Work Shop

[Jack Skinner]

Any electricians in the group? So I have converted my garage into a shop. I need a little more electrical power to my shop. At this time I have a 20amp fuse running the whole garage. Would replacing the 20amp with a 30amp allow me to add more lighting. This summer I would like to use the exta 20amp fuses in my panel to increase lighting and outlets but is the 30amp a safe temp fix to add more lighting.

[macbow]

You can only replace the 20 amp breaker with the 30 amp if the wire is large enough to carry the full 30 amps.
The wire should be a 10 gauge.

Adding the extra 10 amp capacity would allow plenty of lighting.

[macbow]

Just realized you were talking fuses. Same applies.
The safest way is to run more wiring from the fuse box to the Garage.

[Roy from Pa]

Yes it will work for more lighting. But the best thing you can do is put a 100 amp breaker in your house ckt box and run a 220 volt line " at least 10 gauge wire, or even heavier" out to the shop and install another ckt breaker panel in your shop. Then you can add ckt breakers in the shop breaker panel box and run 110 volt or 220 volt lines where ever you need them.

[canopyboy]

Listen to macbow!  The breaker/fuse is there to keep you from damaging machines or more importantly from starting a fire by running too much current through too small of a wire.  If it has a 20A fuse, I'm willing to bet your wire is not adequately sized for 30A.  You need #10 wire running to all points on the circuit before you can safely put a 30A fuse in.

If you run a 100A circuit to your shop as Roy suggests and then put a subpanel in your shop you will indeed be in hog heaven.  However, the wire required for 100A service is much heavier than #10.  I think it's #2 for aluminum and #4 for copper, but you also need to consider length.  Check your local regs first.  If you do put in a sub panel, you'll need to keep your ground seperate until back at your main panel.

Easiest safe way to expand electrical capacity is to add a second 20A shop circuit.  A lot easier than a 100A subpanel and much safer than increasing the current circuit with a 30A fuse (unless you really do have #10 wire everywhere.)

Good luck.  -Dave

[Jack Skinner]

Thanks guys will check wire for #10 wire before doing anything. Adding the second 20a circuit is the way I want to go.

[soy]

In the old shop I ran  30 amp 220 from the house had a 20 amp 12 wire 220 to the band saw and 4 other 110 plug ins on appropriate breakers... worked great

[canopyboy]

I ran a 60A subpanel to the shop.  Lights and adjacent barn on 20A circuit.  Compressor on its own 20A (120V) circuit.  Two 20A circuits for outlets.  One 30A/240V circuit for larger machinery.  One 30A/240V circuit for a heater which I have yet to procure.  In hindsight, I should have seperated the barn from the lighting, but otherwise works great.

[Jack Skinner]

Good thing I asked not enough wire (#10) to take 30amp load. Will need to run more 20amp circuits. I have three 20amp fuses right now in the house main panel not being used.

[macbow]

How far is the fuse panel from the shop?
If it isn't very far you could run a heavier gauge wire like 8 gauge and put in a bigger fuse . Once the 8 gauge is in the shop put a small breaker panel and several circuits from it. A 15 amp will handle all the lights. Then you could have a,couple of 20 a amp circuits for tools,etc.