1980 National Electrical Code

[erickench]

I'm looking at a few houses this week as a prospective buyer and I have a question about one of them concerning a room that may have been originally designed to be a laundry room. Right now the only way to confirm this is to check and see if there is a dedicated 20 amp circuit breaker feeding this room and whether or not it controls the ceiling light. This house was built in 1980. Question: Does anyone know if the 1980 NEC had a rule stating that a 20 amp dedicated laundry circuit was required? If it did, then the house would have a laundry circuit feeding some room that does not control the ceiling light. Thanks.

 

[ActionDave]

The rule for a 20A circuit goes all the way back to 1899 or something like that. I don't know how much the wording has been tweaked but I'm sure the 1980's code is close if not the same as today's.

 

[infinity]

The 1971 NEC states that "at least one outlet shall be installed for the laundry" in 210-22(b). 220-3(b) states "at least one 20-ampere branch circuit shall be provided for the laundry receptacle(s) required in Section 210-22(b)".

 

[K8MHZ]

The rule for a 20A circuit goes all the way back to 1899 or something like that. I don't know how much the wording has been tweaked but I'm sure the 1980's code is close if not the same as today's.

1899 for laundry? According to Wiki, the first ads for electric wash machines didn't appear until 1904.

 

[GoldDigger]

1899 for laundry? According to Wiki, the first ads for electric wash machines didn't appear until 1904.

I bet they had electrically heated irons though.

 

[K8MHZ]

I bet they had electrically heated irons though.

Good point. They were invented in 1884 and the Oxford definition for laundry is "A room in a house, hotel, or institution where clothes and linens can be washed and ironed."

It makes sense, to me, to require a 20 amp circuit where an electric iron may be used.

 

[kwired]

I bet they had electrically heated irons though.

Irons that drew enough to need a 20 amp circuit?

 

[K8MHZ]

Irons that drew enough to need a 20 amp circuit?

It's possible. 2000 watts would do it.

An iron or a flatiron is a small household appliance used for removing wrinkles and creases out of clothes and fabrics, the base metal is heated and pressed against a fabric to straighten it. Modern clothing irons may also come with a special water reservoir which is heated to provide steam during ironing. An iron will use 800 to 2000 watts, with an average iron using 1100 watts when heated on high.

 

[kwired]

It's possible. 2000 watts would do it.

An iron or a flatiron is a small household appliance used for removing wrinkles and creases out of clothes and fabrics, the base metal is heated and pressed against a fabric to straighten it. Modern clothing irons may also come with a special water reservoir which is heated to provide steam during ironing. An iron will use 800 to 2000 watts, with an average iron using 1100 watts when heated on high.

But back then load was pretty minimal except maybe the kitchen, so if you kept the kitchen separated you likely had little issues and sort of still is that way.

On top of that not everyone used the iron in the same area as where washers/dryers were located anyway. Before electric irons they heated irons on a stove - likely the kitchen stove, probably ironed clothes in the kitchen and when electric irons came around - they were used to doing that task in the kitchen and many likely continued to do so, plus there may already be electric outlets in the kitchen to plug the iron into.

 

[al hildenbrand]

. . . I have a question about one of them concerning a room that may have been originally designed to be a laundry room. Right now the only way to confirm this is to check and see if there is a dedicated 20 amp circuit breaker feeding this room and whether or not it controls the ceiling light.

In 1980, the receptacle(s) that supplied the designated laundry area were required to be given 20 Amp overcurrent protection. The circuit could supply no other outlets, that is, no lighting outlets, etc.

The laundry circuit was required if the dwelling had an area designated as a laundry. A dwelling was not required to have a laundry.

 

[al hildenbrand]

I am struck by the "plug" on the end of the "cord". It looks to be an Edison base screw shell threaded piece that is placed in the treaded socket (I automatically think "lamp holder").

This reminded me of the many single "receptacle" with pilot light and switch under a three gang cover plate that I have found in historic Knob and Tube installations in single family dwelling kitchens. As originally constructed, the switch would turn on the power to the receptacle and light the pilot.

In the hundreds of these I've seen over the decades, occasionally, the oldest and most original, would still have a NON-straight blade type of receptacle socket that I couldn't identify, or would have a screw-in Edison base two-wire receptacle "cheater". The above patent diagram goes a long way to answering my questions about why. I've just learned how old the electric sad iron is, and that it predated dwelling AC electrical systems by a decade and more. Interesting.

In the hundreds of these three gang kitchen K&T installations I've seen, they have all been the second 15 Amp branch circuit on a 30 Amp K&T fused service. I have never seen these wired on 12 gauge with 20 A fuse.

 

[user 100]

I am struck by the "plug" on the end of the "cord". It looks to be an Edison base screw shell threaded piece that is placed in the treaded socket (I automatically think "lamp holder").

