Can you use Reloc whips/ connectors in a crawlspace?

[Marky Spike]

Hello,
This seems to be a grey area so I am just going to ask; Is a crawlspace considered a dry enough location to use some reloc whips to connect some branch circuits together?
Any more insight would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Dennis Alwon]

What is a reloc whip? Generally a crawl space is considered a dry location or we would not be allowed to use NM cable there.

 

[jumper]

What is a reloc whip?

I am hoping it is not an unused fixture whip that has #16 or #18 conductors.

 

[raberding]

reloc

reloc

art 604

 

[jumper]

What the heck is a manufactured wiring system?

 

[renosteinke]

Crawl spaces are .... considered as 'damp,' and the common / near universal practice of running NM through them is a code violation. Thank the latest version of the NEC for making that clear - as well as some very active politicing by the home inspector lobby. I report, you decide ....

As for "Relock" .... Relock is a brand name of a pre-assembled system of MC and snap-together connectors. I have only seen it used with lights, and I do not know if it is made in a more versatile form. As a listed system, it typically has several circuits in the cable, circuit distribution is determined by the connectors used, and wire sizes can change between sections.

It's not really possible to know the wire sizes within the cable, so you have to pay particular attention to following the directions.

It's the directions that would determine whether the product can be used in a crawl space, or for any particular purpose. The Relock assemblies I have used appeared to be similar in construction to the 'dry location only' MC fittings. It is possible that there are other products on the market.

 

[jumper]

Crawl spaces are .... considered as 'damp,' and the common / near universal practice of running NM through them is a code violation. Thank the latest version of the NEC for making that clear - as well as some very active politicing by the home inspector lobby. I report, you decide ....

Most people consider them as a "normally dry" location.

Else, why this? 334.15(C) In Unfinished Basements and Crawl Spaces.

 

[Riograndeelectric]

Her is a link to an early thread on reloc.
reloc can be used for 277 or 120V lighting and receptacles


[url]http://forums.mikeholt.com/showthread.php?t=135645[/URL]

 

[hillbilly1]

The orange box uses it for lighting, the blue box uses it for lighting and power. Wally world uses it for register power drops, There are several different manufactures out there Sentinal, Lithonia, Cooper, MWS among others. (some of the manufactures are now defunct)

 

[Dennis Alwon]

Most people consider them as a "normally dry" location.

Else, why this? 334.15(C) In Unfinished Basements and Crawl Spaces.

In reality we know better. :lol:

 

[hillbilly1]

http://www.relocwiring.com/ Here is some if your curious at what it looks like.

 

[iwire]

What the heck is a manufactured wiring system?

It is what many retail stores are wired with, look up at the lighting in a Lowes and you will likely see what looks like MC with big plugs on the ends. The light fixtures come with the plugs installed.

http://www.relocwiring.com/Resources/pdfs/RELOC_Fluorescent_High_Bay_Brochure.pdf

You can fly with this stuff which is the point.

 

[Cow]

Like Iwire said, you can really cruise when installing whips using the Reloc system. The bad part comes when the reloc whips come miswired from the factory, if you install enough of them you will come across some bad ones. I think we had 2 or 3 when we did an entire HD. Made the lights do some funny things...

 

[hillbilly1]

One of the new Orange boxes we wired had a short in one of the reloc runs, I divided and conqured until I narrowed it down to one fixture, opened up the fixture, and the factory had crimped the black and white together!

 

[hurk27]

Most people consider them as a "normally dry" location.

Else, why this? 334.15(C) In Unfinished Basements and Crawl Spaces.

Crawl spaces can be a dry location or a wet location, I have seen many concreted in crawl spaces that would be considered dry, and also seen a few that were clearly wet. to me if a crawl space is "normally" a wet location that house is going to have some mold and rot problems:roll:

We also have to keep in mind that there are attic crawl spaces also that would be considered dry.

 

[kwired]

Crawl spaces can be a dry location or a wet location, I have seen many concreted in crawl spaces that would be considered dry, and also seen a few that were clearly wet. to me if a crawl space is "normally" a wet location that house is going to have some mold and rot problems:roll:

We also have to keep in mind that there are attic crawl spaces also that would be considered dry.

Agreed. We also have to consider the fact that if a crawl space in, above, or below an inhabited space is wet or damp then there are more serious health hazards from mold that will exist than there are potential problems with installing NM cable in this area.