I did electrical design for contractors starting in 1983 until 2018 and retired as a Sr Electrical Design Engineer and Project Manager for a top 15 privately held contractors in the US. So, here is my comment. Other than some admitted overkill, one of the best UA-cam electrical videos. It is refreshing to see some well done work on UA-cam. Most are hacks that show NEC violations galore and get upset if you point out their errors. The work was well done and in almost all cases correct. There is only one thing you might have a problem with the inspector. Remember, inspectors are not going to find everything, they are human. NEC requires NMB cables to be “supported and secured”. You can call three pieces of wood a cable tray, but that does not make it a code compliant cable tray. So within them, your cables are supported, correct? But they are not secured. Even in real cable tray, power cables are fastened to them so they are secured. I did not see or hear anything about any heating or Air-conditioning power being installed. And, just a suggestion, you might want to think about a chute from above to use to empty out the dust from the collector. Again, great video!
Professional electrician here, this is a fantastic comment! I would also say there needs to be outdoor receptacles (on their own circuit(s)... can not be tied into indoor circuits) and suggest running a second circuit for the outdoor kitchen.
I've done lots of research and checked the NEC and can't find anything other than amount of space taken up inside a conduit (53% max) that says you can't run Romex inside it. I believe it's fine and doesn't go against the national code. Local code may be entirely different, though, so definitely check, there, first before running Romex through conduit. In fact, come to think of it, I believe someplace, in the NEC, it specifically states that Romex (or sheathed multi-wire cable) must be supported and properly protected if not run through studs, whether metal or wood studs. Is this correct or did I just have a weird dream?
@ The history of NM cable in conduit. Originally, it was not allowed. Then it was in 24” or less as in sleeves or through walls, the next thing was that it was required in basements on concrete walls of dwellings, then any place where protection from damage, and now it is allowed. BTW many UA-cam videos show installing EMT and putting NM cable inside. It is wasting money if you do a lot of it. Until you use enough to buy spools of insulated conductors and need most of it. Three 500’ spools are not worth 25’ of EMT use. Easier to just pull the NM.
You need exterior outlets. Just like inside, you can never have enough and in most areas there is some code for minimum outdoor outlets to help you not use extension cords from inside the building to outside. I would recommend one on each side of your big door then at least one next to each walk door. Likely the rear of your building you won't need any. Soffit outlets are awesome for holiday nights.
Professional commercial electrician in Texas here, we run all outlets at 18" to center of box and I always just use a lazer, much faster than chalk lines and cleaner. You can also use a story stick, I always create one that has a mark at 18" (outlets), 48" (switches, fire pulls, other various things), another mark at all my above counter outlets height, one at 80" (fire strobes) and another at any other devices height. I use that throughout as well.
Lots of people don't even know about story sticks anymore, I found out about them recently enough to be honest and I had one of those "should have already thought of that" moments so, good on you
When I have more than a couple to do, I definitely pull out a laser. Even for drilling. I don’t do hardly any residential anymore though. Same about receptacle heights. Commercial also has ADA reqs that most residential projects give no concern to and vice versa.
When I had my shop wired, I had all the outlets at 48", except for the circuit that runs along the trusses overhead. I have never regretted having them up off the floor.
THIS!!! In my small shop I'm always moving stuff around, so I'm always plugging / unplugging things as well. I don't want to get down on my hands and knees to plug my table saw in behind my mister saw that's stored against the wall. And at 6'7" I've never understood why everyone wants outlets at ankle height anyway.
I would add an rv box outside, one i get from menards has a 20amp gfci, 30amp 120, and a 50amp 240v all in one box with their own breaker. Run some 6 gauge cable and tie it in on a 50amp breaker and boom. We put one on the back side of the shop for the horse trailer and I use that 50amp plug all the time outside for the welder.
Looks good El Chappo. My dad an electrical engineer and master electrician in Texas once wired a buddy's cabin in Colorado. Both my dad and his buddy spent a week wiring the cabin and then the inspector came and failed it all and told them he would never pass it and gave them a number to a local electrician. The local guy came and pulled everything out then reinstalled exactly how they had it and then the inspector passed it. So moral is don't tell a Colorado inspector you are from Texas, hopefully you don't run into a jerk inspector.
I rarely comment on videos, but I've been such a fan of your channel that after watching this latest production I wanted to drop some kudos. First, your OCD is SOOO refreshing. I believe there is nothing better than 'orderly' construction (BTW in my family we say CDO, because OCD has the letters out of order 🙂). Overkill my a**, more power the better. Your planning method is spot on and while I don't anticipate attempting a project as colossal as this, I have picked up a ton of excellent tips and ideas for any future projects. Second, thank you to all those who left insightful comments for Travis. UA-cam is an incredible platform for community and collaboration and I've gained even more unexpected insights from those of you who left constructive comments/criticisms. Really looking forward to watching the completion of the shop.
I had my garage wired for my shop use. Best decision I made was to have outlets in the ceiling. 240v (twist lock), and 120v in addition to the outlets on the walls. Man. Convenient. Super helpful. Strongly suggest it. I also recommend you take photos all your walls before you plaster them. These photos are a good reminder of what’s in the wall. Like having X-ray vision. Super helpful too.
My dad is an electrician, and he taught me when I wired my first garage: Outlet height is the length of his hammer :D Set the hammer on the bottom plate. Set the box on the hammer. Pull out the hammer and nail in the box. Uniform, fast, easy.
Couple of suggestions that may help in the future. When doing residential I always leave a service loop going into the box. Doing this allows you to pull the extra wire into the box after drywall if the wire gets cut too short. Second, there's a v cheap tool for stripping romex that will save your hands from a razor knife slip. Something like the Klein Cable Stripper works wonders.
It’s really the way to go. Best tool for stripping wire.Because technically, if you nick the wire with a razor knife or wire cutter’s, it’s against code. I’m a retired building inspector and I never called that, but I sure put the fear that I would if it got out of hand. Like cutting a couple strands of aluminum Romex to fit it in a breaker, man I saw that a lot.
@@TheStevedie Well...let's face it, it IS his shop, after all. Still no excuse for electricians to be slobs and leave a jobsite messy when they get done. The electrician (from Anthony PHVACE - local company in the KC Metro area), who installed my 100 amp subpanel in my garage workshop, cleaned up about 80% when he was done. I had to sweep and vacuum up lots of little copper and aluminum wire clippings but, not bad, really. The guy from A.B. May, another local company, left a real shitshow of a mess when he installed the subpanel in the garage at our old house. And, to top it off, he didn't exactly do a bang-up job. There were a few things I had to fix before I could run the electrical for all the outlets, both receptacle and lighting, for my shop, there. Thus the reason we switched to Anthony.
I installed all my outlets 4 foot off the ground in my shop. A similar concept of a kitchen, everything accessible above cabinets, workbench and so on. Plus when I need to plug and unplug tools no need to bend towards the floor. Also installed outlets on the ceiling to feed equipment not along a wall. This prevents tripping hazards in the middle of the shop. 3 years ago and still works very well for me. Great video as usual. Thanks for sharing the experience.
Your “OCD” rough-in looked about like my 1440 sq ft garage about 20 years ago. I had to mark a few changes later and ended up running power to a subpanel so I could distribute it more efficiently. Remember there’s only one place, in the main panel, where ground and neutral are bonded. Keep the ground bar and neutral bar separated in a subpanel. Funny story: I had the inspector in for electrical after wiring an addition 17 years ago. He opened the subpanel that fed every circuit in the addition, then asked who did it for me. When I said I did it myself he asked, “Do you want to wire my house?” I was pleasantly surprised. Just takes a little care in lengths and organization. Very nice job yourself!
You adding a cable/wire tray for your electrical is a great idea! I wish more contractors would do, and with all the electrical you have done is better than most contractors.
Travis, I love your videos and love how honest you are. Most of my comments have been made several times over by others. I’m envious of you getting to wire your shop as new work. I just finished wiring my garage shop that was fully dry walled. Unfortunately, the breaker box was full, so I had to install a sub panel, which was a new experience for me. Like you, watched lots of UA-cam videos before I took on the task. I did what you did and went overboard, running dedicated 20A circuits for each major power tool and two circuits for plugs over the work bench/miter station (your design from way back). I also put in multiple 220 circuits for my SawStop, mini-split and a EV charger. My attic was not floored so I had to first floor it to safely run the romex for all the new circuits and plugs (not fun in TX in the summer). I learned on my last shop the quad boxes at bench height is the only way too go. I also installed ceiling outlets (both 120V and 240v) for the table saw, ceiling hung air cleaner, retractable extension cord, and all the lighting. I installed 15 4’ LED shop lights to light the shop. Overall, the project took me over a month to complete, all while in withdrawals of not being able to do any woodworking. Then, with the electrical completed, I had to complete the installation of a new dust collection system all plumbed in w/ 4” PVC and blast gates. I started this project just after I retired and can say that I never worked that hard in my life while getting paid. It wasn’t my first round of wiring my own shop (forth actually) but I had several new challenges. I wish I had UA-cam on my first two. What a great resource. Love you brother. Keep the content coming. PS: the new dust shoot for the Bosch Compound miter saw is working well. At least as well as could be expected for a miter saw.
