Quick electrical question (1 Viewer)

[Don Marsh]

I'll be running a couple of 20A circuit for the home theater i'm building in my basement. My question is, do i still need to use 20A outlets (the one with the T prong)? I don't have any equipment, nor do i forsee ever having any equipment, that is actually draws 20A. I'm just unsure if i should do it anyway, or if using 15A outlets will be sufficient.

 

[Ron-P]

I'd use 20 amp outlets. If you get a surge or over draw the line by 15amps your outlet will 'pop' before the breaker, at least that's my guess. Not 100% sure though.


Peace Out~

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

It’s fine (and code-allowed) to use 15A outlets with a 20A circuit. With multiple outlets it is presumed that the load will be distributed between them. The only time a 20A outlet is required is when the circuit only has a single outlet – in which case the outlet has to be able to carry the full load of the circuit.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt