Hello,

Regarding exterior lights, e.g., over a garage:
Also, a xenon light fixture over a Deck:

All these exterior light fixturescome with a built in, integral, metal base
of course, that is quite adequate to cover up the wire nuts.

Question: is it legal to mount them right against the exterior clapboards ?

Or, must a "J Box" (I think this is what they are called perhaps ?) be
mounted between the base and the wood
to be legal ? Why ?

The boxes I'm thinking about are those typical Bell brand Aluminum boxes
made for outside usage.

Are they "really" necessary ?

Thanks,
Bob

Yes they are necessary. If you just had a cable sticking through the siding,
and attached it to a fixture, then screwed the fixture to the siding, a poor
connection against the siding could cause a fire



"Robert11" wrote in message
...
Hello,

Regarding exterior lights, e.g., over a garage:
Also, a xenon light fixture over a Deck:

All these exterior light fixturescome with a built in, integral, metal
base of course, that is quite adequate to cover up the wire nuts.

Question: is it legal to mount them right against the exterior clapboards
?

Or, must a "J Box" (I think this is what they are called perhaps ?) be
mounted between the base and the wood
to be legal ? Why ?

The boxes I'm thinking about are those typical Bell brand Aluminum boxes
made for outside usage.

Are they "really" necessary ?

Thanks,
Bob

"Robert11" wrote in message
...
Hello,

Regarding exterior lights, e.g., over a garage:
Also, a xenon light fixture over a Deck:

All these exterior light fixturescome with a built in, integral, metal
base of course, that is quite adequate to cover up the wire nuts.

Question: is it legal to mount them right against the exterior clapboards
?

Or, must a "J Box" (I think this is what they are called perhaps ?) be
mounted between the base and the wood
to be legal ? Why ?

The boxes I'm thinking about are those typical Bell brand Aluminum boxes
made for outside usage.

Are they "really" necessary ?

Thanks,
Bob


A box is needed per code as all connections need to be fully enclosed in an
enclosure. In this case, it sounds like you'd be leaving the area behind
the fixture open which code will not permit. What prevents a spark from
flying down into the wall and causing problems?
Cheers,
cc

On Fri, 22 Jun 2007 19:14:45 -0400, "RBM" rbm2(remove
wrote:

Yes they are necessary. If you just had a cable sticking through the siding,
and attached it to a fixture, then screwed the fixture to the siding, a poor
connection against the siding could cause a fire

This is really interesting. Dang.

The scaredy-cat rep from the property management company talked us
into needing scare-away the criminal lights on the ends of the
townhouse buildings, and they had an electric company in business for
50 years iirc, who came out and mounted a rectangular flood to the
outside of my attic, no box at all.

They had an apprentice or some kind of novice do the connection inside
the attic, but I thought they had two guys outside. I assumed one was
a real electrician. And whoever made up the work order was likely
told or could have found out by calling and asking that there had
never been a light on this wall before.

7 years later the bulb needed replacing (was interfering with my AM
radio) and they changed the whole fixture for a both solar and
infrared controlled one, without saying a word about no box.

And I think they changed the fixture a second time, or just screwed it
back on, about 7 years after that, when the screws ripped out of the
t111 and the fixture was hanging from the Romex and again they just
put it back. Might or might not be a different electrician by now. No
box on the outside, no box on the inside.

The new fixture doesn't work right and I have to call them.

(The first one went on all the time at night, and when the bulb was
bad interfered with my radio. This last one stays on dim all the time
at night and interferes with the radio, and then goes to high if
anyone walks by. (No one ever does.) The one at my neighor's, facing
me, put up for the first time only a month later than my last one,
doesn't light up at all unless someone walks by, and then it's at full
brightness. That's what I want.)

To Cubby, in my case there is no "inside the wall" There is a sheet
of something on the inside covered by a sheet of T-111 on the outside.
Sparks would hit the t111 on the outside, or go through the hole to
the inside where they would fall towards the empty carboard boxes I
have there, 4 feet below the hole, or the pink insulation, 6 feet
below the hole.


I guess I should have thought about this years ago.

I let them come in the house the first time, but I don't really want
that to happen this time. And I don't want the box on the outside.