I am a electrician by trade in Canada looks good to me from what the video shows. Been watching you for years on your you tube found it sweet you where into 3d printing . Your organization is what’s key to your success top notch 👍👍🇨🇦
A few things I learned after wiring my shop. Size up your conduit, never use 1/2" conduct. You will appreciate the extra room. Also in quad boxes on a workbench run 2 circuits so each side is on a different 20amp breaker.
First, I'd like to start off by saying, great work! Generally a really good job. However, there's one thing I would have done differently, and one thing to watch out for (NEC related). The one thing I would have done differently is to have left a bit of a (6"-ish) loop at each outlet for slack. This comes in handy if you ever have to replace the receptacle and you mess up the wire somehow. Now, one thing that I'd look into a bit more is the cable tray (which I will say is brilliant and I'm glad you did it). NEC requires that you derate the cables if you have more than 3 current carrying conductors in place. There is a table that shows how much they should be derated. May not be an issue in your raceway, but it's something to consider. Apart from that, great work and keep it up!
Only suggestions I have. I would add CAT6 wiring for POE cameras on the exterior of the shop. I would also consider adding a 20a circuit for an extension cord reel overhead. Concur with prior comments about running your CAT6 in its own conduit.
I would recommend at two 20 amp 120 volt and at least 30 amp l1430 outside to run tools or 50amp. For all the outlets in the shop it is recommended to pigtail your outlets. This will give you a whole lot less trouble and if one outlet goes bad it doesn't affect other outlets. only 3 wires per device unless feeding through a gfci or 3/4 way switches.
For connecting grounds together they make these cool green wire nuts with a hole in the end so you can leave one long and run it through to your fixture. They're easy to use and work great. My electrical inspector preferred them.
The only thing I would add is having multiple circuits in one location. We put quad boxes around the shop each with two devices of two different colors (a white and a beige) each on a separate circuit. We did this so, for example, at my mitre saw, I have the saw on one circuit and a dedicated shop vac on the other circuit in the same box for dust collection. At my CNC I have the CNC on one circuit, the dust collector on a second circuit, and my computer and peripherals on a third. It might be overkill, but I know I’ll never trip anything mid-project. Otherwise, great project! You OCD and neatness are near and dear to me - looks great, and feels great to have everything so organized.
I also do the 2 circuits per double gang outlet box for exactly the same reasons. I've wired up 3 garage workshops this way and am about to do a 4th lol!
My garage/workshop is setup like this. I have 4 20 amp circuits going around the inside with a two gang box every 4'. Each box alternates between two circuits; box 1 will have circuits 1 & 2 in it, box 2 will have circuits 3 & 4, so on and so forth.
@@johnn3793 This is exactly like I wired my shop. I've yet to pop a breaker when using multiple pieces of equipment at once. Just need to remember to turn off both breakers if I need to service an outlet.
Came here to say this. Not a fan of minerallac straps for conduit. I’ve ripped my thigh open on something just like that. Offsets and two hole straps. Also drawn boxes on exposed work.
Well, from one dummy to another, I think you did a great job. I've been an electronic technician/IT pro for 40 years (not an electrician) and I leaned on my own experience (and UA-cam) to wire the 240v circuits & fixtures in my own shop (main electric work done by an electrician). Difficult?? No, but definitely important to pay attention to what you're doing. Life or death important. I have a pole barn and all of my runs use MC cable. I think you did a great job and I love how you planned it all out. Great video~! Can't wait to see what's coming.
Former journeyman electrician here. I never ran a chalk line when roughing in, but I guess that comes form years of doing it. Basically, I'd grab a box of, well, boxes and go around the site throwing one on the ground at each place called for by the plans and just measure each one individually as I installed them. Situation isn't apples to apples though as I never did new residential construction; all commercial and industrial. We're not running romex there and instead of measuring so much, you rely on your level for the conduit going between boxes. Your system is a good idea and I'd probably do it pulling romex since it's pretty important to know where the wires are behind the wall.
If you hang the wire between to ladders or saw horse on a broom handle it rolls off the spool and its not twisted. Electricians have little stands for this. Well worth it. The DIY version with a broomstick or piece of conduit works well.
One thing to keep in mind install outlets ground up. Especially in a shop. If the plug is out a little bit, and metal falling will hit the ground lug. If they are installed ground down and the plug is out a little you run the risk of metal falling and making a connection to the live and neutral.
One thing i would recommend is to alternate outlets to be on different circuits. That way if you're using two outlets next to each other, you have less of a chance to trip a breaker.
I used 12-3 wires in my shop, and made every plug a split plug. That way I can plug two high consumption loads into any given outlet. This is super convenient now, but was a pain to wire and took a lot longer than I'd bargained for at the time. A bonus is, a bit sketchy, you can use two cords at one outlet to get yourself 240V. Not something I use for everyday loads, but helpful for testing electric motors, or whatever that needs a 240V supply.
@@mrljvb It was still the way to do it back when I did that wiring, but that's a while ago now. It's a shame in some ways that it has changed, since a shared neutral is an elegant way to save on copper, however it does open up the risk that someone would rewire both of the hot wires to the same pole, and then your neutral carries the sum of the two currents rather than the difference.
When my current woodworking shop was built, I stayed out of it until the builders & contractors were finished. They put in basic lighting (insufficient) and electrical (insufficient and at or below knee level,) and a through-wall heat pump. Then I went in and added that I knew I needed. First was a partition wall to create a workshop office space. Then the necessary electrical, lighting and network wiring. A couple of 240 V Receptacles (for the 😂Radial Arm Saw and the Lathe.) A switched receptacle for the air compressor. Replaced the two 60W lamps with a couple of 200W lamps. Added LED strip lighting overhead. Istalled an air cleaner suspended from the overhead. Added a long LED lamp over the workbench. More recently I have installed base and wall cabinets in one corner. Two fire extinguishers with luminescent signage. Luminescent signage for exit doors. I am sure I will be adding more improvements over time, as funds allow.
as i wire my shop (12 ft ceiling all steel construction, wife has allergies so used rigid foam ins) i decided to run my wires through conduit (is surface mounted) at 4 ft up so i wouldnt have to bend over or behind any equipment. something you may want to put in is a small hot water heater in the bathroom also you said you were running a circuit for the out door kitchen might want to run a hot and cold water line out thru the wall, we put a hot line in my parents home just used frost proof taps was handy for clean ups AND a little heat for a pressure washer! in my shop all the lights are HF led 5000 lum shop lights plugged in to rec boxes
You are so AWESOME!! This comment may not apply for your situation, but I ALWAYS find myself having the need to crawl in the attic to get to the eves or whatever other 100 reasons and find myself trying to precariously walk the 2x4's. I know it is extra money and time but now is the time to put down plywood sheets. I like the tray idea because it solves another problem, if and when, you decide and question yourself why did I not add plywood when everything was open. You cannot do that later very easily as electrical wires laying on the 2x4's, but in your case you have solved that problem with the tray. Smart guy!!! However, I would spend the extra money, save headaches later, if you find I wish, I wish...
Nice explanation of the basics idea of shop wiring. I’ve been an industrial electrician specializing in controls for the last 25 years. The one thing I can say is there’s the way it should be, code, and what the inspector wants that day. Always error on the safe side of the charts and check with your local authorities.
Finished my own dream shop about a year ago. Definitely went overboard on the outlets, all 2-gang with the right and left of separate circuits. My electrician thought I was nuts, but I'm so happy. I have used every one of them, and as my shop layout evolves, I will always have power. You are right that in this case, more is more.
One important step as a DIY that you missed. Most AHJ's have a pre rough in meeting so you can meet the inspector and they can convey their expectations before you begin your install. It can save you potential rework or possible failure.
I know absolutely nothing about electrical work and have no experience in that area, so based on that background, I can confidently declare you did awesome! not a problem anywhere that I can see! 🤣👍👍👍
The color change happen quite recently, now there is 2 different colors of the “same” wires for example, yellow 12/2 and purple 12/3, grey 12/2 for outdoor use. What’s nice is other companies are adapting the color scheme so like you said, soon inspections will be come quite efficient.
