10-24-2007, 04:46 PM
Racer- the ampacity standards are . IMHO, based on 1970's vintage 'typical' electricity usage. Builders rarely go 'over' code requirements, so y ou can bet your bottom dollar that the design is right at the bottom of what was to code in 1993 when MAVIC's house was built.
MAVIC, you should have a 'main ' circuit breaker at the top of your box. the rating on that is generally the rating for your box. That and the little sticker on the inside of the door usually says what the rating for the box is. If you have two boxes, one of them is the main and the other is the satellite box- each box will have its own rating.
The fact that you have 20 amp breakers SHOULD mean that you have 12 gage wiring. However.... Most houses installed 20 amp breakers and 12 gage wiring, but put in 15 Amp outlets because more than one outlet was serviced by the single breaker. Can you safely put in a 20A outlet just for your big UPS ?
Yeah, probably. I'd do it, and depend on the breaker to pop if there was an issue. Besides, your UPS may be rated at 13.3 Amps, but you're not going to use all that juice, are you ?
MAVIC, you should have a 'main ' circuit breaker at the top of your box. the rating on that is generally the rating for your box. That and the little sticker on the inside of the door usually says what the rating for the box is. If you have two boxes, one of them is the main and the other is the satellite box- each box will have its own rating.
The fact that you have 20 amp breakers SHOULD mean that you have 12 gage wiring. However.... Most houses installed 20 amp breakers and 12 gage wiring, but put in 15 Amp outlets because more than one outlet was serviced by the single breaker. Can you safely put in a 20A outlet just for your big UPS ?
Yeah, probably. I'd do it, and depend on the breaker to pop if there was an issue. Besides, your UPS may be rated at 13.3 Amps, but you're not going to use all that juice, are you ?