Can I do the box myself on the inside without making the hole in the
siding bigger? It's about 2 inches now.



"Robert11" wrote in message
...
Hello,

Regarding exterior lights, e.g., over a garage:
Also, a xenon light fixture over a Deck:

All these exterior light fixturescome with a built in, integral, metal
base of course, that is quite adequate to cover up the wire nuts.

Question: is it legal to mount them right against the exterior clapboards
?

Or, must a "J Box" (I think this is what they are called perhaps ?) be
mounted between the base and the wood
to be legal ? Why ?

The boxes I'm thinking about are those typical Bell brand Aluminum boxes
made for outside usage.

Are they "really" necessary ?

Thanks,
Bob

Some fixtures have an integral junction box. For this type of fixture, you
would just run a cable through the siding and into a knockout in the back of
the fixture's junction box



"mm" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 22 Jun 2007 19:14:45 -0400, "RBM" rbm2(remove
wrote:

Yes they are necessary. If you just had a cable sticking through the
siding,
and attached it to a fixture, then screwed the fixture to the siding, a
poor
connection against the siding could cause a fire

This is really interesting. Dang.

The scaredy-cat rep from the property management company talked us
into needing scare-away the criminal lights on the ends of the
townhouse buildings, and they had an electric company in business for
50 years iirc, who came out and mounted a rectangular flood to the
outside of my attic, no box at all.

They had an apprentice or some kind of novice do the connection inside
the attic, but I thought they had two guys outside. I assumed one was
a real electrician. And whoever made up the work order was likely
told or could have found out by calling and asking that there had
never been a light on this wall before.

7 years later the bulb needed replacing (was interfering with my AM
radio) and they changed the whole fixture for a both solar and
infrared controlled one, without saying a word about no box.

And I think they changed the fixture a second time, or just screwed it
back on, about 7 years after that, when the screws ripped out of the
t111 and the fixture was hanging from the Romex and again they just
put it back. Might or might not be a different electrician by now. No
box on the outside, no box on the inside.

The new fixture doesn't work right and I have to call them.

(The first one went on all the time at night, and when the bulb was
bad interfered with my radio. This last one stays on dim all the time
at night and interferes with the radio, and then goes to high if
anyone walks by. (No one ever does.) The one at my neighor's, facing
me, put up for the first time only a month later than my last one,
doesn't light up at all unless someone walks by, and then it's at full
brightness. That's what I want.)

To Cubby, in my case there is no "inside the wall" There is a sheet
of something on the inside covered by a sheet of T-111 on the outside.
Sparks would hit the t111 on the outside, or go through the hole to
the inside where they would fall towards the empty carboard boxes I
have there, 4 feet below the hole, or the pink insulation, 6 feet
below the hole.


I guess I should have thought about this years ago.

I let them come in the house the first time, but I don't really want
that to happen this time. And I don't want the box on the outside.

Can I do the box myself on the inside without making the hole in the
siding bigger? It's about 2 inches now.



"Robert11" wrote in message
...
Hello,

Regarding exterior lights, e.g., over a garage:
Also, a xenon light fixture over a Deck:

All these exterior light fixturescome with a built in, integral, metal
base of course, that is quite adequate to cover up the wire nuts.

Question: is it legal to mount them right against the exterior
clapboards
?

Or, must a "J Box" (I think this is what they are called perhaps ?) be
mounted between the base and the wood
to be legal ? Why ?

The boxes I'm thinking about are those typical Bell brand Aluminum boxes
made for outside usage.

Are they "really" necessary ?

Thanks,
Bob

mm wrote:
(The first one went on all the time at night, and when the bulb was
bad interfered with my radio. This last one stays on dim all the time
at night and interferes with the radio, and then goes to high if
anyone walks by. (No one ever does.) The one at my neighor's, facing
me, put up for the first time only a month later than my last one,
doesn't light up at all unless someone walks by, and then it's at full
brightness. That's what I want.)

Lights are designed and tested to minimize (or eliminate) radio
interference.

Three different lights over several years... I'd say your radio was broken.