Decent job done. My 2 cents. On the romex on the reel cut a chunk of pipe and slide it through the middle place on your ladder or drill a couple of holes through a couple of studs and mount there or use a couple of emt straps and screw to the fron of the studs. Add a couple of empty conduits from your panel up to the attic for future wiring needs. You will be able to fish all around and even drop down below to the first floor if needed. For the box about where you surface mounted the boxes on the concrete wall I would run the EMT offset to the back box and then eliminate the extension box. Use a 2 gang plaster ring. Will make for a better finish if you are going to plaster. or wallboard. As for cutting the EMT with the pipe cutter they make one for cutting EMT you cannot use a plumbing tubing cutter as even if you deburr the pipe it is still curved towards the inside. For drilling holes in the stud I just line the drill up with the top of my knee and push it through. All holes come out pretty much at the same level. Same for switches just keep the drill at waist level. I think with being in the trade for so long its just a skill you get same as a carpenter cutting studs and rafters without a square or guide
Recently redid the electrical in my shop and garage. For every outlet down low I added one higher up as inevitably all the lower outlets end up behind something. Having planets of outlets up high fixed that issue.
I am no electrician but I have been working around them all my adult life as I am a licensed plumber in Kentucky so when doing my own diy at home I got great tips. When you were counting on all of your circuits I noticed that 55 lights on 3 circuits my electrician friends always when adding up your fixtures the rule of thumb was 9 was fine 10 was then. So n my estimation you are short about 3 circuits. But I could be wrong I don’t know what your state code. But Avery nice job you have a very nice approach to your shop you are keeping interested can’t wait for your next episode
I'm just some random dude who has no credentials but has redone the electrical in my bathroom - but could that rule of thumb "9 was fine 10 was then" be from back with incandescent bulbs, not LED (which use a LOT less power)?
15 amp power circuits (using #14 Romex) are totally fine for the non-shop area receptacles. When running convenience/bedroom receptacles I tie them in with that rooms' lighting and label the panel as "bedroom 2/3/Master" etc. rather than having an additional panel label that may confuse occupants.
I always just use a story pole with all my measurements (outlets, kitchen outlets, switches, etc.) already scribed on it so I only measure once. Then I would go around and run boxes to the locations and box out pretty quick.
I just went with 400A in my shop. My 3PH converter takes 100A alone. Can't ever have enough power! My wire just from the shop to the pole (about 75' away) was $2,500 alone. I did all my own electric except what the electricians did to meet code (2 panels, and outlets ~every 8') around the perimeter). Something like $15-17k. I'm in West Chester
The air compressor up in the loft will vibrate and shake your entire building. If you want quiet, enclose it on the cement and put an air intake [duct] up top.
About that box in the bay next to the tap, I'd suggest moving it up to at least the same height as the tap, and preferably higher. Water tends to go everywhere you don't want it to go.(And has the nasty habit to follow Newtonian physics)
Nice job! I would recommend security lighting on all four corners of the exterior as well as 120 v receptacles. Don't forget the garage door opener. You have come far. I have been watching since episode 1.
I'll second on the exterior lighting. Can never have enough. I've been told my yard looks like a prison yard at night when I turn all the exterior shop lights on.
You got a ladder in that corner, find a broom and get that reel on a rung to pull off the wire. Almost all tension comes out that way... A quick DIY wire rack will save you so much time in future if you ever do more wiring.
I built a 48x60 barn - had an electrician wire it (I had to pull 200amp circuit and underground 350ft) so he did that, the breaker panel and one outlet next to the breaker panel. Got all that inspected, then after the inspector left, I wired the rest which is perfectly legal where I live.
One last thing to add, buy some in ceiling speakers and run some audio wire right now as well. Keep the audio wire away from electrical circuit wire, or buy some shielded audio wire. Bring the wire back to a spot in that "smart closet" and put in a streaming amp there. That way you can easily put on some music while you work without any portable speakers and stuff being in the way or needing to move them around or charge them. I recommend a WiiM Amp as it is fully compatible with iPhone and Android as well as all the extra services. Far superior and cheaper than Sonos.
One thing I think Frank Howarth did on his shop was run all the electrical in the wall around 4 feet up. He did plywood panels for the wall and put a separate 18 inch section over the wiring. This means when he wants to add anything, he just has to removesmarelatively small panel, he has access to all the outlet wiring or can add more and then put the panel back. I don't know if it fits code everywhere, but even with drywall I could see it being much nicer.
Your work is superior to 99% of residential electricians I’ve used as a GC. It’s especially important to me to get the boxes at a uniform height, the correct depth for drywall, and o stalled so they don’t flex when plugging something in!
Awesome build!!! Your garage is fantastic, especially with the attic space! Very well laid out. Couple suggestions from experience... 1: buy a gallon of BoraCare termite concentrate and a bottle of marking dye, it makes 6 gallons of finished termite solution. Spray all interior/exterior wall framing 4ft down. After letting dry 1 day, spray 2nd coat until you run out... 2: run 1-2 smurf conduit to exterior for future run of Cat6/fiber for internet and RG6 coax for HD antenna. 3: plan for an structured media enclosure, 36"-42" at least. Your HD antenna amplifier, network switch, router, security camera NVR, etc etc can live here. Reolink makes good systems, but there are many out there. 4: run multple Cat6 drops from there to all the corners of the shop for PoE camera, and a couple extra drops to the ceiling and walls for WiFi Mesh setup. If you have a plan for mounting TV's anywhere, drop 1x RG6 coax for HD OTA signal and 2x Cat6. You can run HDMI over Cat6 or plug TV straight to network. 5: check out 20oz sausage packs of Tremco Dymonic 100 polyurethane elastomeric sealant. I used 3 cases to seal the exterior wall framing and penetrations of our house build. I researched them all and Tremco Dymonic 100 has the some of the best combinations of specs for adhesion, movement capability, and longevity. Good luck on the build, cant wait for more updates!
awesome suggestions.....one of the good things of the internet. For videos like these, the comments sections are goldmines teeming with information from experienced individuals such as yourself. Salute to you, thanks!
You did the right thing laying everything out. I let my builder do the electrical and plumbing without clear direction or any drawings. Yep, they screwed it up terribly. Even if you have your own home built, and designed by an architect have the builder supply you with plumbing and electrical plans before they start work. Assuming they know it and will do things right is a BAD idea.
Up until this summer, I've never done AC work aside from maybe changing an outlet or thermostat. When I built my sauna this summer I needed 240V but was afraid to do electrical. The electrician (also neighbour) I hired and I made a deal where I do the drilling, wiring, trenching, connections under his supervision, and I only pay him a couple hundred bucks + permit application. I took down notes, tips, models, code, etc while doing the work. On the next 240V i install (maybe for a heat pump), I will know what to do, at least the correct basics.
I don't know if you mentioned it in the video but don't forget at least one outlet on each wall on the exterior. Also run a handful of Cat6 or Fiber lines out there.
I ran a few new circuits of 8 LED lights each. They were fancy dimmable versions. The issue I ran across was in rush current from each LED capacitor charging when the light was turned on. This would fry the dimmer switch even though the load was far from the maximum. In rush current is only for a millisecond or two but enough to cause problems. Solution after talking with the switch manufacturer was to upgrade the switch to a version not sold in the big box stores.
Next step: run cat6 and cat6a Ethernet for data and wifi. Speaker wire so you can have some nice music or listed to tv or movies. Surround sound receiver. You will want to run fiber underground from your main house or use a wireless dish antenna system (Ubuqiti, Engenius or Microtik).
exterior soffit outlets for christmas lights, etc, extra external outlets, extra ceiling outlets (consider hanging retractable extension cords). plumb in some air lines in the ceiling for the same. also, trick from way back, above each outlet and switch, do a loop of an extra foot of wire, that way if you ever have to change anything out and come up short of wire in a box, you can pull more through.
Travis, looks great! I’m sure you saved quite a bit by doing it yourself. I built a smaller shop three years ago and wired it myself and saved a great deal. Even passed the rough-in and final with no issues. Very satisfying. I have one comment on one of the 220 lines. It appears that the “loop” to the box is to short but that is my opinion. Again, great job, be proud.
18 inches is good for inside a house but in a garage your better off with counter height outlets. there are not many scenarios in garage when you want to be bending down to plug things in.
This has been a fun series to watch, can't wait to see it complete! I am echoing a bunch of others, but in my shop I put quad boxes with two separate circuits in the box. I don't have a large central dust collector, but instead a smaller one at each tool, so I have the tool on one circuit and dust collector on the other.
21:37 yes, that's right. if you lay a network from one building to another and they are not at the same potential (in other words the same power connection), you either have to use fiber optics or you have to bring the two buildings to the same ground potential. in germany, i think you have to do this with 16mm², at least
Just curious, did you install outside outlet boxes? One on each outside wall might be better now than later. If you have any left over floor sheeting, use it up by placing it in front of your cable tray. Just in case you ever need to visit that area in the future. It safer than crawling on your hands and knees over rafters. It also works as a small storage space? Dust collectors upstairs? Plan for vibration and noise transfer through the floor. Also, ease of dust handling up and down the stairs. Depending on your dust volume, consider an outside unit. Especially if you are using recording equipment and specialty lighting. Dust is hard to see until it settles. From an old contractor and shop guy, you have done a great job with this project. Are you adding HVAC to your shop?
