My hardware store only sells 8' cuts of 2x4s. How do I extend length horizontally with another 2×4 and support the joining best? Is there a joint or strong tie for this? I have three support legs spaced every 66". Should I just ensure all extensions occur on a support leg or can they be done elsewhere? This is for a simple workbench I am trying to build in my garage. I have no clue what I'm doing but a table seems like it should be an attainable goal to build. I can't find plans for anything longer than 8", which assumes one long board. I need one longer. How do I join them to extend length? What are strategies, hardware, etc.?
How to extend a 2×4 by connecting another one end to end
constructiongarage
Related Solutions
The easiest thing for you (still requires DIY though) is to buy these - or something similar. They are time delay relays - now you get several versions/modes.
Something like this (PDF)
On/Off Cycle - is what you are looking for i guess. You also get, Interval,Delay-On-Make, Re-Triggerable Single-Shot, etc
Then say you got 5 lights you set and mark each relay from 1-5 setting the delay 1sec,2sec,3sec,4sec,5sec.
Then you attach each of the relays in the order you want the lights to be on (you will know the order because you marked the relay with a number, yea ;) )
Otherwise
you will be left to build your own relays, circuits and logics... to much work.
Which of course you can find all the info (here)
C1 1 See Notes (at link)
R1 1 See Notes (at link)
D1 1 1N914 Diode
U1 1 4011 CMOS NAND Gate IC
K1 1 6V Relay
S1 1 Normally Open Push Button Switch
MISC 1 Board, Wire, Socket For U1
-EDIT AFTER ACCEPT
I found this on EBAY- a guy in Poland, near my home town actaully.. wierd.. buildts theses babies! Solid State Relays controlled via USB - if you meassage him i am sure he will tweak and build you something to your needs :)
tl;dr - if you are going to all the work, and a subpanel, you presumably want a bit more than 20 amps (think it needs to be 30 amps minimum for code these days, and 60 amps is probably better.)
You'll have to dig a ditch. At that point, my opinionated opinion is that you should go ahead and put in conduit, and an additional conduit for any current or future possibility that you might want cable, phone, network, etc out there. Ditches are expensive and a lot of work - conduit is cheap, once you have the ditch...Often cheaper (with wire) than "direct burial" cable, and far more resistant to damage in the future - plus it does offer you the potential of pulling out the wire and pulling in new wire if there ever was a problem - but that's low odds of you making any use of it on he electrical side. Network, quite possible.
Before digging a ditch in a city (especially) backyard, call Dig-Safe and have all (Offically known about) services (gas, phone, electric, water sewer & things you may not know about) located. Turn off the circuit to the garage - I would not worry too much about where it is (unless it runs in a conduit that you might be able to re-use - which is not too likely), but odds are that you'll find it when digging, and it's less exciting if it's turned off when you do.
Any wire used must be rated for wet locations - not difficult, just be sure it is. Any exterior conduit is assumed by code to be wet (and that's generally true.)
If the portion of the backyard you are crossing is not travelled by cars and trucks (not crossing the driveway) depth is sufficient if the TOP of the conduit is 18" below finished grade. Be sure to lay "buried electric line below" tape in the top 6" of the trench fill. If you are not digging below frost line (4 feet or more where you are, probably) you definitely need to bring the ends of the conduit up vertically at buildings, and provide a slip (expansion) joint, as the conduit will move with frost. That's generally needed even if the conduit is buried below frost-line as well, unless it's going straight into a basement below frost-line, but its especially critical when the conduit is above frost line. If you don't find the cost phohibitive, a layer of XPS foam over the top of the conduit provides one more indication that there is something there (when someone else is digging, later) and can reduce frost movement a little bit (or a lot if it's wide.) Alternatively, 2" of concrete over the conduit provides some serious protection on top of the conduit, and reduces the required depth to 6" in Rigid or IMC metallic conduit (which may be well worth it in your situation to save on digging) or 12" in PVC conduit.
If you happen to want a walkway that would happen to run where the electric service would, a 4" thick concrete slab extending 6" beyond the conduit reduces the required burial depth to 4" (ie, right under the slab.)
Look for NEC table 300.5 for more detail.
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Best Answer
Why not simply construct a series of 8' long workbenches? This will give you more flexibility later on, if you need to deploy them differently (e.g. in an "L" shape instead of end-to-end.
HTH.