300.11 (D) Violation?

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Dennis Alwon said:
I have used metal staples for 40 years and never had an issue with them. If you know how to use them it is a no issue
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When you finish driving the metal staple, can the NM move slightly or is it held firm against the wood? I would think with arc fault breakers that a too hard driven staple can be a nightmare. If I was doing residential work, I might have to go to plastic.
 
The way I understand it, the purpose of cable-stackers is to hold the wire(s) in the middle of the stud so that when the sheet-rock is installed it won't pinch the wire. That said, if the first level of NM cable is properly secured to the stud with staples, attaching additional cables to the initial NM cable with cable ties accomplishes the same thing as the stacker. Is it a Code violation ? That depends on your interpretation. Are you SECURING the wire to the first NM cable or are you just holding it back from the face of the stud ? In either case, once the sheet-rock goes on what's going to happen to the wires ?

If an EI fails a job for using cable ties in the manner described he should then also fail a job for using stackers (an approved method BTW) for the same reason. Just curious, if you have a 4-gang plastic box with multiple wires going to it how would you secure the wiring to the stud without using some form of cable stacker or cable tie? Don't forget, while we all want to be Code compliant in our installations we're all out there trying to make $$$ doing this. We shouldn't have to install additional lumber to secure cables.
 
oldsparky52 said:
When you finish driving the metal staple, can the NM move slightly or is it held firm against the wood? I would think with arc fault breakers that a too hard driven staple can be a nightmare. If I was doing residential work, I might have to go to plastic.
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I just snug the staple to the nm. It's driven so that it just holds the cable.
 
Dennis Alwon said:
I just snug the staple to the nm. It's driven so that it just holds the cable.
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That's the key point. Holding and securing are really two different scenarios. If you were mounting a breaker panel to a wall you want to "secure" it to the wall or back-board and not just "hold it" there. :cool:
 
My opinion is that the intent of 300.11 (D) was not the example shown one the original post. I was tagged for this in a city I seldom do work in even though I've been wiring this way for years and even received compliments from inspectors in other jurisdictions. I disagreed with to avail. I went back, cut off all the ty wraps and reinstalled them by slipping the wrap under the staple itself, pulled it tight and passed the inspection. Tell me the difference other than it's written that way.
 
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