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How Dedicated Must a Dedicated Circuit Be?

I am moving into a house that has a room with two circuits which just service that room. Each circuit feeds a string of outlets and ends at a ceiling lamp. There are no refrigerators, computers, motors or other nasties on each circuit - just one or two light bulbs at the end of the line. They are both 15A. I am planning on adding a 20A circuit for the amps and maybe using one of each for digital and non-digital sources.

My Questions:

1) Does the existance of a lightbulb at the end of a circuit make it a lesser "dedicated circuit"?

2) If it qualifies as a decent dedicated circuit, wouldn't it be true that many of us already have dedicated circuits that are just outlet loops with no other "nasties" plugged into them?

Thanks. I'll take my answer off the air. Peter
peter_s

Showing 1 response by stehno

stehno
1,453 posts
 
A dedicated line is like being pregnant. It either is or isn't.

If it's just incandescent lighting and it's for the source and/or pre-amp, it should not be a big deal.

But if the circuit is for the amplifier, it most likely will affect the dynamics during demanding passages. You'd be amazed at what small consumptions of power for other items can do.

Just in case you are not certain, you don't ever want to install a 20 amp circuit breaker on a line running 15 amp romex and outlets. You'll need to run 12 gauge or better for the 20amp upgrade and switch to 20 amp outlets.

-IMO
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