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#1
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Junction boxes not permitted in attic?
While browsing some Google results I came across a document by some
particular State/Municipality building department advising DIY homeowners that junction boxes are not permitted in attics. Is this an NEC rule or a local idiosyncracy? In either case, why would this be bad? I've discovered two metal junction boxes in our attic with the Romex simply fed through the knockouts with no clamps. I was planning to redo them with clamps, but now I'm wondering whether it would be good to undertake a more radical upgrade. Perce |
#2
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Greetings,
A) I have never heard anyone complain about junction boxes within an attic. It is not an NEC rule. What is the URL to the document? Where (what page?) does the document say this. B) Some boxes have cable clamps INSIDE rather than outside. You might have run across such a box. Otherwise feel free to add the clamps. Hope this helps, William PS: If there really aren't any clamps I would take the time to inspect the other boxes within the house. Pull out a light and a receptacle or two in your investigation as well. |
#3
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On 08/05/05 01:28 pm tossed the following ingredients
into the ever-growing pot of cybersoup: A) I have never heard anyone complain about junction boxes within an attic. It is not an NEC rule. What is the URL to the document? Where (what page?) does the document say this. It's the "Circuits and Wiring Information Sheet" from the City of Bloomington, MN: http://www.ci.bloomington.mn.us/hand...3qcircuits.pdf Page 1, right-hand column, under heading "Junction Boxes": "Do not install junction boxes in the attic or conceal them in walls." B) Some boxes have cable clamps INSIDE rather than outside. You might have run across such a box. Otherwise feel free to add the clamps. PS: If there really aren't any clamps I would take the time to inspect the other boxes within the house. Pull out a light and a receptacle or two in your investigation as well. I'll check the boxes in question. I have already found some weird electrical stuff in this house, including a couple of instances of wires joined by twisting copper wire around the untwisted conductors and insulated with the cap of a "magic marker" and the whole lot taped up. Thanks. Perce |
#4
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"Do not install junction boxes in the
attic or conceal them in walls." That makes no sense at all. That would mean that junction boxes must be on the surface of the wall (how 'bout that exposed Romex?) and in the basement, I guess. There are some other bizarro factoids in that PDF file. Like how the roughing-in inspection has to be done with all insulation off, what the heck can that mean? I'm sure that whoever wrote those sections had good intentions but I doubt he intended it to be read the way we are. Tim. |
#5
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wrote:
"Do not install junction boxes in the attic or conceal them in walls." That makes no sense at all. That would mean that junction boxes must be on the surface of the wall (how 'bout that exposed Romex?) and in the basement, I guess. Concealed in a wall and recessed are two different things. They don't want buried boxes. The attic reference is very odd. Maybe they're assuming an inaccesible attic? There are some other bizarro factoids in that PDF file. Like how the roughing-in inspection has to be done with all insulation off, what the heck can that mean? Wall insulation, primarily. The inspector prefers to see exposed runs and connections. R |
#6
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You could always put a light or an
outlet, depending on the location of the box. That might make the "locals" happy. You could always use extra lights or an outlet in a attic .... well, since the advent of good battery drills and saws, its not as usefull as it used to be. wrote: "Do not install junction boxes in the attic or conceal them in walls." That makes no sense at all. That would mean that junction boxes must be on the surface of the wall (how 'bout that exposed Romex?) and in the basement, I guess. There are some other bizarro factoids in that PDF file. Like how the roughing-in inspection has to be done with all insulation off, what the heck can that mean? I'm sure that whoever wrote those sections had good intentions but I doubt he intended it to be read the way we are. Tim. |
#7
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#8
