Another long electrical run

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Speedy Petey

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MCA of 15A @240V @70'?

12/2 all day. #10 is fine if you want to feel better about yourself. NO REASON AT ALL to go with #8cu.

BTW, the VD calc I use says #14cu is the minimum for 14.7A @240v @70'.
 

Stan the Man

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Funny,.. Just before pulling the wire, I looked at the compressor unit again.. The whip is #8 with a #10 ground.. By the time it was done, my pull was more like 100ft to the compressor.. I came to a few conclusions in the last few days.. And my frustration all seems kinda silly now.. Its done,.. no looking back now..
 
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Stan the Man

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So at the very worst, I err'ed on the side of safety,.. I already had the wire,.. I used it..
 

Jadnashua

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An appliance may end up with smaller gauge wire internally than that supplying it from the power panel because they know how it is run, how long the leads are, how the heat dissipation is, and what the device needs. You cannot safely use what's inside the device to decide on what it needs as a supply except, generally, it should not be smaller that what's in the device. The installation manual dictates what the supply line must be as a minimum. More doesn't hurt anything except your pocketbook.

The ground lead is for safety blow a fuse or trip a circuit breaker...it should never have current on it except in a fault condition. As a result code allows it to often be smaller than the current carrying conductors.
 

Stan the Man

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Looking back I guess three #10 per circuit would have been fine.. I was under the gun and had the wire, so I pulled two #8s and one #10 per circuit..
I installed a 30 amp breaker for the air handler, and a 25 amp for the compressor unit.. It works just fine.. The extra cost amounted to $48..
I have a little over $2k in the system,.. $48 not going to kill me.. At least this is the way I have to look at it now..:oops:
 
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