Wiring a shop?

[Quiet Riot]

Any electricians or peeps in the know? I'm building a steel building shop by my house and I'm getting closer to the point of doing the rough-in electrical and heres my deal:

1) I've contacted the PUD about adding a service to the shop and was told my options were if I wanted a 200 amp service (160) that I either needed to have them install a 320 and split it to house/shop or have another 160 service installed for the shop meaning 2 meters/2 bills. I got a rough estimate on price from them for that and what part they do. I'm thinking about going with another seperate service for the shop so I can easily seperate power usage for a personal business if I want.

2) I want to bury the line for the shop so I don't have overhead wires there. I think I have that lined out by having the service run to the side of the house alongside the current service wires/meter and then bury it from the meter to the shop.


I've talked briefly with the columbia county inspector about this when he came and did the slab pour inspection and have the proper grounding rod installed in the slab but I'm not sure about any specifics I might be missing. I don't want to have to redo stuff and/or purchase the wrong stuff like the breaker box I got.

Any info regarding what I'm looking at doing would be great. I'll get in touch with the county for any further requirements I might need but looking for anyones advice from experience. Any electricians out toward St. Helens area that might want to oversee my plans and comment? I'd pay for your time but I think I can do most of the work on my side of the meter.

Thanks,
jd

[Quiet Riot]

Anybody at least know someone to recommend out my way? I'll check in here tonight when I come back to work.

Thanks

[baltz526]

a couple of thoughts, all new services are underground,(in my area). you can buy an electrical meter, and run a sub panel in the shop with your meter on it and track the shop usage seperately, from your home. if your having an issue with distance from the transformer on the street, a lot of extra costs arise.in this area, the power company gives you 200' from the transformer to the meter head of the main service.and 3" conduit is required from transformer to meter head.from your existing panel to a metered subpanel, the conduit size is regulated by wire size, normally 2"conduit.a couple of questions, you need to ask your self. what power useage is going to be happening in the shop. most people will never need more than 60amps in a shop, mine has a 100amp sub panel, if you are planning a welder,dryer,compressor,freezer, refridgerator,rv plug, lights, plugs. a 100amp subpanel is more than enough. if you add electric hot water heater, heat pump, electric furnace, hot tub ect. to the shop. a 200 amp service would be needed. it sounds to me like you need to have a contractor come to your site, to give you their opinion. you question brings up a lot of variables, that need to be decided on site. and should have been decided before your permits where started. most of your questions are normally decided, when your plot plan of the project are drawn.

[Spoiled Daddy]

Quiet Riot,

When we had our shop built a couple of years ago, we had a seperate 200 amp service/meter installed. It does make for a seperate bill, but I have been able to install 220 in a couple of places and seperate out the plugs on each wall to a different breaker. I can run all sorts of tools, chargers, etc... without constantly popping a breaker. It was just for convienence, not for business purposes.

SD

[garyk]

I'm in Columbia County and used Bridgetown Electric, (Keith, 621-7122) for several jobs including work similar to yours (upgrading service, burying ALL the service wires, shop wiring a outbuilding, etc) so you might give him a call.

Because my outbuilding is not heated, one feature I really like is using flourescent lites made to work in low temps. I also put the outlets at chest height for convenience, and added exterior weatherproof outlets at the corners of the building, which have come in really handy.

[sinker]

How do you go about installing 3 phase?

[Quiet Riot]

Thanks for all the info. Transformer to meter head is about 60 ft if I put the meter at the house like the current one. Another 100+ ft to the shop from there.

Baltz - They said service can be either above ground like the current one, or buried like i'd prefer if they run it all the way to the shop. They already said they'll have to check on the transformer to see if it can handle another 200 amp service. My welder requires a 60 amp circuit (max cont load is 50 which I use max occasionally) and the same for my 8hp compressor. Add lights, equipment, smaller welders, hand tools, and all the other stuff I'll be using in a 3000 sq ft shop (many at the same time) and I'm well beyond a subpanel tied into the house service. The plot plan and building permits do not require elec service plans in any way according to the county. The rough in electrical is required as an inspection though. I planned on burrying it with the 3" conduit from house to shop as with phone lines and misc also, just looking at the options and any pitfalls.

SD - Sounds like I'll do mostly the same, just having them run another service to the house and I'll bury it from the house to the shop.

Garyk - I'll prolly give them a call to confirm I'm on the right track, thanks.

Sinker - From what I understand for 208 3 phase, I need to have 3 service lines on the power poles running by my house and have the pud run a phase from each one with much added cost in setup. I'm in rural residential and don't even have that option with the standard 2 wire power lines run out here. My shop will have to limit to 220 single phase, and if I must I can use a converter to make 3 phase but they aren't very efficient.

Thanks all.
jd

[baltz526]

be thankful your not in deschutes county with midstate electrical coop power, or pacific power. both have a lot more requirements than you have.