Installing Baseboard Heating, Wiring amp question?

Question

Ok so i have a room that is 10x13 that i want to add baseboard heating to. Now i ran the wiring and installed the breaker. I used 14/2 wiring and a 15 amp breaker. Will this be ok to run 2250 watts and 7.2 amps? Like i said the wiring is ready now. I read that 12/2 should be used and a 20amp breaker should be used. But when i totalled the amount and of watts and amps i realized that i can use the wiring that is there now because it stays under the limit for the 14/2 wiring, is this correct? As long as i stay under the limit for the breaker i should be ok right?

If not can i run just 1500 watts with the 15amp and 14/2 wiring?

I worked everything out before and now i have someon telling me i NEED to use the 12/2, but i thought my numbers added up.

HELP!!! :)

Answer 1

yes what he said

Answer 2

you seem smart enough to know you should just hire an electrician

OK i will elaborate

I am  a master electrician,, and sorry i am not going to answer you question  i don't think i can teach how to wire in one paragraph

** your biggest mistake is thinking electricity or the codes around follow logic almost all electrical safety rules are counter-intuitive, 80 years ago all the rules made sense after many deaths and fires the changes the rules

for example you say 14/2 is rated for 15 amps,,,, no N.E.C  table 310.16(wire ampere rating)  says 14 is good for 25 amps but the asterisk says to but it on a 15 amp breaker.....if we use romex and the area the wire is in is hot then it cant  even be put on a 15 breaker unless you put the 14 off a roll not romex in a conduit with   3 wires or less then we have more room to adjust for the heat and if you do the math maybe you can put it on a 15 amp breaker  

Also if your 2250watt load is on continuously then you must multiply by 125%

************ it is a fire hazard to install baseboard heat under an outlet

My point here is you are smart but not smart enough to figrue out what it the best electrcial engeiners is the world took 80 years to firgure out

Answer 3

the first guy is absolutely correct in his answers (I am also a electrician) but the way he put it to you would either make you mad and not go hire an electrician or at least consult with one so I will tell you straight out to at least check with a electrical firm to get a bid on the correct wiring to save you the trouble it might cause in the long run IE: having your house burn down in the middle of the winter and finding out that the wiring job you performed was not up to code and your insurance wont pay for the repairs.  Pls go check with a electrical firm,  their price wont be near as bad as losing your home.

Answer 4

Unfortunately a "15 amp circuit" is not designed to handle a continuous 15 amp load.   As one of the others have posted, it has to be "derated" for continuous use.   For fixed electric space heating the code says that the branch circuit shall not be less than 125% of the total load of the heater. BTW there is something wrong with your math or one of the specifications.  2250 watts at 240 volts is 9.375 amps, not the 7.2 amps you have listed.  Multiplying 9.375 X 1.25 gives 11.7 (rounded to the next tenth), so it looks like your 15 amp circuit is OK, but I would double check your figures.

What do the instructions that came with the heater say to use for the wire and circuit breaker?