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Mikepier Mikepier is offline
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Default Bathroom remodel - keep 15A/14AWG or go to 20A/12AWG?

On May 29, 2:41*pm, CB wrote:
We had a leak in the master bath (upstairs) and so now in the midst of
a complete bathroom remodel. *Electrical question....

The old bathroom had two circuits flowing into it - the first (15A,
14/2 wire) connected to one outlet (not GFI) and then hopped to
another bathroom where it connected to an outlet there. *The other
circuit was sort of normal lighting/fixtures/15A/14-2 wiring, etc.

My question is with the outlets. *I want to A) make sure they're GFI,
B) safe as they need to be, and C) add another. *With the remodel &
current code do I have to change the whole circuit to 20A? *Which
means I'd have to pull all the existing 14/2 cabling and replace with
12/2?

If I do this, then what is the likelihood of me being able to
disconnect the cable at the breaker box, and then pulling the cable up
two floors to the attic through the wall? *Is it likely stapled inside
the wall? *I don't want to damage the 4 or 5 other cables running down
the same hole through top/bottom plates.

Is a better bet for me to just disconnect the 15A circuit breaker &
tie off that cable so it's dead. *Then add a fresh 20A circuit
breaker, and go in the crawl space (very accessible), run the cable
down, then up the HVAC chase to the attic? *I think the run length
would actually be about the same.


If this is a new remodel, and walls are going to be open, you might as
well run new 20A. Don't bother trying to use the old 15A wire as a
drag line, just cap it off in the panel. I believe code now calls for
20A in a bathroom. If you are going to have a fan/light/heat combo
unit, that alone needs its own circuit
It would be different if you had to tear walls open if you have to run
a new line, but since you have access to run cables, might as well do
it.
I would also like to add if you are putting a fan/light combo inside
the shower/tub area, it must be GFI protected. You can just get the
feed off of the GFI outlet to accomplish this.