HPS Problem: Circuit overload

mygirls said:

your all just paranoid, your house will not burn down, as long as your not overloading the breaker by running 10,000wtt of lights

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3 of my friends are electricians and have seen it happen before. yes some of it is paranoia but some is also common sense. when a circuit is overloaded no matter how much it trips a breaker. if that breaker is a higher amperage than what the wire its connected to is rated for, you are overloading the wire. regardless if its 10,000W or 1W.

http://www.buyerschoiceinspections.com/Overloading-Electrical-Circuits

Overloading Electrical Circuits


Electricity has enriched our lives. Despite the many benefits, electricity can also bring danger -- the most common being house fires. It is estimated that over 40,000 residential fires are caused by overloading electrical circuits every year in the United States. Causes include arc faults, short circuits, or overloading of electrical circuits.

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http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/circuit-breaker.htm/printable

The circuit breaker is an absolutely essential device in the modern world, and one of the most important safety mechanisms in your home. Whenever electrical wiring in a building has too much current flowing through it, these simple machines cut the power until somebody can fix the problem. Without circuit breakers (or the alternative, fuses), household electricity would be impractical because of the potential for fires and other mayhem resulting from simple wiring problems and equipment failures

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docd187 said:

3 of my friends are electricians and have seen it happen before. yes some of it is paranoia but some is also common sense. when a circuit is overloaded no matter how much it trips a breaker. if that breaker is a higher amperage than what the wire its connected to is rated for, you are overloading the wire. regardless if its 10,000W or 1W.

http://www.buyerschoiceinspections.com/Overloading-Electrical-Circuits



http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/circuit-breaker.htm/printable

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i know what you are saying and im saying that the romex wire nca handle some amprage, and not 10,000wtts of light either. yes you are asking for trouble. he is not running that many wtts so he will be ok to change the breaker.

12 guage romex is rated at 20 amps, 14 guage at 15 amps. Yes you might be able to get away with a 25A breaker on #12 wire and 20A breaker on #14 wire, but all it takes is a loose neutral ANYWHERE in either circuit to build excessive heat and poof, you got yerself a fire.
A 20A breaker will not trip until it sees over 25 amps of current, so with that said, a 25A breaker probably wont trip until it sees well over 30 amps. The reason a 20 is called a 20 is because it is rated to protect 2 things.
1) 12 guage wire
2) appliances internal wiring

Ampere rating of wire can be a little misleading. In most cases the copper wire itself can handle way more than (20A for #12 for example). But the insulation is what makes the difference. And type NM-B (household romex) is insulated for 20 amps.

Table 310.16 of the National Electric Code has most all wire types and thier rated ampacity.