"Wayne Whitney" wrote in message
...
On 2005-03-19, toller wrote:

Interesting; I had never heard of 12-2-2. But reading up on it, it is
specifically intended for 2 AFCI protected circuits.

Just to be clear, there is no requirement to have an AFCI protect a
12-2-2 cable. The point is that one application for 12-2-2 is running
two circuits to back to back bedrooms; since the circuits must be AFCI
protected, they can not share a neutral.

Certainly. But without a AFCI the two circuits would have to be on opposite
legs because of the shared ground, and then there is no advantage of 12-2-2
over 12-3. In fact 12-3 is better because it reduces the voltage drop.
So while 12-2-2 can be used without AFCI, it would not make sense to do so.