When calculating the total load of an office building and the number of general purpose receptacles is unknown, an additional load of ___ VA per square foot is required for the receptacles.

When calculating the total load of an office building and the number of general purpose receptacles is unknown, an additional load of ___ VA per square foot is required for the receptacles.

• A. 1 VA
• B. 2 VA
• C. 1/2 VA
• D. 3 VA

Answer: (A)

When sizing a building’s electrical load, you must include a contribution for general-purpose receptacles. If you can’t determine how many receptacles there will be, use a default of 1 VA per square foot to cover receptacle loads. This conservative estimate recognizes that outlets will supply varying plug loads (laptops, chargers, peripherals) and helps ensure the service isn’t undersized. You add this 1 VA per ft² to the other calculated loads (like lighting) to get the total required capacity. Other values would either overly inflate or undercount typical unknown receptacle demand, so 1 VA per square foot is the standard choice.

When sizing a building’s electrical load, you must include a contribution for general-purpose receptacles. If you can’t determine how many receptacles there will be, use a default of 1 VA per square foot to cover receptacle loads. This conservative estimate recognizes that outlets will supply varying plug loads (laptops, chargers, peripherals) and helps ensure the service isn’t undersized. You add this 1 VA per ft² to the other calculated loads (like lighting) to get the total required capacity. Other values would either overly inflate or undercount typical unknown receptacle demand, so 1 VA per square foot is the standard choice.