Fyi, you can use romex (nm-b) in conduit if that conduit is in a dry (ie. Indoor) location, just can’t do it buried outdoors which is where people often do it wrong. On setting boxes, story stick FTW. Nice work!
I paused the video to make a comment before finishing watching. When measuring the from the floor up I did the same thing in my shop. However, the floor wasn't level and ended up having crooked outlets. I went back with a laser level and was surprised how far off the floor was. And on a side note, I put the outlets in my shop up to where a table top would be. And Rand a few outlets through the ceiling so I can have a cord hang down instead across the floor. Hopefully you didn't have the same problem I had with a crooked outlets. Now that I've watched the entire video, it looks good and I definitely believe you saved money.
@ShopNation Good job. We use to hang our spools up with pipe makes it easier to roll off. Residential electrical we would always use hammer on the floor to get out outlet height. Laser works well too.
hey man I'm only part way through the video, and I didn't read through the comments, but when I wired my shop I mounted my receptacles at 50ish" for if I had sheet goods laying against the walls it wouldn't block them. You're a way more organized guy than I am and you probably have a plan for that or it won't be an issue in your case. As a fellow content creator I'd be willing to bet you're actually further along in the process than this video shows and it probably won't benefit you, But I figured I'd share it for the viewers. No disrespect, and I can't wait to see it finished. 👊🏼
I'm DIY rewiring a 1950's house that started off with a 100 amp service and no ground. I'm taking my time with it as it is a huge undertaking, but I have upgraded to a 200 amp underground run to the house, in each room that I have completed I have doubled the outlets, used a story stick to maintain consistent height of the new boxes, have run cat 6 in each room, reinsulated, new recessed lighting (with the low profile lights that you are using), added wifi controls for the lights, added outside dedicated circuits for the hot tub and then outdoor kitchen, plus a run under the eaves around most of the house for dedicated Christmas/holiday lights (as they require voltage boosters every 75 feet or so), two junction boxes so I can run electrical to the shed, once built, and the greenhouse, again, once built. I've pulled permits for everything and have passed all of my inspections plus have become comfortable with adding and wiring breakers. Pretty sure I've saved upwards of $5k in installation and rewiring up to this point. On a side note, I would get screw plates to protect the cable that has been put through the studs. It may be overkill, but I'd rather over kill it and not have to repair or rerun cable because I screwed into it or some other dumb move.
Coming from a fellow dummy I wish this video existed befor I build my shops electric. Would have saved me some later on headaches. Only recommendations would be to ad some quad boxes at wokebench height. And make sure you have enogh outdoor outlets for whatever might be needed. A 50/30 amp. Is always nice near the driveway just incase ya habe a friend/family member with a camper/rv. Come to visit and any outside projects. Other than that ya killed it. Alway better to go over kill before drywall. You will never regret adding additional outlets. Glad I subscribed. Can't wait for more content. My shop is about 89% done and it has definitely been a learning experience.
a good best practice tip is to always leave an extra loop of wire at any outlet, costs extra wire but in the future if you ever need to move an outlet or switch you have some extra leeway. I would have likely done the same thing as you, to pay an electrician to pull wire seems a waste. I usually will pull the wire and have an electrician friend make all the connections for me lol.
I was tempted to put my dust collection in my garage attic as well, but I really don't want to have to deal with getting the dust bags down the stairs and it will probably end up being overfilled from lack of attention being paid haha. Hope it works out for you!
Hm, without reading any other comments, my guess is that the above-head outlets were for dust collection or similar. I re-wired my (existing) garage three years ago and it was almost nostalgic to see you do pretty much the same thing I did.
Okay, I was mostly wrong about those above-head outlets. But partly right that you were planning on putting your dust collection up--way up, in the attic. Question: Okay, so you estimated $6-7.5k to pay someone to wire like you did. What I seem to have missed was your material costs (not counting "paying yourself" for your labor). What does that look like?
What I think is so interesting about all of these "dream shops" is that once they are done, I think I see a fairly quick drop off in the UA-camr's output. Saw this with YCMT2, Tyler, Tamar and other folks... Wonder if this is just a natural "I've arrived and now I don't actually know what to do" or if they just aren't able to find relatable content since they have a shop that isn't like any of their audience.
Just a thought but I’d probably put some lights outside the garage door. And someone else mentioned this but I’d put outlets on the outside as well. I’m really loving this series
Looking good so far brother. Good job. Watching you wire the garage was satisfying for my OCD as well. LOL. Love the organization and layout. And I thought it was just me! LOL!!!. I was an electrician years ago and this is over the top in my opinion. Glad to see it wasn't a butcher job like most I see. Awesome job
In general, good job. Only comment worth noting..... avoid bending the wire 90 degrees around a bend. Looping the wire with gentle curves helps avoid increased chances of damaging the wire itself. I did the sharp bends myself and it's been fine. Of course I learned this trick after drywall was hung.
A story board works also for laying out outlet and hole heights. I also like to still add the nail plates even if not needed. You never know ow if a long screw will try to be sent in.
Also, the nail on cable guides were required in my area because you cannot staple more than 2 cables, so similar to you, in a three gang box, you will have too many to staple. And, like you, the OCD in me really liked how neat these kept the wires! 🙂
Done the same at home as my town allows it for one-family owners. The only possible caveat I could see is that your local code enforcement is requiring stud cable caddies in some places. Great job! Inspectors actually are your friends...
Great job for a first time, one thing I like to do in my shops/garages is to alternate the circuit every other for wall receptacle in high use/work areas.
On that indoor concrete wall are they going to put installation. This is the main reason I have to have my plugs in the ceiling in my basement shop. All the exterior walls have installation nailed to it. Bringing it up cuz maybe that conduit work might need to come back down first. But then again for a garage maybe its not needed. Awesome job explaining your processes. Keep up the amazing work. 👽
You mentioned cabinets in the walls, think about adding blocking between the studs, will make it much easier to mount cabinets, even if using French cleats.
There is a nifty book in Canada called ELECTRICAL CODE SIMPLIFIED. It walks you through planning and shows you what to do in written instructions and references to the code book complete with pictures. With just a little bit of experience I wired my house and shop with only a few minor errors picked up by the inspector. Being open and honest with the inspector will go a long way to a smooth inspection and passing grade. If you put a 1" dowel through the center of your wire spool you can mount it between two studs and it will unroll smoothly with no need to untwist your wire. PS I mounted all my outlets in the shop at 48" above the floor. In a shop there is always stuff stacked against the walls blocking the lower outlets.
Wow, great Job!!!!! Here are a couple of thoughts/suggestions: In the two-gang boxes, run two circuits, then wire one receptacle as 20 amp 110v and the other as xx amp 240v (I can't remember the amps) This way as equipment moves around there is an outlet for what is needed at the moment. Consider putting a power outage lighting box somewhere for temp lighting during a power outage. The other tip is spilt the lighting circuits so one can be worked on while the other lights are on.😉
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I did electrical design for contractors starting in 1983 until 2018 and retired as a Sr Electrical Design Engineer and Project Manager for a top 15 privately held contractors in the US. So, here is my comment. Other than some admitted overkill, one of the best UA-cam electrical videos. It is refreshing to see some well done work on UA-cam. Most are hacks that show NEC violations galore and get upset if you point out their errors.
The work was well done and in almost all cases correct. There is only one thing you might have a problem with the inspector. Remember, inspectors are not going to find everything, they are human. NEC requires NMB cables to be “supported and secured”. You can call three pieces of wood a cable tray, but that does not make it a code compliant cable tray. So within them, your cables are supported, correct? But they are not secured. Even in real cable tray, power cables are fastened to them so they are secured.
I did not see or hear anything about any heating or Air-conditioning power being installed. And, just a suggestion, you might want to think about a chute from above to use to empty out the dust from the collector.
Again, great video!
Excellent feedback! Thank you for that, I will make sure everything is secured within the cable tray
Professional electrician here, this is a fantastic comment!
I would also say there needs to be outdoor receptacles (on their own circuit(s)... can not be tied into indoor circuits) and suggest running a second circuit for the outdoor kitchen.
I've done lots of research and checked the NEC and can't find anything other than amount of space taken up inside a conduit (53% max) that says you can't run Romex inside it. I believe it's fine and doesn't go against the national code. Local code may be entirely different, though, so definitely check, there, first before running Romex through conduit. In fact, come to think of it, I believe someplace, in the NEC, it specifically states that Romex (or sheathed multi-wire cable) must be supported and properly protected if not run through studs, whether metal or wood studs. Is this correct or did I just have a weird dream?
