110/220V question

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The Penguin

The Penguin

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Joined
Dec 21, 2009
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Houston, TX
I'm starting to run new wiring for my garage/shop - I have a 14" jet lathe and my drill press that are both either 110V or 220V.

is there any advantage/disadvantage to running them at one voltage or the other?
 
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I you ever want to upgrade to a bigger lathe, they often only run on 220, so you will already have it wired for that
 
If you feed the shop with 220 then you can always have a sub panel that you can feed 110 or 220. Have 200 amp panel in the house and 100 amp panel in the shop. Have 220 volt for the welders,air compressor, plasma cutter and kilns. Since most times you will be only using 1 tool at a time. having a bunch of 220 circuits isn't much of a problem. As long as the breakers are sized for the start amperage on the motors. Since the 220 feed is split in two two legs of 110v each. It is the best way to go, may cost more at the start. But not as much cost or pain in the seat cushion to retrofit at a later date.
:clown:
 
Ohms Law...

As I understand it, same price to run, whether 110volts or 220volts...

Amps X Volts = Watts Where Amps do the work and we pay for Watts (used)

10 Amps X 110 Volts = 1100 Watts

5 Amps X 220 Volts = 1100 Watts
 
however you have to factor in efficency. Run as big and as much ppower as you can afford and justify.
 
Motors start easier, and do not "bog" down as easily.

As HP gets to 1 and larger, fewer breaker trips.


Smaller wire size because the amps to be conducted are smaller.


For 2 HP and greater --- you should be at 220 volts
 
Definitely put in the 220VAC circuit (or two), if only for future expansion. I also run two different 110VAC circuits to every wall / tool location. That way I can run several tools on independent circuits, and not overload either. For example, if you have a table saw and a shop vac plugged into a single 20A circuit, you will likely trip your breaker. And by all means put in 20A breakers instead of 15A. The extra cost to run 12GA wire vs. 14GA, is minimal. I chose to use two different colors of outlets, so I know which is the "A" circuit, and which is "B". And my lighting is on a third breaker, so it does not compete with tools.

Regarding dual voltage motors, I ran my old Craftsman radial arm saw on 110VAC when I first got it back in the 70s, but I switched to 220VAC in the 80s when we moved to a new home. There was a slight hesitation on startup on 110VAC, but instant startups with 220VAC.
 
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most of what ya'll have said, I have already thought of...

my garage is 22 wide x 29 deep, it is basically a 3-car garage turned sideways with a doublewide door on the end facing the driveway. It has a steep pitched roof running lengthwise and I have good access above to run wiring.

meter socket and main service disconnect is on the back of the garage, breaker panel is in the house. I will be putting a subpanel in the garage. I have several friends that are electricians that will tie it in for me.

my plan has been to run 2 each 110V circuits on each wall with dual-gang outlets spaced 6' apart. So every 6', there will be 4 outlets. Two in the left of the box on one circuit, the rights on a different circuit. So that's 6 circuits just for general use outlets. All the circuits will be 20A.

other:
1 circuit in the ceiling for the garage door opener and air filter
1 for the deep freeze and a fridge
1 for a/c
1 for dust collector

for 220 circuits:
1 for air compressor
1 for big lathe
1 for drill press (maybe, or for a future/bigger table saw)
1 50A at the front of the garage (for a welder if I ever buy one)
1 or 2 extras scattered around for ease of relocating tools if necessary

lights will stay on the current 15A circuit that feeds the garage from the house

now be honest...does that sound like overkill? I already have of the hardware & wire...just need to get busy working on it.
 
