We have been given an orange clad 10-3 wire ( like for a dryer ) and were told it is fine to run it from the house panel to the garage panel for a few plugs , however when we looked at the Home Depot the 10-3 wire for that purpose is a black clad 10-3 ….are we safe to use the orange clad 10-3 wire ? ( it will be in conduit )
Garage wiring safety
garage
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I assume you are in the USA. The heater is probably a pure 240V load with no need for the neutral (white) wire. you should simply cap the white wire with a wire nut and tuck it back into the electrical box.
There's a few ways to do this, though service conductors cannot pass through another building, so all the methods will have to avoid that.
One option would be to install a service disconnect, and then branch from that to the panels.
With this method, you'll handle all the grounding and bonding of the neutral in the disconnect. So you'll install 4 wire feeders from the disconnect to each panel, and keep the neutral isolated in each panel.
Another option is to use the first panel as the service disconnect, and feed the second panel from the first.
With this method, you'll handle all the grounding and bonding of the neutral in the first panel. So you'll feed the second panel with a 4 wire feeder, and isolate the neutral in the second panel.
With is approach, the first panel will have to be rated to handle the total current of both panels.
In all cases, you're going to need properly sized feeders, and a grounding electrode system for each building.
The scope of this project is far too vast for a short answer format site, such as this. I've given a high-level overview of how you might approach the project. For a more detailed plan, please contact a local licensed Electrician.
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Best Answer
Edit: Now you've added information. You are running both a saw and a dust collector. You want to route the wires outside, even though the garage is attached.
I don't understand why people withhold important information like "I'm running several big tools at once". That's a far cry from what you said, which is "a few plugs". Garbage in, garbage out: if the info you give us is cheese, our advice will be cheese as well. That's why you got a different answer at Home Depot: you gave different info.
As you discovered, you cannot run a saw and a dust collector off one circuit. I don't know how they can sell these things without a disclaimer mentioning that. There's a hard limit of 4800W (20A) on circuits which serve common household 120V outlets, and that is simply not sufficient to run a saw and dust collector together.
An even bigger sin is when people also put lights on the same circuit; get digging into a knot, trip the breaker and now they're in the pitch black with their fingers 3" from a spinning blade.
So I recommend two new circuits. You can do that with the orange wire you have, IF you route the wire so it's entirely interior to the building, and get some help setting up a MWBC. I won't explain further because that requires way more sense of precision than you are displaying here. Get an electrician but at least you can route the wire.
Exterior routing
Given the complexity of selecting and protecting cable, and weather-sealing wall penetrations so your walls don't rot out, my best advice is don't.
Interior routing
The orange cable is fine. You're only allowed to use a 15A or 20A circuit breaker on circuits with common household outlets. But you're allowed to use oversized wire if you want, which is what you'd be doing here.
You may need some short 6" sections of 12 AWG wire to "pigtail", as 10 AWG wire may not fit on the screw terminals of common receptacles. (Do not use "backstabs".)
You have 4 wires in the bundle and only need 3. Cap off the fourth wire, don't hack it off. It could later be used for a MWBC or even a sub-panel.
If you're wondering about the orange, there is not any official standard as to the color of the outer sheath. Informally, many manufacturers have agreed to use white=14 AWG, yellow=12 AWG, orange=10 AWG. A few manufacturers use white for all sizes. All these are for interior use only. If you're going anywhere wet, outdoors or underground, you need different cable listed for that.
It is illegal to use cable if the outer sheath is not marked. The interior wires don't need to be marked. Also, if by chance it is aluminum, that is illegal for new work (and dangerous for old work) unless -- well, ask here for advice.