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  1. M

    Changing panel

    Yeah they just want people to honor them as the unchallenged authorities in their domain. They don't want any real discussion or discourse. Notice how a lot of my comments, even when I have a different view I still say things like "that's a good point" or "I hadn't thought of that." That's...
  2. M

    Changing panel

    So this is a bulletin board of trolls. I thought you guys were inspectors, or at least people who want this to be an informational resource. You're a joke. I'm deleting this account and getting my information elsewhere. Have fun in your echo chamber.
  3. M

    Changing panel

    Clearly it isn't addressed, so you can't. You can find examples like that with all kinds of code stuff. But if the handbook refers to that code applying to switches and HVAC equipment, and using volt meters, the handbook is a better authority than you are, so I'm going with the handbook...
  4. M

    Changing panel

    You guys are hilarious.
  5. M

    Changing panel

    That's a good point, but Filthy didn't write the NEC Handbook. Maybe you should ask the people who did.
  6. M

    Changing panel

    Filthy quoted the NEC Handbook, and it's pretty clear. You didn't have to pick this fight but you did. You're choosing to be difficult, and you're wrong. I'm an adult man, I can admit when I'm wrong, and I can acknowledge other people's opinions. That's how an adult man is supposed to act.
  7. M

    Changing panel

    Filthy, good call on checking the Handbook. I agree that this debate is silly, other people picked this fight, and we have the correct position on what the intent of the code is. That being said I'm an inspector, and inspectors do have to pick their battles. Different localities have...
  8. M

    Changing panel

    I agree with Filthy on this. I'm a journeyman electrician, and this is what I was taught. Once Ice challenged me on it the first time, I did start thinking about air handlers, and I'm pretty sure I have mounted disconnected on a 2x4 nailed to a rafter directly behind the the unit, and that...
  9. M

    Changing panel

    I see your point. With an outside unit though, I could see an hvac guy at some point installing a more efficient system, and replacing the disconnect with a fused one, so he wouldn't have to stock every type of breaker on his truck. In the case of the apartments I was talking about, that was...
  10. M

    Changing panel

    I think that's a stretch. That working space has been required on anything I've worked on . Outlets don't have exposed live parts, and non-fused disconnects are installed for the purpose of servicing the units they are connected to.
  11. M

    Changing panel

    Looks like a judgement call but I think it looks alright. Plus if there is at least 30 inches from the edge of the unit to that bump out in the wall, it was installed correctly and everything else is what needs to be moved. What is that tank thing anyway?
  12. M

    Changing panel

    It's one thing to recognize that someone needs to move a dryer in order to work in a panel. I'm an electrician, and I don't think there's one electrician I have worked with that would move a dryer to add a breaker to a panel. Also for what it's worth, these are not union electricians I'm...
  13. M

    Changing panel

    cda: How was it approved to begin with? "One of the things he stated was when the inspector comes by, be sure the washer and dryer are not in place because of the 3 ft rule." I think you answered your own question. Or maybe there was a stacked unit originally? I worked on an apartment...
  14. M

    Tyvek

    I don't know the actual definitions of these terms, it's just like mobile home, manufactured home, industrialized building, trailer, tiny home... other than "industrialized building", all the other terms can mean different things depending on who you are talking to or what you are talking about...
  15. M

    Tyvek

    I have no skin in this game, just looking for different perspectives on this. But my understanding is that tyvek, tar paper, and I assume the zip system do not (or are not intended to) completely seal moisture in. The perforations in tyvek are supposed to allow moisture to evaporate out, but...
  16. M

    Stair risers...

    Sorry, I took another trip out there with a tape measure and measured it. (I was Ah, thank you... I knew there had to be another line of reasoning in that book somewhere.
  17. M

    Residential grounding

    NEC 250.24 (A) (1) "The grounding electrode conductor connection shall be made at any accessible point from the load end of the service drop or service lateral, etc., etc."
  18. M

    Residential grounding

    NEC Article 100 Accessible (as applied to wiring methods). Capable of being removed or exposed without damaging the building structure or finish, or not permanently closed in by the structure or finish of the building. Readily Accessible. -Capable of being reached quickly for operation...
  19. M

    Stair risers...

    You guys don't understand, the riser is 12 inches. Whether the code used for this house in 1969 said 7 3/4, 8, 8 1/4 inches, whatever, it did not say 12 inches.
  20. M

    Stair risers...

    In the office here we have a copy of the 1971 USBC 1 and 2 family dwelling code (a little red one with different regional seals on it). I'll have to find out if certain localities in Virginia used it, or what. We have a copy of it for some reason! The bottom-line is I am pretty sure riser...
  21. M

    Stair risers...

    OK... I found the section in chapter 1 where it states the building should meet the USBC when it was constructed. (And the Virginia Maintenance Code completely replaces the ICC's Chapter 1) I believe this is the code section I would cite, because the condition of the stairs is not the issue.
  22. M

    Stair risers...

    The issue I have is that the only references to stairs that I can find in the PM code is that they need to be "in sound condition and good repair." So I don't see how I can enforce the riser height just with that. Also fyi I am using the Virginia Maintenance code, which has a few changes from...
  23. M

    Stair risers...

    I did an apartment inspection where there is a front porch, and a single concrete step coming up from ground-level. The height from the top of that riser to the porch exceeds the 8 1/4 inches in the Residential Code. This is in response to a complaint because the tenant had an elderly guest at...
  24. M

    Residential grounding

    Gotcha. I think the inspectors where I used to work as an electrician interpreted that section to mean that if rebar is in the foundation, then they considered it to be an electrode that is present and must be tied to the system. But you're basically saying if the rebar doesn't have a...
  25. M

    Residential grounding

    It should be noted that the "piece of rebar" should be tied to at least 20 feet of rebar or #4 copper that is encased in concrete, and the concrete is supposed to be in direct contact with the earth. And this means that if there is a vapor barrier between the concrete and the gravel, that is no...
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