Need seasoned advice on electrical

[Ben325e]

I've been using a temporary 220 line for a bit, but with winter coming up and outside projects presumably slowing down, I'd like to get my garage shop set up better.

Here's a list of pertinent information:


Equipment needing electricity

Rigid R4511 tablesaw - 1.5 hp 220 or 110
Delta 950L Drill press - .5 hp 220 or 110 (I have several motors sitting around and will change this to a 3/4 or 1 hp)
Delta 14" bandsaw currently 3/4 hp, but I have a Baldor 1.5 hp motor ready to go in it.
Jet 20" bandsaw, previous owner burned up the motor, so it currently has a 1.5 hp Dayton motor. Anyone with a 3 hp motor sitting around?
Jet 15" planer 3 hp 220 Volt
6" 1 hp planer (Anyone gotta 10" jointer sitting around?)
CH 80 gallon compressor 5 hp 220 volt
2 hp dust collector
Grizzly shop air filter
routers, sanders, etc.
Lincoln 115v flux/mig wirefeed welder (needs 20 amp 110 v ciruit)
Lincoln Idealarc AC/DC 250/250 stick welder - I doubt I'll ever need to approach anywhere near max amperage on this, so a 50 amp 220 circuit will do)
In the winter I'd like to have one or two electric heaters going while I'm in the shop.


My house has a 200 amp service panel located in the laundry room, which is adjacent to the garage. I estimate 25' would be more than plenty to get me from the panel to where I want a sub panel in the garage.

My garage currently has one 15 amp circuit - that's it.

I have a brick foundation on all walls of the garage about knee height with a 3" ledge before the drywall starts. I want to use some type of conduit along this ledge for wiring and receptacles. I want all of it removable, as I don't think we'll be in this house for more than four years or so.

It's usually only me in there, so I don't expect to run but one large tool at a time, in conjunction with the dust collector and compressor. Plus the heater in the winter. If I use the big welder, I'll turn everything else off.



Any information on panel size, feeder wire from house panel to subpanel, types of conduit, etc. would be great.

I'm sure I could just get a calculator and figure amperage requirements, etc, but theory and the real world don't always agree, so I figured I'd ask away here.

I'm not going to try to cheap out on anything, but if I can use PVC conduit instead of metal at a much cheaper price, that's fine with me, but I do want to make sure I do it right.


Thanks,

Ben

 

[ehpoole]

My goodness... where to begin?!?!

Firstly, since you are not overly familiar with electrical I'm kind of hoping the following advice will be used for the sake of communicating your needs and wishes to a licensed electrician.

For the conduit you may opt to use either gray PVC electrical conduit or steel EMT. EMT looks much nicer and, with a bit of skill, can be bent to conform to necessary turns and around obstructions in ways that PVC does not readily lend itself towards. The "skill" part of the equation is key, though. Most of your conduit runs will consist of a mix of 1/2" and 3/4" conduit, though the feed to your subpanel will be considerably larger (likely 1-1/4" to 1-1/2") and require a comparably sized hole in your walls to reach the main panel. If you opt for EMT, you will likely discover you end up using considerably more 1/2" than you do 3/4". Whatever you opt to use, consult Code fill tables (or search for an earlier post of mine that includes the fill charts) and avoid over filling your conduit.

For your sub panel you will want to run a 100A panel of around 20-24 circuits which will require a single double-pole breaker in your main panel. If running copper I suggest opting for #2AWG, or #1AWG if using aluminum for the feeder. I would go ahead and run a #4 copper ground, though Code will allow you to get by with much less (as little as #8 copper or #6 aluminum) -- I like to keep resistance to ground to a bare minimum (then again, I tend to have lots of electronics and PCs lying around).

For your drill press, and other motors of 1HP or less, there is really no advantage to converting these to 220V, so go ahead and keep them wired for 120V and run them off your regular 120V accessory receptacles along with your existing 120V power hand-held and mobile tools.