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Percival P. Cassidy wrote: On 08/05/05 01:28 pm tossed the following ingredients into the ever-growing pot of cybersoup: A) I have never heard anyone complain about junction boxes within an attic. It is not an NEC rule. What is the URL to the document? Where (what page?) does the document say this. It's the "Circuits and Wiring Information Sheet" from the City of Bloomington, MN: http://www.ci.bloomington.mn.us/hand...3qcircuits.pdf Page 1, right-hand column, under heading "Junction Boxes": "Do not install junction boxes in the attic or conceal them in walls." B) Some boxes have cable clamps INSIDE rather than outside. You might have run across such a box. Otherwise feel free to add the clamps. PS: If there really aren't any clamps I would take the time to inspect the other boxes within the house. Pull out a light and a receptacle or two in your investigation as well. I'll check the boxes in question. I have already found some weird electrical stuff in this house, including a couple of instances of wires joined by twisting copper wire around the untwisted conductors and insulated with the cap of a "magic marker" and the whole lot taped up. Thanks. Perce Greetings, I did the unthinkable and called up the city of Bloomington, MN for clarification. When I asked about the attic box rule the lady said that they follow the National Electrical Code. I didn't know exactly what she meant by that answer so I asked her if that meant they had no rules in addition to the NEC. She said that she wasn't an inspector and didn't know. None of the inspectors had the time to speak with me and I was not given the option to hold. I left a voice mail and will let you know what the inspector says when (if) he calls back. Hope this helps, William |
#9
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Wall insulation
Oh, I had my "electrical" hat on at the time! Tim. |
#10
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" wrote in message oups.com... Percival P. Cassidy wrote: On 08/05/05 01:28 pm tossed the following ingredients into the ever-growing pot of cybersoup: A) I have never heard anyone complain about junction boxes within an attic. It is not an NEC rule. What is the URL to the document? Where (what page?) does the document say this. It's the "Circuits and Wiring Information Sheet" from the City of Bloomington, MN: http://www.ci.bloomington.mn.us/hand...3qcircuits.pdf Page 1, right-hand column, under heading "Junction Boxes": "Do not install junction boxes in the attic or conceal them in walls." B) Some boxes have cable clamps INSIDE rather than outside. You might have run across such a box. Otherwise feel free to add the clamps. PS: If there really aren't any clamps I would take the time to inspect the other boxes within the house. Pull out a light and a receptacle or two in your investigation as well. I'll check the boxes in question. I have already found some weird electrical stuff in this house, including a couple of instances of wires joined by twisting copper wire around the untwisted conductors and insulated with the cap of a "magic marker" and the whole lot taped up. Thanks. Perce Greetings, I did the unthinkable and called up the city of Bloomington, MN for clarification. When I asked about the attic box rule the lady said that they follow the National Electrical Code. I didn't know exactly what she meant by that answer so I asked her if that meant they had no rules in addition to the NEC. She said that she wasn't an inspector and didn't know. None of the inspectors had the time to speak with me and I was not given the option to hold. I left a voice mail and will let you know what the inspector says when (if) he calls back. Hope this helps, William Goog going; anxious to hear back! I wonder if "attic" in a place like Mn means something different than it means to the rest of us? Either that or some clarification of the statement is missing. It just isn't reasonble as it is. Pop |
#11
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I've seen local guys come up with some real BS stuff on their own
before. Someone I knew was putting a hot tub on their outside deck. The electrician went to get a permit to run the wiring. The building inspector hands him a list of their requirements, some of which came from BOCA proposals, that were not even adopted. The classic was that the spa must have a cover capable of supporting two adults for a rescue. Now that surely ranks as dumber than no junction boxes in an attic. I mean, do these guys even know what a hot tub/spa is? I've seen a lot of them, even large ones at hotels, and have yet to see one where having a cover that would support two people would be in any way relevant to rescuing anyone from a spa. |
#12
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wrote in message oups.com... I've seen local guys come up with some real BS stuff on their own before. Someone I knew was putting a hot tub on their outside deck. The electrician went to get a permit to run the wiring. The building inspector hands him a list of their requirements, some of which came from BOCA proposals, that were not even adopted. The classic was that the spa must have a cover capable of supporting two adults for a rescue. Now that surely ranks as dumber than no junction boxes in an attic. I mean, do these guys even know what a hot tub/spa is? I've seen a lot of them, even large ones at hotels, and have yet to see one where having a cover that would support two people would be in any way relevant to rescuing anyone from a spa. The local yokel crap got so bad around here that the state finally took over and implemented state wide licensing and standards based strictly on NEC. A lot of crap disappeared over night. Colbyt |
