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: Dreadful ductwork location.
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 a $25 Amazon gift card. E-mail your response, including your name and mailing address, to [email protected], and Russ will select one winner (excluding manufacturers and prior winners) at random from the correct submissions. Note that submissions without an address will not be eligible to win.
October Winner
Our winner this month is Daniel Hixon, deputy director, Public Works-Buildings, Grounds and Facilities, Hagerstown, Md. Daniel knew that according to the 2023 Code, a bathroom is not an appropriate place for enclosed panelboards and overcurrent devices to be located.
While there are no rules specifically prohibiting the installation of panelboards in bathrooms, the circuit breakers installed in the panelboard enclosure are another story. For 2023, Sec. 240.24(E) was revised to state “overcurrent protective devices, other than supplementary overcurrent protection, shall not be located in bathrooms, showering facilities, or locker rooms with showering facilities.” In the 2020 edition, Sec. 240.24(E) stated, “in dwelling units, dormitory units, and guest rooms or guest suites, overcurrent devices, other than supplementary overcurrent protection, shall not be located in bathrooms.” So, prior to 2023, circuit breakers in enclosed panelboards were not prohibited from being located in public restrooms like the one in the photo.
