5 sided load centers with sheetrock

[kg6dxn]

First post bare with me.

I have been an industrial electrician for 20+ years and previous time as an electrician in the Marine Corps. All in I've been playing with electricity professionally for 30 years.

I recently accepted a PM position at a company that does mostly multi-family residential (both high and low rise). this is outside my comfort zone, but wires are wires.

recently I was having a debate about 5 siding a load center with sheetrock. I can find code reference about firewalls, fire ratings, 16 sq. in. openings, etc.

Is it written anywhere that you must 5 side a panel every time in every wall? In a NON-FIRE RATED WALL? I don't think so. My electricians insist we must do this. I insist that I need a code section before I can ask (tell) the general contractor this must be done on their dime.

Is there any national code, from any trade that requires this everywhere? Is this a local AHJ issue?

 

[Dennis Alwon]

Not sure what 5 sided means but No you don't do anything special for the panel. There was some debate as to whether a panel in a fire wall needed to be 2 hr rated but I have heard that it is not necessary. Others will chime in

 

[GoldDigger]

I think he means adding sheet rock covering for back and four sides. Like making a niche for the box. Instead of putty pads for fire rating?

 

[rcarroll]

A panel installed in a non rated wall inside a dwelling unit needs nothing.

 

[GoldDigger]

A panel installed in a non rated wall inside a dwelling unit needs nothing.

But a lot of the walls in a multi-family building need to be fire rated.

 

[rcarroll]

But a lot of the walls in a multi-family building need to be fire rated.

True that. But not an interior wall that is not connected to a rated wall. The ones I look at are usually in a bedroom. We have soooo many multi-family buildings going on here. I hate them.

 

[hbiss]

Is it written anywhere that you must 5 side a panel every time in every wall? In a NON-FIRE RATED WALL? I don't think so. My electricians insist we must do this. I insist that I need a code section before I can ask (tell) the general contractor this must be done on their dime.

Remember guys, this is California. Anything is possible. Talk to your building inspector because it sounds like this is a building code thing. The electrical inspector couldn't care less.

-Hal

 

[jaggedben]

...
Is it written anywhere that you must 5 side a panel every time in every wall? In a NON-FIRE RATED WALL? I don't think so. My electricians insist we must do this. I insist that I need a code section before I can ask (tell) the general contractor this must be done on their dime.
...

Reading this, it's fairly obvious there is no such code section if they can't quote it. It makes no logical sense that there would be such a code section. It's a clear case of 'an inspector once told us we needed it in one case, so now we do it every time.' If I had a dime for every similar instance I've come across, I could definitely buy a sandwich. It's just like my guys who install grounding bushings on every connector because they don't understand the (admittedly somewhat convoluted) differences between when they are required or not. I don't make much effort to stop them because in my case failing an inspection for not having a grounding bushing in the right place costs a lot more than having a couple unneeded ones. Your calculus on this fire wall issue might be a bit different.

 

[hbiss]

Maybe the OP needs to go to the proper authority instead of listening to his electricians. This must have come from someplace.

-Hal