#14
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" wrote in message oups.com... wrote: Percival P. Cassidy wrote: On 08/05/05 01:28 pm tossed the following ingredients into the ever-growing pot of cybersoup: A) I have never heard anyone complain about junction boxes within an attic. It is not an NEC rule. What is the URL to the document? Where (what page?) does the document say this. It's the "Circuits and Wiring Information Sheet" from the City of Bloomington, MN: http://www.ci.bloomington.mn.us/hand...3qcircuits.pdf Page 1, right-hand column, under heading "Junction Boxes": "Do not install junction boxes in the attic or conceal them in walls." B) Some boxes have cable clamps INSIDE rather than outside. You might have run across such a box. Otherwise feel free to add the clamps. PS: If there really aren't any clamps I would take the time to inspect the other boxes within the house. Pull out a light and a receptacle or two in your investigation as well. I'll check the boxes in question. I have already found some weird electrical stuff in this house, including a couple of instances of wires joined by twisting copper wire around the untwisted conductors and insulated with the cap of a "magic marker" and the whole lot taped up. Thanks. Perce Greetings, I did the unthinkable and called up the city of Bloomington, MN for clarification. When I asked about the attic box rule the lady said that they follow the National Electrical Code. I didn't know exactly what she meant by that answer so I asked her if that meant they had no rules in addition to the NEC. She said that she wasn't an inspector and didn't know. None of the inspectors had the time to speak with me and I was not given the option to hold. I left a voice mail and will let you know what the inspector says when (if) he calls back. Hope this helps, William Greetings, I had not heard back from the city so I called them up again. "All lines were busy." I waited on hold for about 4 minutes and spoke to the operator. She wanted to know which electrical inspector I wanted to speak with and I told her that any of them would do. Then she asked me what region of Bloomington it concerned and I said all of them. She then asked me where the property was located and I said that my question concerned a "Circuits and Wiring Information Sheet" and not a particular property. She seemed perturbed by my insistence that any electrical inspector would do but eventually she gave up and said that she would put me into someone's voicemail. At this point I was disconnected. I guess it is not too late to hear back today from my call placed Friday so I'll hold off until tomorrow before calling them back. Hope this helps, William Thanks; keep us posted. This is really a curious one. It sounds like one about has to camp on their doorstep to get anythiung done in that town. Pop |
#15
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Greetings,
I called back and spoke with the operator Julie. I asked to speak with an inspector. She told me that they were all out on inspections but that I could leave a message. I told her that my message from 6 days ago had not yet been returned and she said that I might be able to catch them between 3-4 pm today. I thanked her and then left a message in "Rick's voicemail" for him to call me back. Will keep you posted, William |
#16
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" wrote in
message ups.com... Greetings, I called back and spoke with the operator Julie. I asked to speak with an inspector. She told me that they were all out on inspections but that I could leave a message. I told her that my message from 6 days ago had not yet been returned and she said that I might be able to catch them between 3-4 pm today. I thanked her and then left a message in "Rick's voicemail" for him to call me back. Will keep you posted, William Sounds like his gal friday runs a lot of interference for him. No well known name, no interest. Just a homeowner? Nahh, don' wurry 'bout him!" Interesting saga. You should tell them you're making this info available to millions of people on the internet next time. Pop |
#17
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Pop wrote:
.... You should tell them you're making this info available to millions of people on the internet next time. Oh, I'm sure that threat will strike terror to his heart... |
#18
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What is this about? Of course junction boxes are allowed in an attic.