@ The history of NM cable in conduit. Originally, it was not allowed. Then it was in 24” or less as in sleeves or through walls, the next thing was that it was required in basements on concrete walls of dwellings, then any place where protection from damage, and now it is allowed. BTW many UA-cam videos show installing EMT and putting NM cable inside. It is wasting money if you do a lot of it. Until you use enough to buy spools of insulated conductors and need most of it. Three 500’ spools are not worth 25’ of EMT use. Easier to just pull the NM.
You need exterior outlets. Just like inside, you can never have enough and in most areas there is some code for minimum outdoor outlets to help you not use extension cords from inside the building to outside. I would recommend one on each side of your big door then at least one next to each walk door. Likely the rear of your building you won't need any. Soffit outlets are awesome for holiday nights.
Agreed!
And add a couple around the back where you think you would never need them.
Exterior outlets and faucets were the biggest thing we wished we had added more of when we built our house
Professional commercial electrician in Texas here, we run all outlets at 18" to center of box and I always just use a lazer, much faster than chalk lines and cleaner. You can also use a story stick, I always create one that has a mark at 18" (outlets), 48" (switches, fire pulls, other various things), another mark at all my above counter outlets height, one at 80" (fire strobes) and another at any other devices height. I use that throughout as well.
Lots of people don't even know about story sticks anymore, I found out about them recently enough to be honest and I had one of those "should have already thought of that" moments so, good on you
Yeah I use a story stick generally, but no professional here.
When I have more than a couple to do, I definitely pull out a laser. Even for drilling. I don’t do hardly any residential anymore though. Same about receptacle heights. Commercial also has ADA reqs that most residential projects give no concern to and vice versa.
Story stick, yes. Came to find this comment.
I@@MadAtMax.300Blackout I learned how to use a story stick in my cabinet making classes a well
When I had my shop wired, I had all the outlets at 48", except for the circuit that runs along the trusses overhead. I have never regretted having them up off the floor.
THIS!!! In my small shop I'm always moving stuff around, so I'm always plugging / unplugging things as well. I don't want to get down on my hands and knees to plug my table saw in behind my mister saw that's stored against the wall. And at 6'7" I've never understood why everyone wants outlets at ankle height anyway.
I would add an rv box outside, one i get from menards has a 20amp gfci, 30amp 120, and a 50amp 240v all in one box with their own breaker. Run some 6 gauge cable and tie it in on a 50amp breaker and boom. We put one on the back side of the shop for the horse trailer and I use that 50amp plug all the time outside for the welder.
Looks good El Chappo. My dad an electrical engineer and master electrician in Texas once wired a buddy's cabin in Colorado. Both my dad and his buddy spent a week wiring the cabin and then the inspector came and failed it all and told them he would never pass it and gave them a number to a local electrician. The local guy came and pulled everything out then reinstalled exactly how they had it and then the inspector passed it. So moral is don't tell a Colorado inspector you are from Texas, hopefully you don't run into a jerk inspector.
I rarely comment on videos, but I've been such a fan of your channel that after watching this latest production I wanted to drop some kudos. First, your OCD is SOOO refreshing. I believe there is nothing better than 'orderly' construction (BTW in my family we say CDO, because OCD has the letters out of order 🙂). Overkill my a**, more power the better. Your planning method is spot on and while I don't anticipate attempting a project as colossal as this, I have picked up a ton of excellent tips and ideas for any future projects. Second, thank you to all those who left insightful comments for Travis. UA-cam is an incredible platform for community and collaboration and I've gained even more unexpected insights from those of you who left constructive comments/criticisms. Really looking forward to watching the completion of the shop.
I had my garage wired for my shop use. Best decision I made was to have outlets in the ceiling. 240v (twist lock), and 120v in addition to the outlets on the walls. Man. Convenient. Super helpful. Strongly suggest it.
I also recommend you take photos all your walls before you plaster them. These photos are a good reminder of what’s in the wall. Like having X-ray vision. Super helpful too.
Yes, each trade. I lay a tape measure in all my mechanical photos.
My dad is an electrician, and he taught me when I wired my first garage: Outlet height is the length of his hammer :D
Set the hammer on the bottom plate. Set the box on the hammer. Pull out the hammer and nail in the box.
Uniform, fast, easy.
That's only true with a 16" hammer.
My uncle taught me the same thing.
Couple of suggestions that may help in the future. When doing residential I always leave a service loop going into the box. Doing this allows you to pull the extra wire into the box after drywall if the wire gets cut too short. Second, there's a v cheap tool for stripping romex that will save your hands from a razor knife slip. Something like the Klein Cable Stripper works wonders.
It’s really the way to go. Best tool for stripping wire.Because technically, if you nick the wire with a razor knife or wire cutter’s, it’s against code. I’m a retired building inspector and I never called that, but I sure put the fear that I would if it got out of hand. Like cutting a couple strands of aluminum Romex to fit it in a breaker, man I saw that a lot.
Truth be told this “UA-camr” did a better job on this than any electrician I’ve ever worked with
Just the fact that he picked up a broom makes him leagues above the rest lol.
@@TheStevedie Well...let's face it, it IS his shop, after all. Still no excuse for electricians to be slobs and leave a jobsite messy when they get done. The electrician (from Anthony PHVACE - local company in the KC Metro area), who installed my 100 amp subpanel in my garage workshop, cleaned up about 80% when he was done. I had to sweep and vacuum up lots of little copper and aluminum wire clippings but, not bad, really. The guy from A.B. May, another local company, left a real shitshow of a mess when he installed the subpanel in the garage at our old house. And, to top it off, he didn't exactly do a bang-up job. There were a few things I had to fix before I could run the electrical for all the outlets, both receptacle and lighting, for my shop, there. Thus the reason we switched to Anthony.
I installed all my outlets 4 foot off the ground in my shop. A similar concept of a kitchen, everything accessible above cabinets, workbench and so on. Plus when I need to plug and unplug tools no need to bend towards the floor. Also installed outlets on the ceiling to feed equipment not along a wall. This prevents tripping hazards in the middle of the shop. 3 years ago and still works very well for me. Great video as usual. Thanks for sharing the experience.
Same!
This is the way! All of those low outlets will be buried behind stuff along the walls.
Your “OCD” rough-in looked about like my 1440 sq ft garage about 20 years ago. I had to mark a few changes later and ended up running power to a subpanel so I could distribute it more efficiently. Remember there’s only one place, in the main panel, where ground and neutral are bonded. Keep the ground bar and neutral bar separated in a subpanel.
Funny story: I had the inspector in for electrical after wiring an addition 17 years ago. He opened the subpanel that fed every circuit in the addition, then asked who did it for me. When I said I did it myself he asked, “Do you want to wire my house?” I was pleasantly surprised. Just takes a little care in lengths and organization. Very nice job yourself!
Tbh that slip into the sponsor ad was slick.
You adding a cable/wire tray for your electrical is a great idea! I wish more contractors would do, and with all the electrical you have done is better than most contractors.
You adding a cable/wire tray for your electrical is a great idea! I wish more contractors would do that.
Travis, I love your videos and love how honest you are. Most of my comments have been made several times over by others. I’m envious of you getting to wire your shop as new work. I just finished wiring my garage shop that was fully dry walled. Unfortunately, the breaker box was full, so I had to install a sub panel, which was a new experience for me. Like you, watched lots of UA-cam videos before I took on the task. I did what you did and went overboard, running dedicated 20A circuits for each major power tool and two circuits for plugs over the work bench/miter station (your design from way back). I also put in multiple 220 circuits for my SawStop, mini-split and a EV charger. My attic was not floored so I had to first floor it to safely run the romex for all the new circuits and plugs (not fun in TX in the summer).
I learned on my last shop the quad boxes at bench height is the only way too go. I also installed ceiling outlets (both 120V and 240v) for the table saw, ceiling hung air cleaner, retractable extension cord, and all the lighting. I installed 15 4’ LED shop lights to light the shop. Overall, the project took me over a month to complete, all while in withdrawals of not being able to do any woodworking. Then, with the electrical completed, I had to complete the installation of a new dust collection system all plumbed in w/ 4” PVC and blast gates. I started this project just after I retired and can say that I never worked that hard in my life while getting paid. It wasn’t my first round of wiring my own shop (forth actually) but I had several new challenges. I wish I had UA-cam on my first two. What a great resource.
Love you brother. Keep the content coming.
PS: the new dust shoot for the Bosch Compound miter saw is working well. At least as well as could be expected for a miter saw.
I am a electrician by trade in Canada looks good to me from what the video shows. Been watching you for years on your you tube found it sweet you where into 3d printing . Your organization is what’s key to your success top notch 👍👍🇨🇦
A few things I learned after wiring my shop. Size up your conduit, never use 1/2" conduct. You will appreciate the extra room. Also in quad boxes on a workbench run 2 circuits so each side is on a different 20amp breaker.
