Hopefully, I can explain myself clearly. I have a post and beam barn which I'm wiring up using all 3/4" EMT conduit back to a sub-panel. I'm good on how to do everything right/to code except for 1 item which I can't seem to find referenced anywhere having to do with some switched lighting which goes between two runs of EMT conduit.
I'd like to have lights off of TWO DIFFERENT conduit runs from the sub-panel switched by the SAME light switch (3 lights total.) So from where the light switch is located I have a switched hot run going to two lights then back to the sub-panel and directly into the other conduit run to the final light on the same switched circuit (this should be pretty straight forward.)
My question is how I handle the neutral wires for this light circuit? Do I *need* to run the neutral between the two conduit runs (meaning in/out one conduit run and into the other conduit run) or could I just run separate neutrals for each conduit runs (to the lights) and tie them back into the sub-panel neutral bar (meaning I'd have two separate runs of neutrals for the same circuit back to the panel? (I believe this is acceptable, but I want to be sure - i.e. it would be the same approach as pigtailing two runs off a breaker to make room in a panel for another circuit))
The reason for trying to avoid the running the neutral wire between the two conduit runs (in/out one and into the other) is that I'd add in another load carrying conductor for on one of the conduit runs. And to make things worse, I'm already at 9 load-carrying conductors so I'd end up changing my derating value for those circuits once I hit 10 conductors (lowering the overall ampacity for the circuits.)
Hopefully, this all makes sense. Any help on what is the correct way of doing this is greatly appreciated! Thanks!
Regards,
Eric
I'd like to have lights off of TWO DIFFERENT conduit runs from the sub-panel switched by the SAME light switch (3 lights total.) So from where the light switch is located I have a switched hot run going to two lights then back to the sub-panel and directly into the other conduit run to the final light on the same switched circuit (this should be pretty straight forward.)
My question is how I handle the neutral wires for this light circuit? Do I *need* to run the neutral between the two conduit runs (meaning in/out one conduit run and into the other conduit run) or could I just run separate neutrals for each conduit runs (to the lights) and tie them back into the sub-panel neutral bar (meaning I'd have two separate runs of neutrals for the same circuit back to the panel? (I believe this is acceptable, but I want to be sure - i.e. it would be the same approach as pigtailing two runs off a breaker to make room in a panel for another circuit))
The reason for trying to avoid the running the neutral wire between the two conduit runs (in/out one and into the other) is that I'd add in another load carrying conductor for on one of the conduit runs. And to make things worse, I'm already at 9 load-carrying conductors so I'd end up changing my derating value for those circuits once I hit 10 conductors (lowering the overall ampacity for the circuits.)
Hopefully, this all makes sense. Any help on what is the correct way of doing this is greatly appreciated! Thanks!
Regards,
Eric
