I am putting an outdoor kitchen in and would like to have a subpanel to run the electrical needs. Their would be a mini fridge, grill rotisserie, 5 receptacles, 3 ceiling fans and some lights. I plan on having the receptacles on 2 different circuits so if we have crock pots or blenders going we don't overload. The main panel on the side of the house is 200 amp and it would take 90-95 feet of wire to reach the location the subpanel would be. The wire would go through conduit that has already been installed. What size wire would I need? What size subpanel? Thanks in advance
Wiring – What size wire and subpanel for a pergola with an outdoor kitchen
outdoorsubpanelwiring
Related Topic
- Electrical – What size wire should I use for a 60amp subpanel
- Electrical – What size feeder do I need for a basement electrical subpanel
- Electrical – Some questions on installing 125 AMP rated subpanel for 30AMP draw with 10AWG wire
- Wiring – What type of wire and load center for subpanel in detached pole garage
- Wiring – Wire for 100 AMP Detached Garage Subpanel. 50 feet direct buried 50 feet in crawl space
- Wiring – Do I need to use two wire types for an indoor/outdoor run to a garage
- Electrical – What size wire and pipe for a 125A subpanel in an attached carport
Best Answer
You should really have done this calculation before installing the conduit but a 1" will be sufficient for what you want to do.
The answer is: the sub-panel needs to be sized large enough to carry the calculated load of all of the appliances, lights, fans, and plug connected loads. If you have all 120 volt loads you can either add up all the currents and then divide by 2 since you are splitting the load between two conductors on a 240 volt panel, or add up all the wattages and divide by 240 to get the max current on the feeders to the sub-panel.
Most of what you listed are very small loads except for the crock pots and other possible plug connected loads that can be manufactured as high as 1500 watts for 120 volts. (I am thinking of a resistive charcoal starter.) So, I would calculate the receptacles at a minimum of 1000 watts per if you plan to have mixed loads at that location.
All that said there are only a few basic sizes for sub-panels and a back-of-the-envelope calculation tells me you could have as small as a 60 amp panel here with #6 wire feeding it. Now, if you want some room (ampacity) to add on in the future and have big plans to grow your outdoor kitchen, you may want to go with a 100 amp panel fed with #3.
Now it comes down to personal preference.
Good luck and happy grilling.