Question came up this week in reference to having a service outlet near the service equipment. I referred them to section 210.64 and told them one was required, except at a one-family and two-family dwelling. This would be for service equipment installed both inside or outside of a building. If you install a 480 volt service make sure to put in a small step down transformer in order to comply with this section………..
Till next time be safe work safe
Jake
Just wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving
Darlene, Jake, and Aaron
This is a follow up to the smoke alarm posting from last week. Smoke alarms do have a requirement for being 4” down from the ceiling, but only when two kinds of ceilings are encountered. Sloped and peaked ceilings have a 4” requirement to the top of the smoke alarm. See the picture below. But on a flat ceiling the top of the detector can be mount right up against the ceiling.
Till next time be safe work safe
Jake
This is just a reminder from a recent post as to where a smoke alarm can be placed on a wall or ceiling.
We still have inspectors out there that require the alarm to be 4” down from the ceiling and the bottom not more than 12” down from the ceiling, which changed several years ago (2007 NFPA 72). Don’t be afraid to show the inspector this section. We can all learn new code changes from one another on a daily basis.
Per NFPA 72 17.7.3.2.1 the smoke alarm when installed on a side wall ca be placed right up next to the ceiling and be down as much as 12” to the top of the detector from the ceiling. Most of the complaints from contractors are because the inspectors are failing them on the final and want it moved. See the picture below, this comes right out of NFPA 72 which regulates the placement of smoke alarms in residential dwelling units.
The 4” down is an old section for smoke alarms from NFPA 72, but still exists for the installation of heat detectors.
Till next time be safe work safe
Jake
I keep getting calls about bonding metal gas piping from contractors who tell me that the inspector is telling them to bond the gas system to the grounding electrode conductor or the grounding electrode, and they want to know if it is OK. Those are two of the methods that are permitted to be used but they are not the only ones you can use. In 250.104 B (1) allows the equipment grounding conductor from the branch circuit that is feeding the gas appliance to be used and that would be all you would have to use no other Bonding required. See the slide below where a branch circuit is feeding a gas heater in an air handler. This circuit could be for the fan motor or the gas restrike it doesn’t matter as long as it has an equipment grounding conductor. Note that the section states any of the following methods 1 through 5.
Till next time be safe work safe
Jake
This weeks picture comes from Steve in Deerfield Beach, Thanks Steve.
First of all for today I hope you all enjoyed the day off to celebrate the annual Labor Day holiday. You all work so hard an a day off to celebrate that hard work is deserved.
Todays news letter has to do with Arc Flash reduction, which is a requirement of the Code to help reduce an arc flash incident if one was occur when someone was working on a live “Hot” piece of switch gear. The methods described in the article would allow someone to work on a main switch or disconnect that is hot and set the breaker or by-pass switch to maintenance mode so that if an incident was to occur it would clear almost instantaneously reducing the incidents arc flash. Thereby giving the worker added protection from a possible disastrous arc flash incident.
This section first introduced in 2011 has been updated in the 2014 giving us some additional ways to reduce the hazard for workers who are working within the Arc Flash Boundary as defined NFPA 70E. Based on the 2014 guide lines for mitigating the hazards of working on energize switch gear, there are now several ways to limit the time a circuit breaker will take to shut off reducing the arc flash incident. All of these methods will require you to research the methods to find the one that works for your installation.
A few contractors have asked about ways to work around this code article, especially ones who are working on high end residential projects. Homes with 1200 ampere services or larger. One way would be to have multiple mains smaller than 1200 amperes or use fused disconnects for mains, both which are not covered by this article.
When designing and building a service this large you would have to have an engineer involved because of Florida statute 471.003 h which only allows an electrical contractor to design and build a residential services up to 600 amperes at 240 volts, and commercial services up to 800 amperes at 240 volts.. So next time you encounter a large service (1200 amperes or larger) commercial or residential maybe you can suggest a couple of smaller mains rather than going with the larger one.
See the Code section 240.87 below:
240.87 Arc Energy Reduction
Where the highest continuous current trip setting for which the actual overcurrent device installed in a circuit breaker is rated or can be adjusted is 1200 A or higher, 240.87(A) and (B) shall apply.
(A) Documentation. Documentation shall be available to those authorized to design, install, operate, or inspect the installation as to the location of the circuit breaker(s).
(B) Method to Reduce Clearing Time. One of the following or approved equivalent means shall be provided:
(1) Zone-selective interlocking
(2) Differential relaying
(3) Energy-reducing maintenance switching with local status indicator
(4) Energy-reducing active arc flash mitigation system
(5) An approved equivalent means
All of the ways to minimize an arc flash incident will have to be done under engineering supervision in order to meet one of the five methods required in the above Code section.
Till next time be safe work safe.
Jake
For the 2014 Code cycle the 15a and 20a branch circuit requirement for GFCI protection of a pool pump has been taken out. It now requires all 120 volt through 240 volt pool pumps to be GFCI protected. Whether by receptacle outlet or direct connection all pool pumps require GFCI protection.
Till next time Be safe Work safe!
Jake
Would this be considered a branch circuit extension?
This was sent by someone working in Lake Worth.
Till next time
Be safe work safe
Jake
This weeks post deals with battery operated smoke alarms and when you can use them.
Florida building ‘code allows us to use battery operated smoke alarms under certain conditions, the following text is from FBC Resdientila section R314.
2017 FLORIDA BUILDING CODE RESIDENTIAL
SECTION R314 SMOKE ALARMS¨
One-family and two-family dwellings and townhomes undergoing a repair, or a Level 1 alteration as defined in the Florida Building Code, may use smoke alarms powered by 10-year nonremovable, nonreplaceable batteries in lieu of retrofitting such dwelling with smoke alarms powered by the dwelling’s electrical system. A battery-powered smoke alarm that is newly installed or replaces an existing battery-powered smoke alarm as a result of a Level 1 alteration must be powered by a nonremovable, nonreplaceable battery that powers the alarm for at least 10 years. The battery requirements of this section do not apply to a fire alarm, smoke detector, smoke alarm, or ancillary component that is electronically connected as a part of a centrally monitored or supervised alarm system, that uses a low power, radio frequency wireless communication signal; or that contains multiple sensors, such as a smoke alarm combined with a carbon monoxide alarm or other multisensor devices, and is approved and listed by a nationally recognized testing laboratory
Repairs, as defined in Chapter 2, include the patching or restoration or replacement of damaged materials, elements, equipment or fixtures for the purpose of maintaining such components in good or sound condition with respect to existing loads or performance requirements.
Level 1 alterations include the removal and replacement or the covering of existing materials, elements, equipment, or fixtures using new materials, elements, equipment, or fixtures that serve the same purpose.
These just recently showed up in the stores. They are 10 year non-replaceable battery types that do interconnect wirelessly.
The interconnection was always a problem because in NFPA 72 it calls for these to be inter-connected but where not available until recently. They have Carbon monoxide alarms also available with the 10 year battery and it is also interconnectable.
But as stated above they are only allowed in a Level 1 alteration or a repair as defined by FBC.
So if your inspector was requiring the interconnection we now have them available to us. The above package was around $80 for the two-pack., and the carbon monoxide one was $80 each. They can be connected to you phone through another option that costs around $100. So technology if finally catching up to our needs in the field.
Till next time be safe work safe
Jake