This assumes the attic has access to it, of course. wrote: Greetings, I called back and spoke with the operator Julie. I asked to speak with an inspector. She told me that they were all out on inspections but that I could leave a message. I told her that my message from 6 days ago had not yet been returned and she said that I might be able to catch them between 3-4 pm today. I thanked her and then left a message in "Rick's voicemail" for him to call me back. Will keep you posted, William -- Phil Munro Dept of Electrical & Computer Engin Youngstown State University Youngstown, Ohio 44555 |
#19
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Phil Munro wrote:
What is this about? Of course junction boxes are allowed in an attic. This assumes the attic has access to it, of course. A code description document apparently documenting local requirements in addition to NEC in the OPs locale...somewhere in MN, Istr??? There was a link to it somewhere early on in the thread--apparently this document does actually say this from others' comments alto I didn't go look myself. |
#20
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On 08/11/05 01:14 pm Phil Munro tossed the following ingredients into
the ever-growing pot of cybersoup: What is this about? Of course junction boxes are allowed in an attic. This assumes the attic has access to it, of course. This whole thread originated with my question about the legality of junction boxes in attics, based on the City of Bloomington, MN's "Circuits and Wiring Information Sheet" for DIYers: http://www.ci.bloomington.mn.us/hand...3qcircuits.pdf Page 1, right-hand column, under heading "Junction Boxes": "Do not install junction boxes in the attic or conceal them in walls." Perce |
#21
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Perce,
At the top it says "Information sheet." At the bottom it says "This handout is a guide." An information sheet or guide is not synonymous with "the code," in my understanding of English. Also, since the operative sentence refers to canceled walls I believe the writer also meant "concealed ceilings." If you ever get to talk to someone I'd ask if there was an applicable CODE that you can look at. He will probably say NEC. Take all of this with a grain of salt, as I am far away from Bloomington. Ed This whole thread originated with my question about the legality of junction boxes in attics, based on the City of Bloomington, MN's "Circuits and Wiring Information Sheet" for DIYers: http://www.ci.bloomington.mn.us/hand...3qcircuits.pdf Page 1, right-hand column, under heading "Junction Boxes": "Do not install junction boxes in the attic or conceal them in walls." Perce |
#22
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Greetings,
Called at 8:14 EST hoping to reach an inspector before they left for the day and reached a message which says that the offices are open starting at 8:00 (they are in a different time zone than me). "There is no operator assistance at this time." If I am having an emergency I can dial 911. I called back at 9:54 am and was told that they were all out doing inspections. "They should be in around noon or so." I was again transferred to Rick Butterfields voicemail. I left him a message to call me back and gave him both my numbers. Hope this helps, William |
#23
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#24
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Greetings,
I called again and spoke with Julie. All inspectors are out. I left another message with Rick. William |
#27
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Greetings,
I called in this morning and spoke with Julie. I asked her why no one had called me back and she said that she didn't know. She suggested that I call back today between 3 and 4. I called back at 3 pm (Bloomington time) exactly and asked to speak with an inspector. I was transferred to "Rick" who said that he didn't get my messages. I told him that this episode was being discussed / broadcast on the World Wide Web. It turns out I was speaking with "Rick Soderstrom" and "Rick Butterfield" was the one who I left messages for. Rick S. seemed willing to help in any way that he could and was entirely reasonable. He told me that he didn't know about the informational sheet but that he would look it up and get back to me in the next couple of days. He said that you could have boxes in the attic but that the attic should not be used as a central wiring junction area. He was also sure to point out that some attics are not accessable and therefore the rules for accessable boxes would not apply. Hope this helps, William |
#28
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Greetings,
Summery / Clarification: If your attic is not accessible you cannot put a junction box there. If your attic is accessible you must minimize the number of junction boxes there. Hope this helps, William |
#29
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Pop posted for all of us...
I don't top post - see either inline or at bottom.=20 =20 "Tekkie=AE" wrote in message=20 ... : posted for all of us... : I don't top post - see either inline or at bottom. : : Greetings, : : I called again and spoke with Julie. All inspectors are out.=20 I left : another message with Rick. : : William : : : Who cares???? : --=20 : : Tekkie I do =20 =20 =20 Take your love affair to email. --=20 Tekkie |
#30
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