Clearance in front of junction boxes

[dean4766]

I installed a j box in a ceiling and pulled wires And terminated at the panel and the the receptacles, the sprinkler installer installed a line 2” below the opening of my box, I told the the sprinkler guy he had to move his line over because I would not pass code, and in fact I said I needed 6” clearance in front of that box, but when I looked in code I can’t find a code reference to support that and actually what I do find is in table 110.26 a1, which is 3’ for 0-150 volts to ground, which is impractical at times, any of you have any thoughts on this or any experience

 

[ron]

Most consider a typical junction box not needing to be worked on while energized, so it wouldn't need working space. However it would need to be accessible. No magic distance, just accessible by the smallest fingers.

Here is an article to discuss it

Working Space

How to determine requirements—Part 1 The requirements in 110.26(A)(1) through (A)(3) of the National Electrical Code (NEC) deal with Code-prescribed “working space” at electrical equipment—requirements that in most instances are considered by designers, installers and inspectors as...

www.ecmag.com