What wire to use instead of Romex

A. Use the pre-made steel-clad with all three solid-core wires twisted

 If the HOA will allow it in the garage. Continuous unbroken run from the Electrical panel to the wall outlet.

Problem? I’m not sure where the Electrician will buy the steel armored MC cable. Maybe at an electrical wholesale house??? He may have to buy a 250ft roll, $$$

My guess is the electrician will say he can only get the aluminum armored MC cable.   

 Example  

.

Southwire, 10-2 MC aluminum armored cable Website.

Quote:

 " THHN/THWN conductors rated 90°C dry available in sizes 14 AWG through 2 AWG, and a green insulated grounding conductor. The conductors are cabled together and a binder tape bearing the print legend is wrapped around the assembly. Aluminum interlocking armor is applied over the assembly."

End of quote.

.

Go to page 12

Metal Clad (MC) is manufactured in both steel and aluminum with twisted conductors that help reduce AC magnetic fields. Although the steel jacket helps reduce AC magnetic fields, the twisting of conductors has the greatest effect on reducing these fields.

Another benefit is the constant symmetry of the phase conductors with respect to the grounding conductor which greatly reduces voltage induction on the grounding wire.

.

Make sure he doesn’t buy AC/BX cable! You don’t want that stuff to feed you audio equipment!

. 

FYI, though Anti Short bushings are not required by NEC code for MC cable, I highly recommend you tell the electrician you want them installed anyway. If he says you don’t need them. Tell him, you want them anyway. They are cheap and it will take the electrician about 15 seconds to install one. 

Example:

Pretty simple to install.

"Because of HOA rules/regs, I cannot use Romex" It's this kind of ignorance that ensures I'll never live where there is an HOA. What business it is of theirs what kind of wiring you or anyone else uses if used correctly? 

@jea48

Next week I'm going to stop by a local electrical supply house that I've been to before and buy the cable myself. I should probably get a more accurate measurement in case I can purchase by the foot and save a few bucks versus buying a 50-foot run (if it's even available in that length).

I didn't even know about anti-short bushings. Thanks so much for the links. At first I thought it was more like a grommet to line the hole into the panel box. Seeing the video of how they're installed, it definitely makes sense to me to use them. I'll grab a couple either at Home Depot or the supply house, so long as they don't obscenely overcharge for them and if they're not already included with the cable.  I'll keep you and the others here in the loop. Have a great weekend!

Hello- 10 gauge wire matches with a 30 amp breaker in the electrical panel. The possible problem with #10 wire and a 20 amp breaker is that if the copper wire heats up excessively, the breaker will not trip in order to save it, and the insulation around the copper will melt, causing a fire inside the wall. This has been the cause of many house fires. For audio components, this should not be an issue, as they are not heating devices (like space heaters, etc.). 

the HOA wants any wires in the garage inside conduit, presumably for a uniform appearance as the garage is a shared area with four bays

Leave it to the Karens in the HOA to dictate the appearance of the INTERIOR of a garage.