Plan for 2 20A 120V receptacle circuits along each of your major walls. Install 4 receptacle blocks (a pair of duplex receptacles) with each duplex receptacle on its own circuit. This will allow you to plug a high-demand tool like a portable thickness planer, shop vac, etc. in one side while still allowing you a second circuit (in the neighbouring receptacle) for a second device without overloading either circuit. ALL of your 120V receptacles (with rare exceptions I won't touch on here) should be GFCI protected with either GFCI circuit breakers OR an upstream GFCI receptacle. I tend to prefer the breakers even though they cost more because you can always reset them at the panel -- GFCI receptacles sometimes get buried behind other junk. If you opt for the cheaper GFCI receptacles purchase the 20A rated receptacles with an indicator lamp. For all your 120V receptacles opt for 'spec grade' (typically individually packaged) 5-20R receptacles -- these will hold up to the abuse in a shop environment and can safely deliver the full 20A circuit rating to a single device when needed. I like to wire heavy-duty 120V shop circuits with #10AWG copper to reduce voltage drop under high loads, but you can wire with #12AWG if on a tight budget.

For heating, I would suggest one or two 4-5KW electric heaters, many of which include ceiling mounts to help keep them up and out of the way and a safe distance from combustibles. A 4KW resistive heater will require a 20-25A circuit breaker, a 5KW will need a 25-30A breaker. Your ordinary household space heaters are typically limited to no more than 1500W and tend to be woefully inadequate when it comes to heating even a modest sized shop (unless you have exceptional insulation).

Don't forget to account for a 20-30A dedicated 240V circuit for a future Cyclone DC (same circuit can still be used for a lesser DC wired for 220V and a 15-20A breaker). Run #10AWG copper to this circuit (#12 ground), which will allow it to be upsized to 30A should you ever need to. The DC will run at the same time as your other power tools, so it needs a dedicated circuit all its own and can not be shared with any other tool.

Most of your 240V power tools can be serviced by 20A receptacles, but go ahead and wire these with #10AWG copper so that you can convert selected receptacles/circuits to 30A where necessary to handle larger motors. Some 3HP motors are rated for 20A circuits while some may require 25-30A (refer to owners manual). Your 5HP air compressor will require a dedicated 30A (and possibly 40A -- in which case you will need to run #8 copper w/ #12 ground) circuit all its own -- you may either hardwire it directly with a local disconnect switch OR you can wire it to a plug with an L6-30R/P (if 30A) receptacle/plug in which case the disconnect switch is not required.

Unless you know exactly what your layout will be for the next 4 years, I suggest you install at least 2 non-dedicated (e.g. not counting DC, compressor, heaters, etc.) 240V circuits and receptacles along each major wall in your shop (this is based upon my experiences). This will allow most of your larger 240V tools to connect to the nearest receptacle without long extension cords without having to constantly plug and unplug tools. Feel free to modify this suggestion depending upon your anticipated layout. For your 20A receptacles you may either use ordinary 3-prong 6-20R receptacles or the twist-lock L6-20R receptacles. Wire these circuits with #10AWG copper (and #12 ground) so that they can be adapted to 30A circuits if needs dictate such for a specific tool. GFCI protection (in the form of GFCI breakers) is not required for 220V circuits, but I would still advise investing in 220V GFCI breakers if there are specific circuits that may be used in wet or damp environments (e.g. out in the driveway) such as with your welders -- this will give you protection if you get caught in the rain while welding, etc.

Your arc welder, at 50A, will, of course, require a circuit all its own using a 50A receptacle and should be wired with #6AWG copper (and #12AWG ground) unless its manual states that a smaller guage may be used -- in which case I still suggest going one gauge size larger than the manual calls for if it is smaller than #6. The #6 wire will require at least 1" EMT conduit.

For your lighting circuit I like the 2-tube 4' flourescent F32T8 lamps with modern electronic ballasts. If you have white ceilings you can save money by purchasing the non-reflector models. If you lack white ceilings then you will need the reflector. For a typical 2-car garage you will likely want about 10-12 such fixtures. I also suggest purchasing 2 to 4 emergency lights (available from Lowes and HD) to complement your lighting. These lights should be placed on their own dedicated circuit, shared only with the emergency lights and POSSIBLY your ceiling mounted ambient air filter, but nothing more. Since these circuits (and possible receptacles) will NOT be accessible from floor level, you will not require a GFCI for this 120V circuit. You may wish to wire your lighting as two distinct banks that can be individualy switched. I have my lighting in two banks, each representing 50% illumination so that I can have 1) no lights, 2) 50% lighting and 3) 100% lighting. The emergency lamps should be located about 5-6ft in from each wall and their light heads aimed towards your major stationary tools and workbench. My shop required 3 such units for reasonable illumination. The emergency lights will allow you to quickly locate the OFF switch on your power tools while ensuring your hands remain a safe distance from the blade while you switch them off -- without emergency lights you are left fumbling in the dark at night and could have a terrible accident if the power suddenly comes back on after a second or two! They are very cheap insurance.