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The Penguin said:
most of what ya'll have said, I have already thought of...

my garage is 22 wide x 29 deep, it is basically a 3-car garage turned sideways with a doublewide door on the end facing the driveway. It has a steep pitched roof running lengthwise and I have good access above to run wiring.

meter socket and main service disconnect is on the back of the garage, breaker panel is in the house. I will be putting a subpanel in the garage. I have several friends that are electricians that will tie it in for me.

my plan has been to run 2 each 110V circuits on each wall with dual-gang outlets spaced 6' apart. So every 6', there will be 4 outlets. Two in the left of the box on one circuit, the rights on a different circuit. So that's 6 circuits just for general use outlets. All the circuits will be 20A.

other:
1 circuit in the ceiling for the garage door opener and air filter
1 for the deep freeze and a fridge
1 for a/c
1 for dust collector

for 220 circuits:
1 for air compressor
1 for big lathe
1 for drill press (maybe, or for a future/bigger table saw)
1 50A at the front of the garage (for a welder if I ever buy one)
1 or 2 extras scattered around for ease of relocating tools if necessary

lights will stay on the current 15A circuit that feeds the garage from the house

now be honest...does that sound like overkill? I already have of the hardware & wire...just need to get busy working on it.
Click to expand...
Not to me. + I have 200 feet of florescent tubes
Lin.
 
The Penguin said:
most of what ya'll have said, I have already thought of...

my garage is 22 wide x 29 deep, it is basically a 3-car garage turned sideways with a doublewide door on the end facing the driveway. It has a steep pitched roof running lengthwise and I have good access above to run wiring.

meter socket and main service disconnect is on the back of the garage, breaker panel is in the house. I will be putting a subpanel in the garage. I have several friends that are electricians that will tie it in for me.

my plan has been to run 2 each 110V circuits on each wall with dual-gang outlets spaced 6' apart. So every 6', there will be 4 outlets. Two in the left of the box on one circuit, the rights on a different circuit. So that's 6 circuits just for general use outlets. All the circuits will be 20A.

other:
1 circuit in the ceiling for the garage door opener and air filter
1 for the deep freeze and a fridge
1 for a/c
1 for dust collector

for 220 circuits:
1 for air compressor
1 for big lathe
1 for drill press (maybe, or for a future/bigger table saw)
1 50A at the front of the garage (for a welder if I ever buy one)
1 or 2 extras scattered around for ease of relocating tools if necessary

lights will stay on the current 15A circuit that feeds the garage from the house

now be honest...does that sound like overkill? I already have of the hardware & wire...just need to get busy working on it.
Click to expand...

Sounds about right to me. When you're done, want to come rewire my garage?
 
bobjackson said:
220 will draw exactly half of the amps than 110. 220 will run cooler, the motor will last longer, and be cheaper to operate.
Click to expand...

Sorry, Ohms Law shows it's the same amount of wattage used...

10 amps X 110 volts = 1100 watts

5 amps X 220 volts = 1100 watts

Electrical Company charges for watts used... Only change for price is 3 phase and they pay through the nose...
 
The Penguin said:
most of what ya'll have said, I have already thought of...

my garage is 22 wide x 29 deep, it is basically a 3-car garage turned sideways with a doublewide door on the end facing the driveway. It has a steep pitched roof running lengthwise and I have good access above to run wiring.

meter socket and main service disconnect is on the back of the garage, breaker panel is in the house. I will be putting a subpanel in the garage. I have several friends that are electricians that will tie it in for me.

my plan has been to run 2 each 110V circuits on each wall with dual-gang outlets spaced 6' apart. So every 6', there will be 4 outlets. Two in the left of the box on one circuit, the rights on a different circuit. So that's 6 circuits just for general use outlets. All the circuits will be 20A.

other:
1 circuit in the ceiling for the garage door opener and air filter
1 for the deep freeze and a fridge
1 for a/c
1 for dust collector

for 220 circuits:
1 for air compressor
1 for big lathe
1 for drill press (maybe, or for a future/bigger table saw)
1 50A at the front of the garage (for a welder if I ever buy one)
1 or 2 extras scattered around for ease of relocating tools if necessary

lights will stay on the current 15A circuit that feeds the garage from the house

now be honest...does that sound like overkill? I already have of the hardware & wire...just need to get busy working on it.
Click to expand...

That doesn't sound like over kill to me. In fact, I would add AT LEAST one more 220 circuit. You haven't mentioned 220 dust collection. This is an almost absolute must have as 110 dust collectors don't do a very good job in a big shop.

