Wow, haven't been here in a long while!! lost the link and been super-busy 'till recently...

Anyway, so 3rd year apprentice, I've mostly been doing commercial though.

I got a request to pick up a larger breaker for some friends in a remote area, who want to park two stoves onto one larger breaker... I haven't looked at the equipment or panel yet but it sounds like the issue is it is full... now my guess is it's illegal, and for the bigger breaker to fit, they will have to remove some stuff anyway? Plus replace the wire for ampacity...

So I'm going to suggest a subpanel instead, BUT assuming there is room and it is somehow more cost-effective, is it even legal to put two ranges on one breaker?? Canadian code, btw... 8-300 implies one range per circuit but does not explicitly prohibit two... 26-744 states "one point of connection for supply". What exactly does that mean? No splices?

Thanks if anyone can help me out here. I don't want to involve myself in shady half-baked installations....

Free standing Ranges have to be cord connected. Not sure how you would defeat that issue. Cook tops and wall ovens are another story.
Dont forget to tell the homeowner to get a permit.

Yes, I know... what I'm asking is whether two range plugs are permitted to be run off one circuit if the breaker & wire are adequately sized. My guess is no, but the code isn't very clear on that point, that I can find, unless that's what "one point of connection for supply" means.

Thanks!

No. 26-746(1)

2 circuits are required. If the run is long enough a larger feeder sized to the load and a sub panel then 2 branch breakers. See 8-300 for demand factors.

Sweet, thanks for the code reference, missed that the first time. I was pretty sure it was illegal, just couldn't find the rule for it! =)

They have a suite downstairs is the issue, so we'll see what the space and wiring looks like but hopefully should be simple enough to just put the whole suite on its own subpanel.

They had a supposedly licensed guy doing electrical work for them before, but left them with splices hanging undone, etc. for months with no contact even.

I told them to at least check that the guy's properly certified, if they ever do get him back, but he seems to be a bit of a loose cannon and it's looking more and more like they will just get their own permit and I'll try to help them out with it.

Sorry if this is a rental suite they will need an electrical contractor, homeowner cannot take out a permit.
I know this opens a can of worms but thats why we have a bond so the safety authority can get the work done properly if he was indeed a licensed contractor.

http://www.safetyauthority.ca/bcsa_pdf_files/D-E3_040607_1_Homeowners-200406.pdf

IIRC, Girl Germs, you're still in the early part of the trade. Not that there's anything wrong with that! Indeed, I'm delighted that you're sticking with it.

There's a line that is crossed when you go from running a convenience circuit to running a circuit for a known load. Since a range is a known load, it gets its' own circuit.

"Convenience circuits" are one of the stranger things in the trade. Everwhere else, we size the breakers and wire to the load; in a convenience circuit, you're quite likely to find a 1/4-amp alarm clock 'protected' by a 20 amp breaker. Nowhere else do we allow this to happen.

For more than one range, you're allowed to factor in 'deamnd' in selecting the wire and 'main' breaker size. Still, you need overcurrent protection on the feed to each range. As I see it - and Canadian Code may differ on this point - you can provide that protection either with a subpanel, or with a fused disconnect at each range. (The Square D "QO 200 TR" HVAC disconnect would do this, using a standard QO breaker).