If you do any sort of proper Code installation with your new shop electrical, you are probably going to find that while there is good money tied up in it all, it will probably not be worth the hassle of tearing it all out and patching the walls (even with conduit and surface mounted outlets there are still lots of screw holes) when it comes time to move. The conduit and wiring left over after you tear it out will be in lots of odd lengths that make future use more challenging with lots of waste and the outlets, switches, and receptacles are not where the money is. The real money is in the load center (panel) and the breakers with a bit more invested in $40-60/ea lighting fixtures. Tearing out a load center, even a sub panel, is a lot of work when you realize that it all still has to look good before you can sell your house -- otherwise the mess you make will cost you more in terms of sale price than you saved by tearing it all out for re-use at your next place.

When it comes time to punch holes in your brick, you will want a good rotary hammer drill for the job. They will punch through brick like a hot knife through butter.

If you have not already done so, this is a great time to install a double-pole Surge Breaker in your main panel. If you have not had your ground rod tested for resistance and your home is an older home with a single ground rod, I would strongly encourage you to have 2 additional 10ft ground rods each driven 6ft to either side of the existing ground rod. Low ground resistance is key to the proper dissipation of power surges and lightning strikes. All the surge protection in the world will fail to do its job when it really counts without a good low-resistance path to ground that the traditional single ground rod seldom provides.

I am hoping this answers most of your questions, but I also know it has likely created a few new ones as well. Feel free to ask and I am sure there are others here who can recommend a good licensed electrician in your area.

My comments should all be consistent with the 2008 NEC Code (I don't have the 2011 book) but your local Codes may vary, when in doubt ask your local inspector(s) for relevant advice as their word is always the final authority. For the usual legal disclaimer: I am not a licensed electrician. My grandfather was the electrician in the family and I spent a good many of my earlier years (and most of my childhood) assisting him with primarily residential and small-business electrical.

 

[Bas]

I had my reply all ready when Ethan posted, at least I got the feeder wire sizes right Although I can think you can go down one size with such a short run.

As Ethan said, the real money is in the panel, breakers and light fixtures, although the cost of the receptacles can add up (especially for the L6-20 and L6-30 ones). If you did want to salvage any of the conduit, you'll need to go with metal (EMT), not PVC. PVC must be glued, so it can't really be reused, and it's not cheaper than EMT. Patching screw holes after you take down the conduit/ outlets is not a huge deal, but removing a panel is likely to involve drywalling, taping, mudding, and painting of course. Nobody says you have to remove the conduit between the garage and laundry room, but it doesn't look good of course.

Between labor & material, with you running the conduit and wiring the outlets, a full-blown electrical installation will probably cost around $1500. If that's too much, consider running a small 60A panel to power your tools (but not the heaters or welder). To save money, you can partially open the walls to run Romex through the studs. Closing that back up involves drywalling, mudding and taping - cheap, but labor intensive. You should then just plan on leaving the whole installation when you move.

Oh, and definitely leave the installation of the panel to a pro.

 

[scsmith42]

I always enjoy reading Ethan's advice, and as usual he is spot on.

If it were me, I would run a 100A service. 60A will not be adequate to pull both the welder and the compressor simultaneously, and it does not cost that much more to run 100 (or 125A) versus 60.

Even though you only plan on being in the house for 4 years, sometimes temporary installations have a way of lasting longer....

If you're going to be spending much time in the shop, I'd recommend that you budget for insulation. You won't regret it.

Good luck with your shop project!

 

[Joe Scharle]

Ethan covered it pretty well, but like Scott I like to have some excess in case I've forgotten something, so I would go with a 125A panel too. It's just cheaper than up-grading later.

 

[ScottM]

Ethan hit it. When I built my shop last year I bought most of my electrical supplies from City Electric. They beat the BORGs on just about every component. I had a 100' run from my main box to the 100A box in the shop. For that run I got URD-2-2-4 wire. It was a $1.05 a foot.

 

[Ben325e]

Thanks for all the info, guys.

Ethan, your well written informative responses are always great to read, thanks for your response. Good idea on emergency lighting. Bas, sorry to have you write up a response just to have Ethan take the glory

I'll be putting in a 100 amp panel, unless some amazing deal comes along for a 60 amp panel that I can't refuse (i.e. free). I've got extra spaces available in my 200 amp panel and could wire the compressor there, if needed, but I'd prefer the 100 amp service and keep the extra space in the 200 amp panel as the "upgrade if needed" slots.