In the hundreds of these I've seen over the decades, occasionally, the oldest and most original, would still have a NON-straight blade type of receptacle socket that I couldn't identify, or would have a screw-in Edison base two-wire receptacle "cheater". The above patent diagram goes a long way to answering my questions about why. I've just learned how old the electric sad iron is, and that it predated dwelling AC electrical systems by a decade and more. Interesting.

Often the question of exactly why some of our residential ampacity tables are so conservative comes up and I believe that installs/circumstances such as these are a good reason. Most residences in the early days of electrification didn't have traditional receptacles as we know them today as there simply wasn't many things to plug in and many folks utilized those screw in t&p adapters and lighting fixtures to power the few appliances then available (notice that the cord seems to be emanating from a the ceiling and in lot of other period photographs you will also notice the "black webbing near the lights") and so a lamp socket with an adapter may be used regularly to feed one of those new novelty irons or toasters.hmy:

 

[al hildenbrand]

Most residences in the early days of electrification didn't have traditional receptacles as we know them today. . .

Finally found an image of what I described above. This was a Code required improvement in new installs to move the cord and plug connected appliance off of the rosette hung pendant lampholder.

That big glass red crystal had a plain old 7 Watt Christmas tree light in a socket behind the glass. It glowed when the switch turned on the power to the receptacle at the right. This was the visual indicator that the electric iron was heating, which was especially important because the new fangled electric irons did not require overheating the room in order to heat up the "iron" on the stove. The room was cool which, if one was not familiar with the new electric heated iron, could lull you into handling the iron as if it were cold.

 

[user 100]

Finally found an image of what I described above. This was a Code required improvement in new installs to move the cord and plug connected appliance off of the rosette hung pendant lampholder.

That big glass red crystal had a plain old 7 Watt Christmas tree light in a socket behind the glass. It glowed when the switch turned on the power to the receptacle at the right. This was the visual indicator that the electric iron was heating, which was especially important because the new fangled electric irons did not require overheating the room in order to heat up the "iron" on the stove. The room was cool which, if one was not familiar with the new electric heated iron, could lull you into handling the iron as if it were cold.

:thumbsup:. That is pretty cool. Kind of neat how even way back they would still manage to come up with a decent solution to a potential problem and that the code still had an eye on making things safer.

 

[kwired]

I am struck by the "plug" on the end of the "cord". It looks to be an Edison base screw shell threaded piece that is placed in the treaded socket (I automatically think "lamp holder").

This reminded me of the many single "receptacle" with pilot light and switch under a three gang cover plate that I have found in historic Knob and Tube installations in single family dwelling kitchens. As originally constructed, the switch would turn on the power to the receptacle and light the pilot.

In the hundreds of these I've seen over the decades, occasionally, the oldest and most original, would still have a NON-straight blade type of receptacle socket that I couldn't identify, or would have a screw-in Edison base two-wire receptacle "cheater". The above patent diagram goes a long way to answering my questions about why. I've just learned how old the electric sad iron is, and that it predated dwelling AC electrical systems by a decade and more. Interesting.

In the hundreds of these three gang kitchen K&T installations I've seen, they have all been the second 15 Amp branch circuit on a 30 Amp K&T fused service. I have never seen these wired on 12 gauge with 20 A fuse.

Anyone talented enough/have good enough vision to zoom in and read the date on the calendar in the background?

 

[kwired]

Finally found an image of what I described above. This was a Code required improvement in new installs to move the cord and plug connected appliance off of the rosette hung pendant lampholder.

That big glass red crystal had a plain old 7 Watt Christmas tree light in a socket behind the glass. It glowed when the switch turned on the power to the receptacle at the right. This was the visual indicator that the electric iron was heating, which was especially important because the new fangled electric irons did not require overheating the room in order to heat up the "iron" on the stove. The room was cool which, if one was not familiar with the new electric heated iron, could lull you into handling the iron as if it were cold.

Never seen the switch and pilot light related to one of those Edison sockets but have run into several of those Edison sockets and always wondered exactly what they were used for. If still energized I typically found them with a 5-15 (or whatever the non grounding version is) adapter threaded into them.

 

[al hildenbrand]

Anyone talented enough/have good enough vision to zoom in and read the date on the calendar in the background?

The individual pixels of the calendar are too large to contain enough content for any recognition of text, simply by magnifying the image (which is what I did in this image clip).

Never seen the switch and pilot light related to one of those Edison sockets . . .

I suspect the history of the Minnesota Electrical Act, first created in 1899, has much to do with large number of the switch/pilot/receptacle three gangs that I've seen. When the Minnesota Electrical Act started, it established the State wide adoption of the National Electric Code (although the Code had a different name then). There wasn't any funding of inspection, which was left to local jurisdiction, but the uniformity of the standard, the Code, was established. All my sightings of the three gang switch/pilot/receptacle are in the inner cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, where enforcement was funded.

Now, even though the screw shell socket-as-receptacle was in this three gang construct on a dedicated 15 Amp K&T branch circuit, the socket, itself, was still limited to 660 Watts. Go figure!

You can see "660 W. 250 V." stamped in the porcelain from 12:30 to 3:30.