Patrick,

First thing I question is this:

The circuits you wish to add will require a total of SIX slots in a
breaker panel (each 220VAC circuit requires two slots). Are you sure
you have six available slots in your 100A subpanel? Most common 100A
subpanels I've seen have six or eight slots.

Even if you do have six empty slots, do you want the hassle of having
to run around to the basement panel when a breaker feeding one of your
shop circuits blows? With the existing subpanel in the same wall as
your garage, it shouldn't be too expensive to add another subpanel.
If this were my garage shop, I'd add a subpanel.

To answer you other questions:
NEC requires that all exposed wire be protected. In your case, you
can't run any unprotected wire on the outside of the drywall (this
includes Romex).

All circuits that have outlets that are readily accessible in a garage
must be GFCI protected. This protection can be a single GFCI outlet
wired in a manner that protects all other (downstream) outlets on the
same circuit.

The above does not apply to dedicated 220VAC outlets.

There is no minimum height requirements for garage outlets, nor is
there any wall spacing requirements in a garage as opposed to the
living quarters which do have a minimum outlet requirement on walls
above a minimum size. I put a wall in my 3-car garage that turned the
single bay into a dedicated shop. My 120VAC outlets are all
approximately 50 inches off the floor so I don't have to bend over at
all.

Rob

On Thu, 09 Sep 2004 23:11:30 GMT, "patrick conroy"
wrote:

I think it's been a few months since anybody asked the (inflammatory)
Electrical Code question, so here goes:

I'm thinking about added some circuits to the garage. (Yeah, I'll have a
competent contractor do it, but I'd like to learn alittle bit about code,
anyhow).

I'm thinking I'd like two 20A 240V's and two 20A 120V circuits added.

The garage is finished - drywall and insulated - so I'd run them outside the
walls.

1. Outside the walls means the wire has to be protected right? As in BX or
conduit, right?
2. Is GFCI a usual requirement for garage outlets? (Cause it's a wet area,
right)?
3. If yes to GFCI, the 240V runs too?
4. If yes to GFCI, then why is the existing outlet in my garage GFCI, but
the two in there feeding the door openers not GFCI? Because they're 10' up?
5. Speaking of up - is there a minimum height off the floor for outlets?
The builder put a nasty dryer vent run through the garage and I'd prefer the
outlets below that. Guessing they'll be 6-8" off the floor.

I don't want the expense of a subpanel *in* the garage. There's already a
100A one in the basement adjacent to the garage, so my thought was to use
that.

Any other NEC things to think about when putting in new runs in a finished
garage?
Thank you!