Home depot has a 100 amp panel for a good price including many breakers I could use:

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

The GE 100 Amp 20-Space 30-Circuit Indoor Main Breaker Load Center Value Pack features a NEMA type-1 enclosure with a copper buss bar for excellent conductivity. This main breaker load center offers a 240-volt maximum and is UL listed and ANSI certified f

Copper buss bar for excellent conductivity
NEMA type-1 enclosure
Single-phase, 100 Amp , 240-volt maximum
Meets UL and ANSI safety requirements
Includes 6 THQL1115 single-pole 15 Amp breakers, 6 THQL1120 single-pole 20 Amp breakers, 1 THQL2130 double-pole 30 Amp breaker and 1 THQL2150 double-pole 50 Amp breaker

Seems like a fair deal.

Aluminum or copper wiring? I know I'd have to use antioxidation gel on the aluminum, but is the price difference worth it? I won't need tons, so I think I'd prefer copper.

Thanks for the help,

Ben

 

[Bas]

Aluminum or copper wiring? I know I'd have to use antioxidation gel on the aluminum, but is the price difference worth it? I won't need tons, so I think I'd prefer copper.

Copper is a lot more expensive, and it's a little harder to find. I wanted to go with copper originally too, but ended up with Al. No regrets. It's a little stiffer to work with than copper (because you have to go with a lower gauge), but it works perfectly fine.

 

[ehpoole]

Thanks for all the info, guys.

Aluminum or copper wiring? I know I'd have to use antioxidation gel on the aluminum, but is the price difference worth it? I won't need tons, so I think I'd prefer copper.

The only run for which I would consider copper is the sub panel feeder. Copper is always preferable, but aluminum is cheaper. If using aluminum be sure to upsize the gauge to offset for aluminum's greater resistance and use a good torque wrench to tighten down the lugs to manufacturer's specifications -- and, as mentioned, don't forget the oxygen inhibitor at both ends (panels).

I don't like aluminum for individual circuits in part because DIYers often mess with these connections and there are a lot of variables to take into account when working with aluminum -- are the receptacles and switches compatible, breakers compatible, wire nuts compatible, etc. It can get more complicated still if a user later splices copper wire onto the aluminum. All of which is avoided if you stick to copper for all the circuit runs. The only aluminum in my house is the utility entrance feed and I have 5 sub panels and a 200A transfer switch!

With respect to copper availability, there is not a single gauge of copper needed for this project that is not readily available at most any Lowes or Home Depot (they carry up to at least 3/0 [200A] Copper) as well as all the conduit and connector fittings you need for this project. You will want to run single conductor wires in your conduit rather than Romex. You may find better prices elsewhere on some items, but all are available from the big box stores as well. You may also want to get an adhesive label pad so that you can number the conductors that belong to each circuit (esp. if the conduit has multiple pairs of blacks or reds, etc.) to differentiate one pair from another. (I use a special Dymo Rhino 5000 labeler designed specifically for the purpose, but you can purchase pre-printed pads of numbers and letters that accomplish the same goal, albeit less descriptively.)

You will likely want to stock up on 250-500ft spools of #12 (green, white, black, red -- possibly other colors if you need) and #10 (black and red, possibly white). Other guages and colors should probably be calculated in advance and purchased in lengths slightly greater than what your calculatiosn suggest you will need. A quick note on grounds: in most cases you will only require a single #12 green ground wire per conduit regardless of the number of circuits run in that conduit -- they can all share the single common ground; this saves a good deal of wire and reduces conduit fill congestion.

Still, though, if you are not intimately familiar with electrical I would strongly encourage you to hire an electrician to do most, if not all, the work for you -- both for your personal safety as well as that of your property.

 

[Bas]

The only run for which I would consider copper is the sub panel feeder.

+1. I should have been explicit about that (thanks Ethan - in this age of cul8r and other abbreviations, it's great to see more detailed writeups!). Al for the feeder, copper for everything else.

