Very basic electrical question !

If my panel is a 240v panel but my outlets throughout are all 120v...


...does this mean that a 20amp breaker is 240x20=4800 or is it 120x20=2400?

hot cheetos said:

If my panel is a 240v panel but my outlets throughout are all 120v...


...does this mean that a 20amp breaker is 240x20=4800 or is it 120x20=2400?

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No

806KING said:

No

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What do you mean no...

Which one is it?

When deciding how many receptacles to add to a 20-amp circuit, consider what you are likely to plug into each one. For safety, the total draw on the circuit shouldn't exceed 16 amps at any one time, which translates to a maximum power draw of 1,920 watts on a conventional 120-volt circuit, even though the breaker won't trip until the power draw exceeds 2,400 watts. You should limit the number of receptacles on a circuit that will handle a power-hungry appliance. For example, most electric heaters draw 1,500 watts, so a circuit that powers one should have few other receptacles.

806KING said:

When deciding how many receptacles to add to a 20-amp circuit, consider what you are likely to plug into each one. For safety, the total draw on the circuit shouldn't exceed 16 amps at any one time, which translates to a maximum power draw of 1,920 watts on a conventional 120-volt circuit, even though the breaker won't trip until the power draw exceeds 2,400 watts. You should limit the number of receptacles on a circuit that will handle a power-hungry appliance. For example, most electric heaters draw 1,500 watts, so a circuit that powers one should have few other receptacles.

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I understand the 80% load rule. My questinon is if my panel is a 240v panel but the outlets are 120v...how many watts could a 20amp breaker take?

Is it 20amps x 240v = 4800 watts?

Or is it 20amps x 120v = 2400 watts?

2400 watts max

806KING said:

2400 watts max

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Thank you. So the only way it would be 4800 is if the outlets (aka circuit) was wired to be 240 and so was the receptacle?

Here this should help
http://www.cannaversity.com/cannaversity/article.php?id=043

806KING said:

2400 watts max

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2400watts max and with the 80% rule you're looking at 1920watts.

xmatox said:

2400watts max and with the 80% rule you're looking at 1920watts.

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I know that but he didn't understand posted the info before I told him 2400 max

Lol, Honestly didn't even see your post. I scrolled past it.

Lol it's cool

Your box has two poles, each 120v. A double pole breaker gives you 240v because it has two positives.

jayjay777 said:

Your box has two poles, each 120v. A double pole breaker gives you 240v because it has two positives.

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So its a double pole breaker with two 20 breakers in 1. 240v gets fed into it and split into 120 each breaker? Man i need to learn this electrical stuff..

The 120 versus 240 doesn't really tell you the max capacity of your breaker box. Breaker boxes have two hots and you usually try to balance them. Any imbalance is what the neutral is for. The main breaker on your box and the size of the line coming into the main breaker are what determine that. You have to size the wire to the breaker. So assuming they ran 12ga wire on your 20a circuit, everything else people have said is correct: P = AV, so you have 20a x 120v = 2400w * 0.8 = .1920w on a 20a circuit. Unless you have a 240v device to power, the fact that your box is 240v isn't directly relevant from a load standpoint, except that you could put two 20a 120v circuits, one on each pole.