Shorting Circuit with Kiln

[Outdoor Gear Dad]

So I have a very limited space in my garage and only two outlets to power everything including out outdoor fridge. I know its crummy but its all I have to work with.

I had my grinder and my kiln, along with everything else on one outlet, but I would have to turn everything off when I was running my kiln or else it would short. Mind you I have everything plugged into a long 15 outlet surge protector.

So I rang an extension cord and got my grinder on a different outlet.....I am wondering if there is something I can do to the outlet itself.....I know nothing about electrical. Maybe a larger breaker?

Any suggestions would help. BTW my kiln is a 120V.

 

[Cushing H.]

Oh boy ... don’t change the breaker unless a qualified electrician checks the wiring and says it is ok. Also, if you run your grinders extension cord to another outlet, and that outlet is NOT on a different circuit, then you have not helped, and have actually hurt your situation.

 

[seanj]

If you're not familiar with electrical I would have an electrician run a separate line(s) for your equipment. If you have it done at the same time two lines won't cost much more than one.
In the mean time make sure your extension cord is up to the task. It should be rated for at least 15 amps.

 

[Scaniaman]

What Cushing and Sean said.
I had a separate fuse box (parallell to the rest of house's box) installed in my garage/shop. It is really handy to have the breakers in the shop and if something happens out there, the rest of the household is unaffected by it.

 

[Drew Riley]

If the "different" outlet is still in your garage, then there's a good chance it's on the same circuit. An easy way to verify this is to turn the breaker off and then plug something into both of the outlets you've been using. If one still has power, then it's a different circuit. If neither has power, then obviously they're on the same breaker.

Power strips and extension cords CAN potentially be a limiting factor, depending on gauge and length. Some power strips have built in circuit breakers of only 10 or 15 amps. The size and length of the wire can also cause it to draw additional current.

Is your garage breaker 15 or 20 amps? If it's only 15 amps, then it MIGHT be able to be bumped up to 20 amps if the wire from the main panel to the outlet is 12awg or bigger. If its only 14awg, then 15 amps is all you'll be able to safely use with it. If you want to verify wire size yourself, you'll have to take the cover off one of the outlets and pull it out. Turn the breaker off first.