First, I'd like to start off by saying, great work! Generally a really good job.
However, there's one thing I would have done differently, and one thing to watch out for (NEC related).
The one thing I would have done differently is to have left a bit of a (6"-ish) loop at each outlet for slack. This comes in handy if you ever have to replace the receptacle and you mess up the wire somehow.
Now, one thing that I'd look into a bit more is the cable tray (which I will say is brilliant and I'm glad you did it). NEC requires that you derate the cables if you have more than 3 current carrying conductors in place. There is a table that shows how much they should be derated. May not be an issue in your raceway, but it's something to consider.
Apart from that, great work and keep it up!
Only suggestions I have. I would add CAT6 wiring for POE cameras on the exterior of the shop. I would also consider adding a 20a circuit for an extension cord reel overhead. Concur with prior comments about running your CAT6 in its own conduit.
Yes. PoE cameras for sure. Also wire up an alarm system.
I hate thieves.
I would recommend at two 20 amp 120 volt and at least 30 amp l1430 outside to run tools or 50amp. For all the outlets in the shop it is recommended to pigtail your outlets. This will give you a whole lot less trouble and if one outlet goes bad it doesn't affect other outlets. only 3 wires per device unless feeding through a gfci or 3/4 way switches.
For connecting grounds together they make these cool green wire nuts with a hole in the end so you can leave one long and run it through to your fixture. They're easy to use and work great. My electrical inspector preferred them.
What?!?!? 😮
The only thing I would add is having multiple circuits in one location. We put quad boxes around the shop each with two devices of two different colors (a white and a beige) each on a separate circuit. We did this so, for example, at my mitre saw, I have the saw on one circuit and a dedicated shop vac on the other circuit in the same box for dust collection. At my CNC I have the CNC on one circuit, the dust collector on a second circuit, and my computer and peripherals on a third. It might be overkill, but I know I’ll never trip anything mid-project.
Otherwise, great project! You OCD and neatness are near and dear to me - looks great, and feels great to have everything so organized.
I also do the 2 circuits per double gang outlet box for exactly the same reasons. I've wired up 3 garage workshops this way and am about to do a 4th lol!
My garage/workshop is setup like this. I have 4 20 amp circuits going around the inside with a two gang box every 4'. Each box alternates between two circuits; box 1 will have circuits 1 & 2 in it, box 2 will have circuits 3 & 4, so on and so forth.
@@johnn3793 This is exactly like I wired my shop. I've yet to pop a breaker when using multiple pieces of equipment at once. Just need to remember to turn off both breakers if I need to service an outlet.
Great work! If you ever do this again, you can put your wire roll on a rebar clamped on sawhorse to unwind the wire cleanly and hassle free!
Or just take a wooden broomstick instead of the rebar. You can then screw it to the sawhorse.
Came here to say this. Not a fan of minerallac straps for conduit. I’ve ripped my thigh open on something just like that. Offsets and two hole straps. Also drawn boxes on exposed work.
Well, from one dummy to another, I think you did a great job. I've been an electronic technician/IT pro for 40 years (not an electrician) and I leaned on my own experience (and UA-cam) to wire the 240v circuits & fixtures in my own shop (main electric work done by an electrician). Difficult?? No, but definitely important to pay attention to what you're doing. Life or death important. I have a pole barn and all of my runs use MC cable. I think you did a great job and I love how you planned it all out. Great video~! Can't wait to see what's coming.
Former journeyman electrician here. I never ran a chalk line when roughing in, but I guess that comes form years of doing it. Basically, I'd grab a box of, well, boxes and go around the site throwing one on the ground at each place called for by the plans and just measure each one individually as I installed them. Situation isn't apples to apples though as I never did new residential construction; all commercial and industrial. We're not running romex there and instead of measuring so much, you rely on your level for the conduit going between boxes. Your system is a good idea and I'd probably do it pulling romex since it's pretty important to know where the wires are behind the wall.
If you hang the wire between to ladders or saw horse on a broom handle it rolls off the spool and its not twisted. Electricians have little stands for this. Well worth it. The DIY version with a broomstick or piece of conduit works well.
One thing to keep in mind install outlets ground up. Especially in a shop. If the plug is out a little bit, and metal falling will hit the ground lug. If they are installed ground down and the plug is out a little you run the risk of metal falling and making a connection to the live and neutral.
One thing i would recommend is to alternate outlets to be on different circuits. That way if you're using two outlets next to each other, you have less of a chance to trip a breaker.
Great idea!
I used 12-3 wires in my shop, and made every plug a split plug. That way I can plug two high consumption loads into any given outlet. This is super convenient now, but was a pain to wire and took a lot longer than I'd bargained for at the time. A bonus is, a bit sketchy, you can use two cords at one outlet to get yourself 240V. Not something I use for everyday loads, but helpful for testing electric motors, or whatever that needs a 240V supply.
@@AllanMacMillan That is a code violation, share Neutrals are a no no in current code.
@@mrljvb It was still the way to do it back when I did that wiring, but that's a while ago now. It's a shame in some ways that it has changed, since a shared neutral is an elegant way to save on copper, however it does open up the risk that someone would rewire both of the hot wires to the same pole, and then your neutral carries the sum of the two currents rather than the difference.
It's not a nec code violation there are certain things that you have to do but it is allowed in the nec may not be allowed by your ahj though
When my current woodworking shop was built, I stayed out of it until the builders & contractors were finished. They put in basic lighting (insufficient) and electrical (insufficient and at or below knee level,) and a through-wall heat pump.
Then I went in and added that I knew I needed.
First was a partition wall to create a workshop office space. Then the necessary electrical, lighting and network wiring.
A couple of 240 V Receptacles (for the 😂Radial Arm Saw and the Lathe.)
A switched receptacle for the air compressor.
Replaced the two 60W lamps with a couple of 200W lamps. Added LED strip lighting overhead.
Istalled an air cleaner suspended from the overhead. Added a long LED lamp over the workbench.
More recently I have installed base and wall cabinets in one corner. Two fire extinguishers with luminescent signage. Luminescent signage for exit doors.
I am sure I will be adding more improvements over time, as funds allow.
as i wire my shop (12 ft ceiling all steel construction, wife has allergies so used rigid foam ins) i decided to run my wires through conduit (is surface mounted) at 4 ft up so i wouldnt have to bend over or behind any equipment. something you may want to put in is a small hot water heater in the bathroom also you said you were running a circuit for the out door kitchen might want to run a hot and cold water line out thru the wall, we put a hot line in my parents home just used frost proof taps was handy for clean ups AND a little heat for a pressure washer! in my shop all the lights are HF led 5000 lum shop lights plugged in to rec boxes
You are so AWESOME!! This comment may not apply for your situation, but I ALWAYS find myself having the need to crawl in the attic to get to the eves or whatever other 100 reasons and find myself trying to precariously walk the 2x4's. I know it is extra money and time but now is the time to put down plywood sheets. I like the tray idea because it solves another problem, if and when, you decide and question yourself why did I not add plywood when everything was open. You cannot do that later very easily as electrical wires laying on the 2x4's, but in your case you have solved that problem with the tray. Smart guy!!! However, I would spend the extra money, save headaches later, if you find I wish, I wish...
Nice explanation of the basics idea of shop wiring. I’ve been an industrial electrician specializing in controls for the last 25 years. The one thing I can say is there’s the way it should be, code, and what the inspector wants that day. Always error on the safe side of the charts and check with your local authorities.
Finished my own dream shop about a year ago. Definitely went overboard on the outlets, all 2-gang with the right and left of separate circuits. My electrician thought I was nuts, but I'm so happy. I have used every one of them, and as my shop layout evolves, I will always have power. You are right that in this case, more is more.
One important step as a DIY that you missed. Most AHJ's have a pre rough in meeting so you can meet the inspector and they can convey their expectations before you begin your install. It can save you potential rework or possible failure.
I know absolutely nothing about electrical work and have no experience in that area, so based on that background, I can confidently declare you did awesome! not a problem anywhere that I can see! 🤣👍👍👍
The color change happen quite recently, now there is 2 different colors of the “same” wires for example, yellow 12/2 and purple 12/3, grey 12/2 for outdoor use.
What’s nice is other companies are adapting the color scheme so like you said, soon inspections will be come quite efficient.
