Its the Energy Conservation Code. Either the IECC or ASHRAE 90.1, or something similar (from what I've seen on this forum - its title 24 in Calif.)
The Energy Conservation Code (I'll call it the IECC for short - which is normally pronounced as "the ick" ) basically rations how much lighting power an owner can install in his building. A typical office building is limited to 1 watt per square foot of building space. A 5000 sq ft building would have to have less than 5000 watts of light fixtures installed.
The IECC is supposed to be checked during the permit process, and during building inspections. There is a Comm-Check form most designers have to fill out and submit to show compliance. That can be found at
www.energycodes.gov
Anyhow, since anyone can add additional fixtures to a line voltage track without a permit, the track has to counted as 30 watts per linear foot. That basically made track lighitng almost obsolete.
However, if you put a 4 amp current limiter on a 120V track, then you can count the track as 480 watts, no matter how long the track is.
My guess is that you are seeing a lot of tripped limiters because people are trying to put more wattage on the track than the current limiter is designed for. In effect, they are probably trying to get around the IECC.
