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
Answer:
I found this junction box in a basement located directly under a street near the U.S. Capitol. It was being removed due to severe corrosion caused by salt water. No, it wasn’t near the oceans edge, but below an area where street salt runoff collected during the winter months of the year. This wasn’t the fault of the equipment manufacturer or the installer, but rather the fault of the property owner who choose not to make the necessary repairs to stop the leaks.
Art. 314, Part III, of the 2005 NEC covers the installation and use of all boxes and conduit bodies used as an outlet, device, junction, or pull box, depending on its use, and handhole enclosures. The requirements in 314.40(A) call for metal boxes, conduit bodies, and fittings to be corrosion resistant or well galvanized, enameled, or otherwise properly coated inside and out to prevent corrosion. A Fine Print Note directs you to 300.6 for limitation in the use of boxes and fittings protected from corrosion solely by enamel.
For a close-up of this picture, click here.
