- Location
- Windsor, CO NEC: 2017
- Occupation
- Hospital Master Electrician
Try this one on for size. I'm going to keep this pretty mild, as I am mulling over inviting the inspector in question to this forum, as I believe some good would come of it.
I get a call to go to a house in a remote project this morning, which is already called for re-inspect and needs a correction. The info was vague. I get down there, and the card reads "Remove bare neutral from meter socket."
The service consists of a 200 amp 3R disconnect, connected to a lever-bypass meter socket via a 2" offset nipple.
I peer inside, and find a #6 bonding jumper running from an available terminal on the neutral/grounding bus, running through a bonding bushing on the offset nipple, and ending on the terminal on the meter enclosure. Nothing odd there. No bare neutral, all conductors insulated except for the grounds and bonding conductor.
Scratching my head, I get the inspector's # and tell him I see nothing wrong, please advise, I'm leaving in 15 minutes. He calls back and describes the bonding strap I didn't see on my first glance. It is connecting the load side neutral lug to the meter can, providing a parallel path for neutral, since a bonding jumper was also installed. Chastised, I remove the strap (which was tagged from the factory "Remove this strap if grounding is provided", duh) and get on my way.
After fixing it, I called him, left a message to the effect that I understand, good eye, good catch. I'll pass it on to my co-workers.
I found out this afternoon it failed again. Ticked and bewildered, I called him back.
"Did you reinspect the house?"
"Yes."
"I made the correction, why did it fail?"
"I wanted you to understand where I was coming from. I wanted you to remove the bare neutral from the meter socket."
"I removed the strap, breaking the parallel path to neutral. Why did it fail?"
"I'd prefer you to leave the strap, but remove the bare neutral, because that's the way everybody else in town does it."
"But the way it is now is code compliant. The strap was even labelled that it was to be removed in the event the can was grounded. So I removed the strap."
"I'll let it slide this time, but I'd prefer to see the strap used instead."
"I don't understand. It's code compliant, so why did it fail? My grounding is superior to the factory jumper, it wasn't even tight when I removed it!"
In the end, he agreed it was a compliant installation, but tried to imply he was doing me a favor by passing it. I have never been so profoundly irritated, at least not for a long time.
Interestingly, he asked me my name, and who I worked for again. I replied. I assumed it was a scare tactic, but didn't care. He then asked, "How long have you been in the trade?
"Two and a half years."
In surprise, he said, "You seem to have done your homework!"
I wish he would.
I'm so tempted to ask him here, because there have been a lot of non-code requirements from this man, and I don't believe he knows the code well enough as it is, to start "adding to it."
He said "I'm considering the lever-bypass meter as a disconnect." I felt compelled to inform him the function of that meter was to connect power independent of the meter, not to disconnect it. He repeatedly referred to the bonding jumper as a "bare neutral".
In the past, he has required (and we finally just gave in) that the receptacle under a jetted tub should not be supported per 314.23. He wanted them flopping under the tub, to aid in unplugging them. He has failed houses for not being able to find the temp GFI, there's no code requiring that, that I know of.
Enough already. Had to vent. Just surely glad I don't have to work in his jurisdiction again!!!
[ March 15, 2005, 11:07 PM: Message edited by: georgestolz ]
I get a call to go to a house in a remote project this morning, which is already called for re-inspect and needs a correction. The info was vague. I get down there, and the card reads "Remove bare neutral from meter socket."
The service consists of a 200 amp 3R disconnect, connected to a lever-bypass meter socket via a 2" offset nipple.
I peer inside, and find a #6 bonding jumper running from an available terminal on the neutral/grounding bus, running through a bonding bushing on the offset nipple, and ending on the terminal on the meter enclosure. Nothing odd there. No bare neutral, all conductors insulated except for the grounds and bonding conductor.
Scratching my head, I get the inspector's # and tell him I see nothing wrong, please advise, I'm leaving in 15 minutes. He calls back and describes the bonding strap I didn't see on my first glance. It is connecting the load side neutral lug to the meter can, providing a parallel path for neutral, since a bonding jumper was also installed. Chastised, I remove the strap (which was tagged from the factory "Remove this strap if grounding is provided", duh) and get on my way.
After fixing it, I called him, left a message to the effect that I understand, good eye, good catch. I'll pass it on to my co-workers.
I found out this afternoon it failed again. Ticked and bewildered, I called him back.
"Did you reinspect the house?"
"Yes."
"I made the correction, why did it fail?"
"I wanted you to understand where I was coming from. I wanted you to remove the bare neutral from the meter socket."
"I removed the strap, breaking the parallel path to neutral. Why did it fail?"
"I'd prefer you to leave the strap, but remove the bare neutral, because that's the way everybody else in town does it."
"But the way it is now is code compliant. The strap was even labelled that it was to be removed in the event the can was grounded. So I removed the strap."
"I'll let it slide this time, but I'd prefer to see the strap used instead."
"I don't understand. It's code compliant, so why did it fail? My grounding is superior to the factory jumper, it wasn't even tight when I removed it!"
In the end, he agreed it was a compliant installation, but tried to imply he was doing me a favor by passing it. I have never been so profoundly irritated, at least not for a long time.
Interestingly, he asked me my name, and who I worked for again. I replied. I assumed it was a scare tactic, but didn't care. He then asked, "How long have you been in the trade?
"Two and a half years."
In surprise, he said, "You seem to have done your homework!"
I wish he would.
I'm so tempted to ask him here, because there have been a lot of non-code requirements from this man, and I don't believe he knows the code well enough as it is, to start "adding to it."
He said "I'm considering the lever-bypass meter as a disconnect." I felt compelled to inform him the function of that meter was to connect power independent of the meter, not to disconnect it. He repeatedly referred to the bonding jumper as a "bare neutral".
In the past, he has required (and we finally just gave in) that the receptacle under a jetted tub should not be supported per 314.23. He wanted them flopping under the tub, to aid in unplugging them. He has failed houses for not being able to find the temp GFI, there's no code requiring that, that I know of.
Enough already. Had to vent. Just surely glad I don't have to work in his jurisdiction again!!!
[ March 15, 2005, 11:07 PM: Message edited by: georgestolz ]
