Electrical – How many lights can be wired to one switch

electricalswitchwiring

I want to put lights in plugs in my garage. How many lights can you put and connect together for one switch?

I like to use normal bulbs, what size breaker can you use?

I would like to have at least 4 lights on one switch to turn on or off at the same time.

We have two sides, I would like to put 2 lights in the back of one side and two up front, that should be a normal hook up.

I am only putting lights on the breakers, so for the one can you hook up to 4 lights on one switch to one breaker. Then the other side, where I want two lights in the back and two up front, can these 4 go to one breaker also?

Best Answer

A 120 volt, 15 ampere circuit can provide 1800 watts (unless it's a "continuous load", then only 1440 watts). I'd guess that a "normal bulb", is a 60 watt incandescent bulb. Which means you can have up to 30 bulbs on a 15 ampere circuit (likely a bit less to compensate for losses elsewhere in the circuit).

120 volts * 15 amperes = 1800 watts
1800 watts / 60 watts = 30 bulbs

However, the National Electrical Code says that "An outlet supplying luminaire(s) shall be calculated based on the maximum volt-ampere rating of the equipment and lamps for which the luminaire(s) is rated." (220.14(D)). So you'll have to check the rating on the fixtures you're installing, and do the calculations based on those values.

Having said all that... You should have no problem supplying 8 light fixtures from a single 120 volt 15 ampere circuit, unless the fixtures have four or five bulbs each.