I bought the big 500' spools at Home Depot. Black/ white for 120V circuits, red for 220V circuits, Green for Ground. Just to make it easy to identify the wires. An electrical supply house may be cheaper than Home Depot or Lowes. I had a 10% off coupon for HD, that helped a little. It's amazing how many boxes, cover plates, wire nuts, connectors etc. you need. Then again, with 42 outlets in the shop, it adds up quickly (yes folks, 42 is indeed the Final Answer. The Question is "How many outlets do I need in my shop to achieve happiness?"). In case you read somewhere you don't need a separate ground wire when using EMT...don't. Just pull the wire, and make sure it's bonded to each box.

As for what to do yourself, I had an electrician put in the panel. I ran the conduit myself and wired all the outlets and lights. I then had the electrician come back to make the connections in the panel. I probably could have done that myself, but neatness counts, and experience definitely helps when trying to bring order to a bundle of wires. Money well spent.

If you're going to do some of the work yourself, don't forget to invest in some tools. You'll need good linesman pliers, wire strippers, multimeter etc. You're more than welcome to borrow my conduit bender, I don't plan on using it for a while...

 

[eyekode]

Ben,
I am in no way an expert but I will give you a data point. A couple years ago I wired 1/2 of my 2 car garage. I put in:
90A feeder from main breaker panel (Alu)
Large sub panel in the garage.
1 110V@20A circuit (GFCI of course) with 3 outlets
3 220v@20A circuits each with a dedicated outlet
All runs are within EMT

Cost of supplies and permit/inspection was ~600$ (45ft feeder run). I probably could have done it for 400$ but I bought lots of extra 12ga THHN.

It took only ~2 half days working with my friend. However he was the brains of the outfit and I mostly slowed him down .

In the last two years I have added more lights (on existing house circuits separate from the new box) and a 30A circuit for a heater.

If I had it to do over again what would I change?
I would wire the second half of the garage too although it would be easily 2x the work as it is difficult because my garage has drywall.
I would run 10ga for the 220v circuits (would have saved me from running a new drop for my heater).

I have NOT needed more circuits for 115v. I have 2 total now and that is plenty as my DC runs on 220v. It would be nice however to have a couple more outlets.

Good luck!
Salem

 

[DWSmith]

Outstanding advice from everyone here!

All I can add is to make sure you consult and use a licensed electricial and be sure to have the necessary permits and inspections. I don't know about where you live, but here if an electrician gets the permit and something goes wrong, the electrician is responsible. Otherwise it is all on you.

With the upcoming shop move I will need some electrical renovations. I will have a licensed electrician do the work and get the permits. He knows the new codes and will be up on the latest techniqies, tools and equipment to get the job done right the first time.

And, don't forget future expansion. Your needs may well change and having to redo the project will be time consuming and expensive.

 

[ehpoole]

Then again, with 42 outlets in the shop, it adds up quickly (yes folks, 42 is indeed the Final Answer. The Question is "How many outlets do I need in my shop to achieve happiness?").

Actually, in the case of ethernet outlets the answer seems to be 104 plus about 50 coax and and a good bit more for telephone and audo/low-voltage. You would have loved my wiring closet (under the basement stairs) when we remodeled this house -- it was almost 3ft deep in Cat5e, Cat6, RG6 and speaker wire. Even the garage/shop has 4 network jacks, 2 coax (cable + antenna) and room for up to 8 phone lines plus 2-pair of 16ga speaker wire for either audio or low-voltage. All-in-all we added about 5 miles of additional cable to the house before we moved in.

With respect to Bas' toolkit, I never found a lot of need for a multimeter (YMMV) when installing wiring -- they are more for troubleshooting equipment. However, I would strongly encourage anyone doing their own wiring to invest in a good non-contact voltage checker. You simply touch them to each wire (no need to contact a bare connection) in question and they will alert if any of the tested wires are hot (check each wire individually). Better still they clip to your shirt pocket so they are always with you. When working with conduit it is not uncommon for multiple circuits to share the same conduit. You may disconnect power to the receptacle you are working on but still have 3 or 4 still hot circuits running through the same junction box as the receptacle -- the voltage checker will alert you to the remaining hot wires so that there are no unwelcome surprises. You can find non-contact voltage detectors at Lowes and Home Depot. Otherwise, I'm not discouraging anyone from purchasing a multimeter if they wish, having been in electronics since I was 8 I have quite a few myself (including analog and early digital models).

I've tried just about every sort of wire stripper over the years and by far my favorite is the following: NOTE: These are now licensed to a number of tool manufacturers, so just look for the same style, otherwise these come from Radio Shack. They have just one adjustment to adapt to different gauges and insulation thicknesses, a small thumbscrew that sets the cutting pressure.

