[Yvonne G]

Its common for lights and outlets in a bedroom to be on same circuit. And those circuits are referred to as "general lighting" if they're not specific. So lights don't necessarily mean only lights.

Im surprised theres no arc fault breakers, tho.

Yes, I know, however, the installer of the box only labelled "plugs" and "lites" separately, not "bedroom 1", "bedroom 2", etc. Seems there are more circuit breakers than three bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room, etc. It will be nice to have them correctly labelled.

As to the fault breaker, maybe there was no room for one. There are no empty spaces and all the breakers are in use. I wish they had installed a bigger box. That way the electrician wouldn't have had to piggy back the backyard greenhouse onto a bedroom outlet.

 

[jaizei]

The easiest way to identify a lot of circuits quickly is to use night lights plugged into every outlet, with the sensor covered with tape. Turn everything off and then turn on one by one to see what comes on. It's probably not worth it to buy them to use once, but it does speed things up.

#2 method is like Yvonnes method of using a lamp but with an extension cord so that its visible from the panel.

 

[Maitri06]

I have some 15 amp breakers and some 35 amp breakers in my breaker box.

I'm in the process of converting my library bedroom over to be a reptile room. There are only two outlets in that room and I'm assuming the breaker for that room is one of the smaller ones, a 15 amp, but I don't know for sure. On one outlet I now have four vision cages, with tube type fluorescent bulbs or LED lights and RHPs. On the other outlet an extension cord goes out the window to Dudley's shed, which has a pig blanket and a 250 watt brooder lamp. I'm not sure, but I think the back yard greenhouse may be on this same breaker, and the greenhouse has a night box with three RHPs in it.

If I add three more enclosures in that bedroom will I be overloading the 15 amp breaker?

This house was built in the '50s, so old wiring, but the breaker box was replaced about four years ago.

The best way to know the answer is to check your amps on the circuit with everything turned on. You will need an ammeter and access to the inside of panel. If this isn't something you can do there is another way. Add up all the amps of all the equipment you are using. If labels are in watts, just divide by 120 volts. Max wattage for a 15 amp circuit should not exceed 1440 watts, or 12 amps. No circuit should be loaded more than 80% of capacity. BTW--- the 250 watt lamps are rated by their ballast amps, not the bulb. I worked as an electrician for 33 years. Hope this helps.