On Sat, 23 Jun 2007 08:10:49 -0500, "HeyBub"
wrote:

mm wrote:
(The first one went on all the time at night, and when the bulb was
bad interfered with my radio. This last one stays on dim all the time
at night and interferes with the radio, and then goes to high if
anyone walks by. (No one ever does.) The one at my neighor's, facing
me, put up for the first time only a month later than my last one,
doesn't light up at all unless someone walks by, and then it's at full
brightness. That's what I want.)

Lights are designed and tested to minimize (or eliminate) radio
interference.

Three different lights over several years... I'd say your radio was broken.

Two lamps anyhow. The third replacement was when the fixture came off
the wall and was hanging from the Romex.

Whenever there was a weak radio signal on a station that had had a
strong one, I would go outside and see the light struggling to come
on.

On Sat, 23 Jun 2007 07:28:47 -0400, "RBM" rbm2(remove
wrote:

Some fixtures have an integral junction box. For this type of fixture, you
would just run a cable through the siding and into a knockout in the back of
the fixture's junction box

That must be it. The first guy hasn't stayed in business for 50 years
by violating code in such an obvious way. (Probaly not at all.)



"mm" wrote in message
.. .
On Fri, 22 Jun 2007 19:14:45 -0400, "RBM" rbm2(remove wrote:

Yes they are necessary. If you just had a cable sticking through the
siding,
and attached it to a fixture, then screwed the fixture to the siding, a
poor
connection against the siding could cause a fire

This is really interesting. Dang.

On Jun 23, 1:21 am, mm wrote:
On Fri, 22 Jun 2007 19:14:45 -0400, "RBM" rbm2(remove

wrote:
Yes they are necessary. If you just had a cable sticking through the siding,
and attached it to a fixture, then screwed the fixture to the siding, a poor
connection against the siding could cause a fire

This is really interesting. Dang.

The scaredy-cat rep from the property management company talked us
into needing scare-away the criminal lights on the ends of the
townhouse buildings, and they had an electric company in business for
50 years iirc, who came out and mounted a rectangular flood to the
outside of my attic, no box at all.

They had an apprentice or some kind of novice do the connection inside
the attic, but I thought they had two guys outside. I assumed one was
a real electrician. And whoever made up the work order was likely
told or could have found out by calling and asking that there had
never been a light on this wall before.

7 years later the bulb needed replacing (was interfering with my AM
radio) and they changed the whole fixture for a both solar and
infrared controlled one, without saying a word about no box.

And I think they changed the fixture a second time, or just screwed it
back on, about 7 years after that, when the screws ripped out of the
t111 and the fixture was hanging from the Romex and again they just
put it back. Might or might not be a different electrician by now. No
box on the outside, no box on the inside.

The new fixture doesn't work right and I have to call them.

(The first one went on all the time at night, and when the bulb was
bad interfered with my radio. This last one stays on dim all the time
at night and interferes with the radio, and then goes to high if
anyone walks by. (No one ever does.) The one at my neighor's, facing
me, put up for the first time only a month later than my last one,
doesn't light up at all unless someone walks by, and then it's at full
brightness. That's what I want.)

To Cubby, in my case there is no "inside the wall" There is a sheet
of something on the inside covered by a sheet of T-111 on the outside.
Sparks would hit the t111 on the outside, or go through the hole to
the inside where they would fall towards the empty carboard boxes I
have there, 4 feet below the hole, or the pink insulation, 6 feet
below the hole.

I guess I should have thought about this years ago.

I let them come in the house the first time, but I don't really want
that to happen this time. And I don't want the box on the outside.

Can I do the box myself on the inside without making the hole in the
siding bigger? It's about 2 inches now.



"Robert11" wrote in message
...
Hello,

Regarding exterior lights, e.g., over a garage:
Also, a xenon light fixture over a Deck:

All these exterior light fixturescome with a built in, integral, metal
base of course, that is quite adequate to cover up the wire nuts.

Question: is it legal to mount them right against the exterior clapboards
?

Or, must a "J Box" (I think this is what they are called perhaps ?) be
mounted between the base and the wood
to be legal ? Why ?

The boxes I'm thinking about are those typical Bell brand Aluminum boxes
made for outside usage.

Are they "really" necessary ?

Thanks,
Bob- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

you can buy a siding block that has a built in box, i use arlington
products just knock out 1/2" hole a romex connector and just screw it
to your wall then mount light