Decent job done. My 2 cents. On the romex on the reel cut a chunk of pipe and slide it through the middle place on your ladder or drill a couple of holes through a couple of studs and mount there or use a couple of emt straps and screw to the fron of the studs. Add a couple of empty conduits from your panel up to the attic for future wiring needs. You will be able to fish all around and even drop down below to the first floor if needed. For the box about where you surface mounted the boxes on the concrete wall I would run the EMT offset to the back box and then eliminate the extension box. Use a 2 gang plaster ring. Will make for a better finish if you are going to plaster. or wallboard. As for cutting the EMT with the pipe cutter they make one for cutting EMT you cannot use a plumbing tubing cutter as even if you deburr the pipe it is still curved towards the inside. For drilling holes in the stud I just line the drill up with the top of my knee and push it through. All holes come out pretty much at the same level. Same for switches just keep the drill at waist level. I think with being in the trade for so long its just a skill you get same as a carpenter cutting studs and rafters without a square or guide
Recently redid the electrical in my shop and garage. For every outlet down low I added one higher up as inevitably all the lower outlets end up behind something. Having planets of outlets up high fixed that issue.
I am no electrician but I have been working around them all my adult life as I am a licensed plumber in Kentucky so when doing my own diy at home I got great tips. When you were counting on all of your circuits I noticed that 55 lights on 3 circuits my electrician friends always when adding up your fixtures the rule of thumb was 9 was fine 10 was then. So n my estimation you are short about 3 circuits. But I could be wrong I don’t know what your state code. But Avery nice job you have a very nice approach to your shop you are keeping interested can’t wait for your next episode
I'm just some random dude who has no credentials but has redone the electrical in my bathroom - but could that rule of thumb "9 was fine 10 was then" be from back with incandescent bulbs, not LED (which use a LOT less power)?
15 amp power circuits (using #14 Romex) are totally fine for the non-shop area receptacles. When running convenience/bedroom receptacles I tie them in with that rooms' lighting and label the panel as "bedroom 2/3/Master" etc. rather than having an additional panel label that may confuse occupants.
Very nice. I look forward to seeing the final product.
Work looks great - you might want to consider a switch with some outlets in your soffits for Christmas lights / hanging lights
switch or /TIMER Switch for the win. Plug in the Christmas lights or whatever, and auto on/off. Such a first-world problem but feels good :)
I always just use a story pole with all my measurements (outlets, kitchen outlets, switches, etc.) already scribed on it so I only measure once. Then I would go around and run boxes to the locations and box out pretty quick.
I just went with 400A in my shop. My 3PH converter takes 100A alone. Can't ever have enough power! My wire just from the shop to the pole (about 75' away) was $2,500 alone. I did all my own electric except what the electricians did to meet code (2 panels, and outlets ~every 8') around the perimeter). Something like $15-17k. I'm in West Chester
The air compressor up in the loft will vibrate and shake your entire building.
If you want quiet, enclose it on the cement and put an air intake [duct] up top.
About that box in the bay next to the tap, I'd suggest moving it up to at least the same height as the tap, and preferably higher. Water tends to go everywhere you don't want it to go.(And has the nasty habit to follow Newtonian physics)
Nice job! I would recommend security lighting on all four corners of the exterior as well as 120 v receptacles. Don't forget the garage door opener.
You have come far. I have been watching since episode 1.
Wow the first video??? I apologize 😂
I'll second on the exterior lighting. Can never have enough. I've been told my yard looks like a prison yard at night when I turn all the exterior shop lights on.
You got a ladder in that corner, find a broom and get that reel on a rung to pull off the wire. Almost all tension comes out that way... A quick DIY wire rack will save you so much time in future if you ever do more wiring.
I built a 48x60 barn - had an electrician wire it (I had to pull 200amp circuit and underground 350ft) so he did that, the breaker panel and one outlet next to the breaker panel. Got all that inspected, then after the inspector left, I wired the rest which is perfectly legal where I live.
One last thing to add, buy some in ceiling speakers and run some audio wire right now as well. Keep the audio wire away from electrical circuit wire, or buy some shielded audio wire. Bring the wire back to a spot in that "smart closet" and put in a streaming amp there. That way you can easily put on some music while you work without any portable speakers and stuff being in the way or needing to move them around or charge them. I recommend a WiiM Amp as it is fully compatible with iPhone and Android as well as all the extra services. Far superior and cheaper than Sonos.
Oh yes, going to cover that as well
One thing I think Frank Howarth did on his shop was run all the electrical in the wall around 4 feet up. He did plywood panels for the wall and put a separate 18 inch section over the wiring. This means when he wants to add anything, he just has to removesmarelatively small panel, he has access to all the outlet wiring or can add more and then put the panel back. I don't know if it fits code everywhere, but even with drywall I could see it being much nicer.
Killer idea
Your work is superior to 99% of residential electricians I’ve used as a GC. It’s especially important to me to get the boxes at a uniform height, the correct depth for drywall, and o stalled so they don’t flex when plugging something in!
Gotta love the Sassafras sapling growing in the front!
Awesome build!!! Your garage is fantastic, especially with the attic space! Very well laid out. Couple suggestions from experience...
1: buy a gallon of BoraCare termite concentrate and a bottle of marking dye, it makes 6 gallons of finished termite solution. Spray all interior/exterior wall framing 4ft down. After letting dry 1 day, spray 2nd coat until you run out...
2: run 1-2 smurf conduit to exterior for future run of Cat6/fiber for internet and RG6 coax for HD antenna.
3: plan for an structured media enclosure, 36"-42" at least. Your HD antenna amplifier, network switch, router, security camera NVR, etc etc can live here. Reolink makes good systems, but there are many out there.
4: run multple Cat6 drops from there to all the corners of the shop for PoE camera, and a couple extra drops to the ceiling and walls for WiFi Mesh setup. If you have a plan for mounting TV's anywhere, drop 1x RG6 coax for HD OTA signal and 2x Cat6. You can run HDMI over Cat6 or plug TV straight to network.
5: check out 20oz sausage packs of Tremco Dymonic 100 polyurethane elastomeric sealant. I used 3 cases to seal the exterior wall framing and penetrations of our house build. I researched them all and Tremco Dymonic 100 has the some of the best combinations of specs for adhesion, movement capability, and longevity.
Good luck on the build, cant wait for more updates!
I second the Dymonic. Good stuff.
awesome suggestions.....one of the good things of the internet. For videos like these, the comments sections are goldmines teeming with information from experienced individuals such as yourself. Salute to you, thanks!
You did the right thing laying everything out. I let my builder do the electrical and plumbing without clear direction or any drawings. Yep, they screwed it up terribly. Even if you have your own home built, and designed by an architect have the builder supply you with plumbing and electrical plans before they start work. Assuming they know it and will do things right is a BAD idea.
Very Nice job! Consider a drop for electrical in the center of the shop as well even if it is on a retractable reel... not just along the walls.
Up until this summer, I've never done AC work aside from maybe changing an outlet or thermostat.
When I built my sauna this summer I needed 240V but was afraid to do electrical.
The electrician (also neighbour) I hired and I made a deal where I do the drilling, wiring, trenching, connections under his supervision, and I only pay him a couple hundred bucks + permit application. I took down notes, tips, models, code, etc while doing the work. On the next 240V i install (maybe for a heat pump), I will know what to do, at least the correct basics.
I admire your courage. I couldn´t even fathom the work needed. Really enjoy your videos.
I don't know if you mentioned it in the video but don't forget at least one outlet on each wall on the exterior. Also run a handful of Cat6 or Fiber lines out there.
For stripping romex just get a romex stripper. Safer than using an open blade.
I ran a few new circuits of 8 LED lights each. They were fancy dimmable versions. The issue I ran across was in rush current from each LED capacitor charging when the light was turned on. This would fry the dimmer switch even though the load was far from the maximum. In rush current is only for a millisecond or two but enough to cause problems. Solution after talking with the switch manufacturer was to upgrade the switch to a version not sold in the big box stores.
Next step: run cat6 and cat6a Ethernet for data and wifi. Speaker wire so you can have some nice music or listed to tv or movies. Surround sound receiver.
You will want to run fiber underground from your main house or use a wireless dish antenna system (Ubuqiti, Engenius or Microtik).
exterior soffit outlets for christmas lights, etc, extra external outlets, extra ceiling outlets (consider hanging retractable extension cords). plumb in some air lines in the ceiling for the same. also, trick from way back, above each outlet and switch, do a loop of an extra foot of wire, that way if you ever have to change anything out and come up short of wire in a box, you can pull more through.
I like your honesty telling about your electric experience
I see you're using the Irwin speedbor, some are 1/4" hex and work a treat in my impact for tight areas. The self-feed part is key.
Half of passing inspection is making all the wiring neat. The inspector knows if you make it neat you did it right!
Travis, looks great! I’m sure you saved quite a bit by doing it yourself. I built a smaller shop three years ago and wired it myself and saved a great deal. Even passed the rough-in and final with no issues. Very satisfying. I have one comment on one of the 220 lines. It appears that the “loop” to the box is to short but that is my opinion. Again, great job, be proud.
18 inches is good for inside a house but in a garage your better off with counter height outlets. there are not many scenarios in garage when you want to be bending down to plug things in.
Built a new shop last year and got my brother to wire everything and it was free!!!
