Flood "Damaged" Romex?

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Ohmy

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Atlanta, GA
What is the rational behind replacing Romex in a flooded house? Two jurisdictions here in metro Atlanta are wanting HO"s to replace any Romex that got submerged during the recent flood. I'm having a tough time seeing the value in rewiring a brand new house just because the wires got wet. I can understand replacing devices, panels, etc.
 
If the cable didn't have to be replaced due to its construction that would be an advantage and it would be promoted.
Water can wick up the interior paper up to 50 feet, I was told.
In Washington we have state rule - any sealed devices such as switches, CBs, must be replaced, if water damaged from a flood.
The damage is worse with dirty contaminated water...
 
Ohmy said:
What is the rational behind replacing Romex in a flooded house?
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If your jurisdiction participates in the National Flood Insurance Program, talk to the Floodplain Administrator. FEMA has guidelines for flood damage assesment. They say the water will wick up the paper under the romex jacket and takes a very long time to dry. Might be why the NEC doesn't allow NM cable in wet locations.
 
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I guess you would have see what can happen to cable after a flood, in can take months or even years for the cables to show signs of failure. mildew can destroy the insulation and corrosion can cause connections to fail. We have a whole town near us, that went under water and many were not rewired, now new owners that never knew the homes flooded, are having major problems with wiring, they know there is usually problems, but I don't think they know how long for the problems to surface, and a lot may depend on what the flood waters contained.
 
satcom said:
I guess you would have see what can happen to cable after a flood, in can take months or even years for the cables to show signs of failure. mildew can destroy the insulation and corrosion can cause connections to fail. We have a whole town near us, that went under water and many were not rewired, now new owners that never knew the homes flooded, are having major problems with wiring, they know there is usually problems, but I don't think they know how long for the problems to surface, and a lot may depend on what the flood waters contained.
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No we don't have much flooding here. This flood is big news around here. What sort of damage do you see?

Its not uncommon to see a house that is not complete dried in with the Romex in it already or loose Romex for flood lights or outdoor boxes hanging out in the elements. Also, I see guys with wire in the back of their pickup trucks all the time. I don't think they are planning on throwing it out.

Its not really an issue, because the AHJ is requiring it but the answers I got from the inspectors about why was pretty weak.
 
Ohmy said:
What is the rational behind replacing Romex in a flooded house? Two jurisdictions here in metro Atlanta are wanting HO"s to replace any Romex that got submerged during the recent flood. I'm having a tough time seeing the value in rewiring a brand new house just because the wires got wet. I can understand replacing devices, panels, etc.
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There is little rationale.

Examining, redoing connections, yes.

Not all "Romex" has paper-filler and the paper-filler alone does not necessary cause problems. If the moisture is driven out on the long run and instead if just evaporating it migrates onto the exposed connections you MAY have a problem of shorting out. The water within the jacket would not be a problem for the non-metallic insulation. (Not designed or tested for the purpose, but it does not absorb water readily.)

If the installation is left alone for a couple of weeks and you see no evidence of water seeping out from underneath where the jacket is cut, no reason for replacement. As an extra measure you can seal the ends with foam or caulk. Open and clean all connections, splices, including wirenuts.

Anything that you can disassemble to the level contact access and can dry out and clean manually can be reused. So, wall switches and receptacles would be throw away.

Of course all of the above as an informed opinion, but in industry many things are reconditioned and reused after a flood.
 
Ohmy said:
No we don't have much flooding here. This flood is big news around here. What sort of damage do you see?

Its not uncommon to see a house that is not complete dried in with the Romex in it already or loose Romex for flood lights or outdoor boxes hanging out in the elements. Also, I see guys with wire in the back of their pickup trucks all the time. I don't think they are planning on throwing it out.

Its not really an issue, because the AHJ is requiring it but the answers I got from the inspectors about why was pretty weak.
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I tend to agree with the part about sitting in the back of trucks and I've made that point before. When I first started Romex came in cardboard boxes and my boss may actually buy 1000's of feet and it sat there in the rain and what not along side the house or in the back of a truck. We never seemed to have any problems. But that's just an opinion.
 
If a basement gets flooded around here we would have to replace the nm cable, devices, load center etc... and if the customer does not belive me they get to hear from the AHJ. I think its best to replace it.
 
110.11, 110.12(B) for flooding. Flood waters are full of chemicals.

An electrician should be thrilled this is the requirement.
 
cowboyjwc said:
I tend to agree with the part about sitting in the back of trucks and I've made that point before.
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I think there is a real difference between a cable just getting wet and being submersed in water for an extended period of time ( a flood condition ). The truck bed isn't really filled with water at least not for an extended period of time.

If you were to cut a 16 ft length of romex and submerge it in water for a week then it probably would wick the water from end to end. That's about the average length of cable it would take to go from receptacle to receptacle. I have no idea how long it would take to dry this out.

A cable setting in the back of a truck may wick some water into the paper but probably not that much, a foot or two on the ends but after getting stipped out at the box there shouldn't be that much wet paper left and will soon dry out.

From my own personal experience I can say that I walk around in the rain with no ill effects all the time but wouldn't want to jump in a flooded stream. Things can get nasty during a flood.
 
Romex cable gettiing

Romex cable gettiing

augle 47; flooded romex cable. Are you talking about it being sumbmerse
under water, not just get wet, from water line, that break. Or washing
machine that leak thru the floor, Am I correct?
 
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