Bobbyp47 Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 I'm wanting to move my whole setup to the garage and need to move my electric box or outlets to the garage. My question is what would be the best way to do this since my breaker box is in the basement. I was just going to put in a new 100amp or 200amp box in the garage and run the service line to the meter but dont know if that is the best way. I have 64 ch now but want to make sure I'm able to expand later. I know alot of you have move your electric around and could use some help. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wbottomley Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 Bobbyp47 wrote:I'm wanting to move my whole setup to the garage and need to move my electric box or outlets to the garage. My question is what would be the best way to do this since my breaker box is in the basement. I was just going to put in a new 100amp or 200amp box in the garage and run the service line to the meter but dont know if that is the best way. I have 64 ch now but want to make sure I'm able to expand later. I know alot of you have move your electric around and could use some help. ThanksThe first step, call an electrician. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beeiilll Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 I would say that first I would have to know what kind of load you draw before I would even venture to say about electric.Are you using incandescent lights, LEDs, both?Have you taken any measurements using a Watt meter to see what kind of current you are drawing?You need more basic info before asking the question as we can't make recommendations on unknown factors.If you are planning ot go with LEDs then the loads will be small. If you plan on getting into running large searchlights out in the yard, the load can be very big.How much knowledge of electrical do you have and are you comfortable with doing? You might be able to run wire or hookup outlets and have an electrician do the actual panel hookup for you.Do you have room in the service to the house now that will let you put in a sub panel or is your existing panelbox maxed out?Hard for anyone to give you answers without more information on the setup. Also we do not know how hard it will be to get from your panel box to a new location.After all that you will be able to get better answers to your question as well as you will have a better understanding of your electricial setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
De Trommelslager Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 While it isn't outside the realm of possibility for a DIYer, adding or moving an electrical panel is best left to an electrician. An outlet is one thing, but an electrical panel isn't a job for the DIYer.Seek out a three reputable electrical contractors and get quotes from them. Look them up (before a quote) with the Better Business Bureau and see what their record is. For a panel job, personally I would rule out "Chuck and a Truck Electric Co." in favor of a brick and mortar contractor that has been around for a while.Best of luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WilliamS Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 William has not lead me wrong yet, his answer was short and sweet, call an electrician.A few factors to take in here.1) How big do you see your display getting2) Leds or Incanc3) How many blowmolds, flood lamps, or effects using high wattage bulbs4) What kind of boxes will you be using, if you change to 12v setup what kind of power supplies and how manyThe list goes on but the important thing is to have it done right. Safety is the highest priority when your messing with a feed from the street. I would have just a feed dropped into my garage off my existing box, no need to move the entire houses power. I also know I have limitations where I currently live. If I have a larger house I would need a power plant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Don Gillespie Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 De Trommelslager wrote: While it isn't outside the realm of possibility for a DIYer, adding or moving an electrical panel is best left to an electrician. An outlet is one thing, but an electrical panel isn't a job for the DIYer.Seek out a three reputable electrical contractors and get quotes from them. Look them up (before a quote) with the Better Business Bureau and see what their record is. For a panel job, personally I would rule out "Chuck and a Truck Electric Co." in favor of a brick and mortar contractor that has been around for a while.Best of luck!even though you call an electrician you may also want to contact your city electrical inspectors so that way it doesn't matter which electrician you use you will now be able to sleep at night knowing the job was done correctly the inspectors job is to make sure every thing is done to code. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KStatefan Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 I would also recommend calling an electrician but first you need to know what you want in the garage (ie a 100 amp sub panel with 10 20 amp circuits) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim6918 Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 On top of a first call to a licensed electrician, you might want to consider a call to your electrical utility. If your house is currently running a 100 amp LC, it most likely will have a 100 amp meter and service wire sutible for only 100 amp. You can't just add a 200 amp panel without upgrading the service wire (from the pole), meter head and meter. This isn't the job for the unititated. When I went to LOR 3 years ago, I got lucky when my electrical utilty was upgrading lines through out my neighborhood. They dropped a 200 amp line from the pole for free. When I added the new 200 amp LC, all i had to do is get a new meter and head. Saved major bucks here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jim6918 Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 Don Gillespie wrote:De Trommelslager wrote: While it isn't outside the realm of possibility for a DIYer, adding or moving an electrical panel is best left to an electrician. An outlet is one thing, but an electrical panel isn't a job for the DIYer.Seek out a three reputable electrical contractors and get quotes from them. Look them up (before a quote) with the Better Business Bureau and see what their record is. For a panel job, personally I would rule out "Chuck and a Truck Electric Co." in favor of a brick and mortar contractor that has been around for a while.Best of luck!even though you call an electrician you may also want to contact your city electrical inspectors so that way it doesn't matter which electrician you use you will now be able to sleep at night knowing the job was done correctly the inspectors job is to make sure every thing is done to code.At least where I live, a licensed electrician MUST have an inspection before the work can be approved. This isn't an option here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbyp47 Posted January 17, 2012 Author Share Posted January 17, 2012 Ya im max out on the breaker box and its in the basement so I wanted to put a sub panel in the garage and run my LOR and I have both light but will switch over to all LED in the year or so. I wired the whole basement but not sure about the subpanel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Surfing4Dough Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 IMO, save your money on the electrical upgrade and buy more LEDs instead. My guess is that you will come out way ahead financially. And once you are 100% LED, the added panel will be barely used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scubado Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 Surfing4Dough wrote:IMO, save your money on the electrical upgrade and buy more LEDs instead. My guess is that you will come out way ahead financially. And once you are 100% LED, the added panel will be barely used.I agree, unless you're wanting to get a welder for the garrage for fabricating Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fxdwg Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 scubado wrote: I agree, unless you're wanting to get a welder for the garrage for fabricating i agree with this one, get the main panel upgraded, install a sub panel in the garage, use it to run your show and YOUR BRAND NEW WELDING SETUP!!Then start making all kinds of Christmas decorations!! I hope to learn the skill of welding sometime this year as well. Would like to venture into making some of my own elements out of things OTHER than PVC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbyp47 Posted January 21, 2012 Author Share Posted January 21, 2012 Ya I agree with the upgrade panel and putting a sub panel in the garage. I think that would be the best option. The PVC is nice because you can buy at the hardware store and dont need much tools to build your idea but the wire fram will take a beaten and last a lot longer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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