This has been a fun series to watch, can't wait to see it complete! I am echoing a bunch of others, but in my shop I put quad boxes with two separate circuits in the box. I don't have a large central dust collector, but instead a smaller one at each tool, so I have the tool on one circuit and dust collector on the other.
21:37
yes, that's right. if you lay a network from one building to another and they are not at the same potential (in other words the same power connection), you either have to use fiber optics or you have to bring the two buildings to the same ground potential. in germany, i think you have to do this with 16mm², at least
Just curious, did you install outside outlet boxes? One on each outside wall might be better now than later. If you have any left over floor sheeting, use it up by placing it in front of your cable tray. Just in case you ever need to visit that area in the future. It safer than crawling on your hands and knees over rafters. It also works as a small storage space? Dust collectors upstairs? Plan for vibration and noise transfer through the floor. Also, ease of dust handling up and down the stairs. Depending on your dust volume, consider an outside unit. Especially if you are using recording equipment and specialty lighting. Dust is hard to see until it settles. From an old contractor and shop guy, you have done a great job with this project. Are you adding HVAC to your shop?
My outlets are 1 hammer length high, so I used one specific hammer and rested the box on the handle before nailing it on.
Fyi, you can use romex (nm-b) in conduit if that conduit is in a dry (ie. Indoor) location, just can’t do it buried outdoors which is where people often do it wrong.
On setting boxes, story stick FTW. Nice work!
Also, anytime you use conduit be mindful of conduit fill limits. NM-B takes way more space.
I paused the video to make a comment before finishing watching. When measuring the from the floor up I did the same thing in my shop. However, the floor wasn't level and ended up having crooked outlets. I went back with a laser level and was surprised how far off the floor was. And on a side note, I put the outlets in my shop up to where a table top would be. And Rand a few outlets through the ceiling so I can have a cord hang down instead across the floor. Hopefully you didn't have the same problem I had with a crooked outlets.
Now that I've watched the entire video, it looks good and I definitely believe you saved money.
@ShopNation Good job. We use to hang our spools up with pipe makes it easier to roll off. Residential electrical we would always use hammer on the floor to get out outlet height. Laser works well too.
hey man I'm only part way through the video, and I didn't read through the comments, but when I wired my shop I mounted my receptacles at 50ish" for if I had sheet goods laying against the walls it wouldn't block them. You're a way more organized guy than I am and you probably have a plan for that or it won't be an issue in your case. As a fellow content creator I'd be willing to bet you're actually further along in the process than this video shows and it probably won't benefit you, But I figured I'd share it for the viewers. No disrespect, and I can't wait to see it finished. 👊🏼
I'm DIY rewiring a 1950's house that started off with a 100 amp service and no ground. I'm taking my time with it as it is a huge undertaking, but I have upgraded to a 200 amp underground run to the house, in each room that I have completed I have doubled the outlets, used a story stick to maintain consistent height of the new boxes, have run cat 6 in each room, reinsulated, new recessed lighting (with the low profile lights that you are using), added wifi controls for the lights, added outside dedicated circuits for the hot tub and then outdoor kitchen, plus a run under the eaves around most of the house for dedicated Christmas/holiday lights (as they require voltage boosters every 75 feet or so), two junction boxes so I can run electrical to the shed, once built, and the greenhouse, again, once built. I've pulled permits for everything and have passed all of my inspections plus have become comfortable with adding and wiring breakers. Pretty sure I've saved upwards of $5k in installation and rewiring up to this point.
On a side note, I would get screw plates to protect the cable that has been put through the studs. It may be overkill, but I'd rather over kill it and not have to repair or rerun cable because I screwed into it or some other dumb move.
@NavyCopMA1: This guy showed the installation of "nail plates" in his video. Are screw plates something different?
@@rustyul Did he? I must have missed it.. No, the same thing (just my term).
My son and I rewired his house that was built in 1916 and added cat 6 cable. It was a lot of work, but it was nice having upgraded wiring
Coming from a fellow dummy I wish this video existed befor I build my shops electric. Would have saved me some later on headaches. Only recommendations would be to ad some quad boxes at wokebench height. And make sure you have enogh outdoor outlets for whatever might be needed. A 50/30 amp. Is always nice near the driveway just incase ya habe a friend/family member with a camper/rv. Come to visit and any outside projects. Other than that ya killed it. Alway better to go over kill before drywall. You will never regret adding additional outlets. Glad I subscribed. Can't wait for more content. My shop is about 89% done and it has definitely been a learning experience.
Sorry for the Grammer and spelling I may be drinking.
Really looks great. I so enjoy how organized you are and the attention to detail.
a good best practice tip is to always leave an extra loop of wire at any outlet, costs extra wire but in the future if you ever need to move an outlet or switch you have some extra leeway. I would have likely done the same thing as you, to pay an electrician to pull wire seems a waste. I usually will pull the wire and have an electrician friend make all the connections for me lol.
I was tempted to put my dust collection in my garage attic as well, but I really don't want to have to deal with getting the dust bags down the stairs and it will probably end up being overfilled from lack of attention being paid haha. Hope it works out for you!
Hm, without reading any other comments, my guess is that the above-head outlets were for dust collection or similar.
I re-wired my (existing) garage three years ago and it was almost nostalgic to see you do pretty much the same thing I did.
Okay, I was mostly wrong about those above-head outlets. But partly right that you were planning on putting your dust collection up--way up, in the attic.
Question: Okay, so you estimated $6-7.5k to pay someone to wire like you did. What I seem to have missed was your material costs (not counting "paying yourself" for your labor). What does that look like?
What I think is so interesting about all of these "dream shops" is that once they are done, I think I see a fairly quick drop off in the UA-camr's output. Saw this with YCMT2, Tyler, Tamar and other folks... Wonder if this is just a natural "I've arrived and now I don't actually know what to do" or if they just aren't able to find relatable content since they have a shop that isn't like any of their audience.
Just a thought but I’d probably put some lights outside the garage door. And someone else mentioned this but I’d put outlets on the outside as well. I’m really loving this series
Like you, I'm a home owner who is NOT an electrician. However, I have run 1,000's of feet of Romex through conduit.
Looking good so far brother. Good job. Watching you wire the garage was satisfying for my OCD as well. LOL. Love the organization and layout. And I thought it was just me! LOL!!!.
I was an electrician years ago and this is over the top in my opinion. Glad to see it wasn't a butcher job like most I see.
Awesome job
In general, good job. Only comment worth noting..... avoid bending the wire 90 degrees around a bend. Looping the wire with gentle curves helps avoid increased chances of damaging the wire itself. I did the sharp bends myself and it's been fine. Of course I learned this trick after drywall was hung.
A story board works also for laying out outlet and hole heights.
I also like to still add the nail plates even if not needed. You never know ow if a long screw will try to be sent in.
Also, the nail on cable guides were required in my area because you cannot staple more than 2 cables, so similar to you, in a three gang box, you will have too many to staple. And, like you, the OCD in me really liked how neat these kept the wires! 🙂
Done the same at home as my town allows it for one-family owners. The only possible caveat I could see is that your local code enforcement is requiring stud cable caddies in some places. Great job! Inspectors actually are your friends...
Great job for a first time, one thing I like to do in my shops/garages is to alternate the circuit every other for wall receptacle in high use/work areas.
Great tip!
On that indoor concrete wall are they going to put installation. This is the main reason I have to have my plugs in the ceiling in my basement shop. All the exterior walls have installation nailed to it. Bringing it up cuz maybe that conduit work might need to come back down first. But then again for a garage maybe its not needed. Awesome job explaining your processes. Keep up the amazing work. 👽
You mentioned cabinets in the walls, think about adding blocking between the studs, will make it much easier to mount cabinets, even if using French cleats.
There is a nifty book in Canada called ELECTRICAL CODE SIMPLIFIED. It walks you through planning and shows you what to do in written instructions and references to the code book complete with pictures. With just a little bit of experience I wired my house and shop with only a few minor errors picked up by the inspector. Being open and honest with the inspector will go a long way to a smooth inspection and passing grade. If you put a 1" dowel through the center of your wire spool you can mount it between two studs and it will unroll smoothly with no need to untwist your wire.
PS I mounted all my outlets in the shop at 48" above the floor. In a shop there is always stuff stacked against the walls blocking the lower outlets.
Wow, great Job!!!!! Here are a couple of thoughts/suggestions: In the two-gang boxes, run two circuits, then wire one receptacle as 20 amp 110v and the other as xx amp 240v (I can't remember the amps) This way as equipment moves around there is an outlet for what is needed at the moment. Consider putting a power outage lighting box somewhere for temp lighting during a power outage. The other tip is spilt the lighting circuits so one can be worked on while the other lights are on.😉
Hope you have a tub sink for paint and finishes. Great job thus far. Can’t wait to see end product.