DIYbanter - View Single Post - 20 amp circuit/14-2 wire?

From: "Dave"

I would do it over with 12 gauge wire. If you have some kind of short,
the breaker won't shut off without 20 amps of current, overloading the wire
and possibly setting you up for a fire.

A short circuit is many hundreds of amps, in fact, thousands of amps. The
possibility of a short circuit has nothing to do with the reasons why #14 awg.
should not be used.

Or maybe liability to the future,
long after you sell the place.

Future liability isn't a bad reason to not do it, but it still falls way short
of the better answer.

Part of the satisfaction of doing a job is
doing it correctly,

A better way to state this the satisfaction of doing the job to an industry
standard, workmanlike manner.

and it will sit with you for years if you made a
mistake.

Guilt works but, there's still a better answer.

You never know what the future owner will do to that line distal to
the device.

I think it is probably against code, the small load
notwithstanding.

It's ironic, the one and only real and true and legal reason, that it is
against code, is the one you seem to give the least weight to.

Electrical work is governed by industry-standard trade practices and electrical
codes. Not guilt, not future screwups that could make a current screwup
dangerous, not the satisfaction of a job well done.

Alternatively you could change the breaker to a 15 amp
device, if the line draw isn't too high.

Dave

That falls under the catagory "not in a workmanlike manner."

"deloid" wrote in message
...
I am planning to have an isolated ceiling fan switch as an end run of a 20
amp circuit.

I ran 14-2 wire from the fan...to the new switch...to the receptacle that
was 15 amp. As I was preparing to tie this all together I noticed that the
receptacle was fed by 12-2 wire and...sure enough there is a 20 amp
breaker.

Since the fan (no lights) hardly pulls any amperage it seems like I should
be able to run the 14-2 anyway.

Thoughts?