Additionally, if you put in too many 220s, they are easily retrofitted to 110. It's not so easy to go the other way. Also, it's not very expensive to upgrade the 110 outlet circuits to 20 amps. I would make that change, also.
 
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I wire all my tools that are capable to 220v. As others have said, they run more efficiently. It's also a nice out when people ask to borrow tools. "Geez, I would like to let you borrow my compressor, etc, but it requires a 220 volt outlet'! :biggrin:
 
The Penguin said:
my plan has been to run 2 each 110V circuits on each wall with dual-gang outlets spaced 6' apart. So every 6', there will be 4 outlets. Two in the left of the box on one circuit, the rights on a different circuit. So that's 6 circuits just for general use outlets. All the circuits will be 20A.

other:
1 circuit in the ceiling for the garage door opener and air filter
1 for the deep freeze and a fridge
1 for a/c
1 for dust collector

for 220 circuits:
1 for air compressor
1 for big lathe
1 for drill press (maybe, or for a future/bigger table saw)
1 50A at the front of the garage (for a welder if I ever buy one)
1 or 2 extras scattered around for ease of relocating tools if necessary

lights will stay on the current 15A circuit that feeds the garage from the house

now be honest...does that sound like overkill? I already have of the hardware & wire...just need to get busy working on it.
Click to expand...
Doesn't sound like overkill.

My shop is about a third the size of yours and I have 3 x 20A 110v circuits each feeding 4 quad boxes, 2 x 15A 110v lighting circuits, and 2 x 20A 220 circuits.
 
PenMan1 said:
The Penguin said:
most of what ya'll have said, I have already thought of...

my garage is 22 wide x 29 deep, it is basically a 3-car garage turned sideways with a doublewide door on the end facing the driveway. It has a steep pitched roof running lengthwise and I have good access above to run wiring.

meter socket and main service disconnect is on the back of the garage, breaker panel is in the house. I will be putting a subpanel in the garage. I have several friends that are electricians that will tie it in for me.

my plan has been to run 2 each 110V circuits on each wall with dual-gang outlets spaced 6' apart. So every 6', there will be 4 outlets. Two in the left of the box on one circuit, the rights on a different circuit. So that's 6 circuits just for general use outlets. All the circuits will be 20A.

other:
1 circuit in the ceiling for the garage door opener and air filter
1 for the deep freeze and a fridge
1 for a/c
1 for dust collector

for 220 circuits:
1 for air compressor
1 for big lathe
1 for drill press (maybe, or for a future/bigger table saw)
1 50A at the front of the garage (for a welder if I ever buy one)
1 or 2 extras scattered around for ease of relocating tools if necessary

lights will stay on the current 15A circuit that feeds the garage from the house

now be honest...does that sound like overkill? I already have of the hardware & wire...just need to get busy working on it.
Click to expand...

That doesn't sound like over kill to me. In fact, I would add AT LEAST one more 220 circuit. You haven't mentioned 220 dust collection. This is an almost absolute must have as 110 dust collectors don't do a very good job in a big shop.

Additionally, if you put in too many 220s, they are easily retrofitted to 110. It's not so easy to go the other way. Also, it's not very expensive to upgrade the 110 outlet circuits to 20 amps. I would make that change, also.
Click to expand...
above when I said all would be 20A circuits - I meant all the 110V circuits would be 20A, except for the lighting which is fed from the house.

good point on dust collection - my current unit is 110V, if I upgrade in the future it would likely be to 220
 
I figured you meant only the outlet circuits at 20 amp. I don't really see a reason for 20 amp lighting circuits. Especially with florescent lights (prefered as they produce much less heat), because you can put quit a few on a single circuit without overload.

Since you are adding a panel and breakers, you may want to consider ground fault BREAKERS. In reality they are about the same price as GFI outlets. IMHO, GFI breakers are much less of a P.I.T.A. than recepticles and they don't really wear out like GFI outlets.
 
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