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 2023 NEC.
Hint: Wet location worries
Tell Them What They've Won…
Using the 2023 NEC, correctly identify the Code violation(s) in this month's photo — in 200 words or less — and you could win an Arlington Industries 18-in. Slider Bar and plastic box for mounting between studs with non-standard spacing. 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.
February Winners
Our winners this month were Kenney Olivey with Franklin Electric in Greensboro, N.C.; Paul Duemmel, an EC&M reader from Grove City, Ohio; and Jim Linder, a facilities management consultant from Gem Lake, Minn. They all knew these plumbing pipes violated the requirements in NEC Sec. 110.26(A).
As we have seen in so many of the photos we have published in this column, there seems to be this never-ending battle for that space in front of electrical equipment. Plumbers want it, HVAC installers desire it, and every other tradesman craves it, too. However, electricians really need it, and nobody wants to give up that space. The battle continues! Section 110.26(A) requires working space to comply with the dimensions of Sec. 110.26(A)(1)-(4). The working space is to be maintained for electrical equipment likely to be serviced, adjusted, or otherwise maintained while energized. Another all-to-common violation is the dedicated space requirements in Sec. 110.26(E). The space directly above and below service equipment, switchboards, switchgear, panelboards, and motor control centers are considered dedicated spaces as specified in Sec. 110.26(E). Systems foreign to the electrical system are not permitted in this dedicated space.
