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. Joe Tedesco, who has a knack for finding shoddy electrical work, did the dirty work and found this mess. Now it's your turn to identify the violation.
Find the Answer
This overcrowded junction box violates 314.28(A)(2) of the 2008 NEC, which states, "Where splices or where angle or U pulls are made, the distance between each raceway entry inside the box and the opposite wall of the box shall not be less than six times the metric designator (trade size) or the largest raceway in a row."
This section of the Code [314.28(C)] also requires you to provide pull boxes, junction boxes, and conduit bodies with covers compatible with the box or conduit body construction, and suitable for the conditions of use. It's obvious that this homemade cover was not manufactured for use with this box. Finally, the Code states where metal covers are used they must comply with the grounding requirements of 250.110.
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About the Author
Joe Tedesco
Tedesco served the industry in many roles during his career. He was a director, senior electrical code instructor for National Technology Transfer, Inc. and American Trainco, Inc.. He was also a codes, standards and seminar specialist for the International Association of Electrical Inspectors and an electrical field service specialist for the National Fire Protection Association in Quincy, Mass. He ran his own business as an NEC consultant and is a Massachusetts licensed master electrician and journeyman electrician and certified electrical inspector (one and two family 2A; General 2B, and Plan Review, 2C). Tedesco also wrote articles for CEE News and EC&M (Code Violations Illustrated and What's Wrong Here?) for more than 15 years and helped launched the Moving Violations video series.