Extention cord

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jxofaltrds said:
This is from an inspection report that I was asked to review yesterday. Any idea what he is talking about?

"The further the service outlet is away from the unit this could affect the overall reaction time the unit will need to retract properly."

There is an extention cord used to supply power to a GDO.
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If a #12 cord is used it is no different than if #12 nm was ran closer for the outlet . He has to be talking about voltage drop from under size cord , There is no difference in the time , one house may have 50 more ft from the panel to outlet , will he say that wont matter if the outlet is where he wants it ?
 
The simple answer has already been mentioned. It is a violation to use the cord. Will it cause a safety issue depends on guage and length. I rather dought a #14 even 25 feet long would have a voltage drop to worry about. Would suggest they wire in another box that is in reach. In short what they have is a NO GO by code. We all see things that violate code but work just fine.
 
Jim W in Tampa said:
The simple answer has already been mentioned. It is a violation to use the cord. Will it cause a safety issue depends on guage and length. I rather dought a #14 even 25 feet long would have a voltage drop to worry about. Would suggest they wire in another box that is in reach. In short what they have is a NO GO by code. We all see things that violate code but work just fine.
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I agree , I would want an outlet installed so the factory cord would reach, but in reality if that is a 15 amp circuit the GDO wont know if the current came from extending #14 nm or the# 14 sj :grin:
 
jetlag said:
I agree , I would want an outlet installed so the factory cord would reach, but in reality if that is a 15 amp circuit the GDO wont know if the current came from extending #14 nm or the# 14 sj :grin:
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Almost true, you left out that it is one more plug and receptacle. There is a loss but yes very little and being it is a GDO would not even be on for a minute. So yes will work but we can not ignore that it is a fixed appliance so extension cord is a no can do. If seller refuses to fix then by guess is buyer would still buy it. Many old houses are sold on an as is contract. Buyer might back off if HI produces too many items that are defects. I am bidding on a house next to me listed for $249 k, I offered the bank 40 k cash and with this economy i might just get it for that or something near it. Would be no point in picking it apart to get them to fix it. Needs about 30 k in work.
 
jetlag said:
I agree , I would want an outlet installed so the factory cord would reach, but in reality if that is a 15 amp circuit the GDO wont know if the current came from extending #14 nm or the# 14 sj :grin:
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But the problem with the extension cord is that in 5 years the rubber covering of the cord may have dried out and cracked and fallen off exposing the conductors underneath to potential damage.

Chris
 
jxofaltrds said:
Would it be fair to say that with a properly sized cord 10-25' 14AWG that you would not be able to tell any difference from it being plugged in with 3' of the opener?

Wouldn't this be the same as in an extra tall garage where you use a cord to reach the 12' ceiling?
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I had just the same situation recently.

Service drop went from pole (10ft from garage) accross the yard to the house, into service panel through about 5' of #12 building wire and to 50' extenstion cord (maybe #16 or #14) to the garage. This was temporary...for a year. In the garage it connected to another 25', or so, cord to the GDO. It worked just fine.

Recently the service drop was moved to the garage, which is close to the pole, and it now goes to a new service panel and through about 25' of #14 wire to the GDO receptacle. It still works just fine.

I've noticed no change in performance, reaction time, etc. The only thing I noticed was no more cord hanging from the GDO, running down the wall, out the door and to the house. Also, I noticed the rubber weather seal at the buttom of the door was damaged from a years worth of rubbing on the cord. :D

raider1 said:
And we all know that the homeowner will use a "Quality" cord.:roll::D:D:D

Chris
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Hard to find a quality cord with everything made in China these days.
 
raider1 said:
But the problem with the extension cord is that in 5 years the rubber covering of the cord may have dried out and cracked and fallen off exposing the conductors underneath to potential damage.

Chris
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Oh I agree , I was just saying the report saying the the equipt would not work properly is false if the cord is the same gage as the circuit. People get confused about voltage drop in a cord , if the only way to get power to location is run the same size nm , the voltage drop is the same . But true , an extension cord should not be used for a permanent install.
 
cowboyjwc said:
I'm not even sure that I can say this right, he had the right answer, but the wrong reason. That's the thing that makes it seem so confusing.
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That was perfect.

I was not questioning the cord but his reason for the GDO not working properly.

If you were inspecting this home in an area with NO codes would you say anything to the buyer?

I see no safety issue.
 
The HI was alert enough to know its not normal. So give him 10 points for catching it and 0 points for reason .
Do we even want to know about the ground ?
I do see danger in being undersized a bit but i bet it worked just fine
 
Jim W in Tampa said:
The HI was alert enough to know its not normal. So give him 10 points for catching it and 0 points for reason .
Do we even want to know about the ground ?
I do see danger in being undersized a bit but i bet it worked just fine
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Funny that you should say ground.

The recpt. had no EGC so I guess using the 2 wire extention cord posed little danger.

Going back tomorrow to fix this.
 
jxofaltrds said:
I see no safety issue.
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I am inclined to agree in general. But it's still not a "good" idea and a code violation.

i would just put it that way to the HO. Let them decide how much money to spend on "fixing" it.

The 2 wire extension cord may well be an actual hazard if the GDO needs a ground. But even then, the added hazard is limited.
 
If price was good and i am the buyer I would buy a better 3 prong cord. I agree no serious hazard but some day the now buyer will be the then seller and be faceing this again.
Violations tend to bite you.
I never buy houses with intent of selling unless deal is to sweet to say no.
 
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