Eddy Current
Senior Member
I believe that was the point of the question on the test. What to do, do you cap it off or remove it completely, they were asking what is code in that situation.
Abandoned branch circuits code.
- Thread starter Eddy Current
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I believe that was the point of the question on the test. What to do, do you cap it off or remove it completely, they were asking what is code in that situation.
Michael15956
Senior Member
- Location
- NE Ohio
I think it can be capped and left in the bay without violating the code.
mjf
Senior Member
- Location
- Massachusetts
What code section requires a dead ended cable to end in a box or be accessible?
- Location
- Bremerton, Washington
- Occupation
- Master Electrician
Somewhere, probably in 300, its states the ends of wire need to be insulated.
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
- Occupation
- EC
This is a part of 300.15: "Where the wiring method is conduit, tubing, Type AC cable, Type MC cable, Type MI cable, nonmetallic-sheathed cable, or other cables, a box or conduit body shall be installed at each conductor splice point, outlet point, switch point, junction point, termination point, or pull point, unless otherwise permitted in 300.15(A) through (L)"
I suppose it would depend on how you define "termination point". If a dead ended conductor/cable is considered a termination point, then this is the article that applies. That term is not in Art 100, so if you look that up in a dictionary - Merriam Webster on line says "an act of ending something", or has the word "end" in the definition of most other uses of the word.
- Location
- Massachusetts
Devils advocate.
In 110.14(C) what does termination mean?
In 110.14(C) what does termination mean?
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
- Occupation
- EC
Well since NEC doesn't have it's own definition of termination - it about has to be the "end" point of the conductors.
Since a dead ended conductor is not going to carry any current it will not create any heat either, so the "termination" temperature rating doesn't really have the same impact for a dead ended conductor as it does for one that carries current.
- Location
- Massachusetts
:?:?
My point is that in most cases when the NEC uses the word termination it is a connection not a dead end.
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
- Occupation
- EC
I understand, but we like to pay attention to detail here and analyze things to death, as well as look for the smallest detail to allow/disallow something:happyyes:
mjf
Senior Member
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
- Occupation
- EC
GerryB
Senior Member
- Location
- woodbridge, ct. USA
I remember a while ago in the CEU class they said something about abandoned or unused cables had to be removed, but the way around that was to label them "for future use".
- Location
- Massachusetts
That is true for commications cables.
Eddy Current
Senior Member
Yeah, that was the code in 800 I mentioned. The more I think about it, this may have been just a general question and not something in the NEC, as the test was a mixture of general knowledge and code. I can't remember all four options but one of them was label and one was to remove them completely, I chose remove completely.
- Location
- Tennessee NEC:2017
- Occupation
- Semi-Retired Electrician
When you guys are saying "dead end conductors", are you meaning conductors not connected at the source as well as at a load or termination point? Or are you meaning still connected to the source but not connected to a load, ie; live conductors not supplying anything and just capped off?
Eddy Current
Senior Member
I can't speak for them, but thats what I believe the question on the test was asking.
- Location
- Placerville, CA, USA
- Occupation
- Retired PV System Designer
I had one HI assert that pre-pulled but not connected wires for a future A/C had to be removed from the main panel and "stored" somewhere else. 
Tapatalk!
Tapatalk!
Jamesmarq
Member
- Location
- Glenwood Springs, co
We have two AHJ's here in Aspen, CO.
The city inspector allows us to leave unused cables in the walls as long as we mark them "Not for future use" and tie the hot, neutral, and ground together with a wirenut to prevent it from being powered up.
The county inspector cites the abandoned cables rule for communications wiring and requires us to remove all unused cable from the walls, also stating that it adds more fodder for house fires. If we can't remove it completely we have to terminate it into a jbox.
I just go with the AHJ's on this one. There probably should be something a little more specific in the code book.
The city inspector allows us to leave unused cables in the walls as long as we mark them "Not for future use" and tie the hot, neutral, and ground together with a wirenut to prevent it from being powered up.
The county inspector cites the abandoned cables rule for communications wiring and requires us to remove all unused cable from the walls, also stating that it adds more fodder for house fires. If we can't remove it completely we have to terminate it into a jbox.
I just go with the AHJ's on this one. There probably should be something a little more specific in the code book.
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
- Occupation
- EC
That is too bad because if they are not communications cables that section does not apply to it. I don't know specific reasons NEC has this rule for communications cables, but imagine it has a little to do with the fact that communications have had changes over the years and without such a rule we would likely find (and still do sometimes anyway) more abandoned communications cables still in place then we would power conductors.
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