How well do you know the Code? Think you can spot violations the original installer either ignored or couldn’t identify? Here’s your chance to moonlight as an electrical inspector and second-guess someone else’s work from the safety of your living room or office. Can you identify the specific Code violation(s) in this photo? Note: Submitted comments must include specific references from the 2017 NEC.
Hint: This gets my seal of non-approval.
JUNE WINNERS
I’m not sure if everyone took vacation at the same time this year or you’re all just too busy working right now, but none of you told me how this installation violates the requirements of the NEC.
One of the violations shown in this photo is the lamp cord being poked through the plate and back into the wall. Instead of hiring a professional electrician to snake the correct type of wiring methods, the renter living in this apartment channeled a small gap in the wall starting from the receptacle, going up the wall, then across the ceiling to a ceiling-mounted light fixture to achieve his desire of having a ceiling light controlled by a switch. The renter then filled in the gap with a layer of joint compound to hide the cord and repair the wall damage. Are you kidding me? The in-line switch on the cord was used for controlling the light. Using a power supply cord as a substitute for fixed wiring is a violation of Sec. 400.12(1). Concealing flexible cables, flexible cord sets, or power supply cords in the wall is a violation of Sec. 400.12(5). Last, but not least, the splices made in this flexible cord violate Sec. 400.13.
‘Tell Them What They’ve Won...’
Using the 2017 NEC, correctly identify the Code violation(s) in this month’s photo — in 200 words or less — and you could win an Arlington Industries FLBT4400SS countertop box kit, which includes a stainless steel trap door cover and a 20A decorator-style, tamper-resistant receptacle. E-mail your response, including your name and mailing address, to [email protected], and Russ will select three winners (excluding manufacturers and prior winners) at random from the correct submissions. Note that submissions without an address will not be eligible to win.
