Pit filled with water a work space violation?

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darekelec

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GC dug a pit in front of electrical service to meet 6’6” of headroom requirement and rain filled it with 2ft of water.
I know this is a silly question because nobody would work on a service like this but
Is water an obstruction of working space?
can I get a violation on my final?
 
This is a blindspot of the NEC. There is no standard for maximum grade slope, maximum terrain roughness, or maximum depth of surface water, in space required as working space. Intuitively, it would seem unsafe to work on electrical equipment while having to stand in a pit of water. The intent of this rule is to designate a clear space to work on the equipment without the space itself producing a safety hazard.

You might pass your inspection if you have the fortuitous luck of getting it done on a day when the pit is dry, and the water infill is not immediately obvious. However, if it is filled with water, it will stick out like a sore thumb as a hazard. Especially if it is too deep for a standard pair of rainboots. I recommend finding a way to arrange the pit to drain on a regular basis, so it doesn't fill with any more water than the general terrain at the site.
 
At least have it graded away from the pit around its immediate periphery so that it doesn't take on much more than the average rainfall per sq. ft.
 
Conceptually this is no different than having electrical equipment in a classified area where you cannot safely work on the equipment until you make the area safe to work in. I think the same idea would apply here. You can pump the pit out pretty easily.
 
darekelec said:
GC dug a pit in front of electrical service to meet 6’6” of headroom requirement and rain filled it with 2ft of water.
I know this is a silly question because nobody would work on a service like this but
Is water an obstruction of working space?
can I get a violation on my final?
Click to expand...
Doesn't the 6'6" requirement go right to the wall the equipment is mounted on? How does the pit get you 6'6" above the equipment?
 
GC should have installed a drain.
there is no way for water to escape other than evaporate.
min order to visualize it - I have a 2’6” deep pit 4’x4’ in front of 200A electrical service that’s filled with 2’ of water.
Does this qualify as a swimming pool now?
 
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