You will also need to purchase a good fishing tape for pulling your wiring (I prefer steel). The #12 wires usually push through pretty easily, especially if there are not too many bends. However, larger gauges or near-capacity conduit fills will often require fishing. Don't forget to stock up on good quality 3M electrical tape -- you will use plenty if you have to resort to fishing wires. It is also worth having some heat-shrink tubing available in case you accidentally knick a wire while pulling. Heat shrink tubing is a far more reliable long-term fix than wrapping the knick with electrical tape (which can unwrap over time). As Bas mentioned, if you do the conduit bending yourself (in which case you may well regret that choice <chuckle>) you will need the 1/2" and 3/4" benders (or borrow Bas'). Conduit bending is very much an art.

I don't usually bother with lineman's pliers myself (again YMMV), I always found a good pair of needle-nose (for bending hooks in solid conductors) and a pair of heavy diagonal cutters to be most useful. Also, if you work with stranded conductors (preferred for conduit runs) you will need a good set of crimpers to crimp the occassional spade crimp to some of your wire ends. You can reduce (but likely not eliminate) the need for crimpers by choosing outlets and switches (all spec grade) with built in wire clamping connections (rather than the typical hook-and-screw style). The other option is to purchase some lengths of solid conductor wiring in the proper gauge (and color) and then use it to terminate to the outlet or switch and use wire nuts to secure the solid wire to your stranded. For your junction boxes (for outlets and switches) you will want to purchase steel boxes and be advised that most do not include the ground screw, so you will need to purchase a box of green grounding screws as well. When working with metallic conduit all your conectors and boxes must be metal -- otherwise you will have to worry with bonding nuts and the like, so just stay all metal.

PS - A minor correction to my earlier post, you should be able to make the arc welder run in 3/4" EMT conduit since the fill limit for #6 conductors is 4. You might even be able to get away with 1/2" EMT if no neutral is required (i.e. 2 #6 and a single #12 ground) depending upon your insulation thicknesses (you would need to make the circular mil cross section calculations to ensure you don't exceed 40% the cross sectional area of the conduit) -- although fishing 2 #6 wires in 1/2" may prove challenging if you have multiple 90deg bends. I'm not sure where my head was when I said you'd need 1" EMT.

 

[ehpoole]

(thanks Ethan - in this age of cul8r and other abbreviations, it's great to see more detailed writeups!)

I take it that is diplomatic speak for "Ethan had way too much time on his hands". :rotflm:

Bas, sorry for fouling up your initial post. If it is any consolation I probably spent a good 40 minutes on my initial writeup!

 

[Bas]

I take it that is diplomatic speak for "Ethan had way too much time on his hands". :rotflm:

Ethan, this crowd can discuss the flex in a 24" bar clamp vs. a 36" bar clamp for HOURS. For glue, we can hold a 3-DAY CONVENTION. People take 6 MONTH SABBATICALS from work to learn about dust collection. When it comes to this hobby, I think we all have too much time on our hands. Too much of a good thing, is good! :rolf:

 

[Ben325e]

Right now I'm thinking:

50 amp 220v circuit for arc welder
30 amp 220v circuit for compressor
20 amp 220v circuit for dust collector
20 amp 220v circuit for other tools (x2)
20 amp 110v circuit for mig/fluxcore welder or heater

Ethan, I couldn't agree more on the wire strippers and the 3M tape. If it's not 3M super 88 or 33+, I don't use it I've been using this type of wire stripper for the past 8 years or so and can't live without them. I've got quite a bit of heat shrink tubing, too.

I've got a nice autoranging clampmeter/multimeter/non-contact voltage detector/thermometer I'll be using. Whenever I'm wiring anything I usually use it to double check continuity of wires, even if I've marked them... redundant but safer.

Cutters, linesman pliers, crimpers, needle nose, etc I've got.

Bas, thanks for the offer of your conduit bender, but I'll pick one up in case I want to add lines in the future, too.

Thanks for the help!

 

[eyekode]

Looks good but use 10ga for that DC so you can simply swap the receptacle and breaker when you want a 5hp cyclone. Oh and a 110v circuit will not cut it to heat a 2 car garage. I use a 5kw (220v 30a) and it works great. I have seen others use 2 smaller 110v heaters in a garage but you need at least 2 110 circuits for that.
Salem