Multiple circuits to "structure"

W

wkent

Member
Location
Kansas
Occupation
Engineer
From time to time we run into designing a park shelter and bath house. Typically the city/town will want many receptacles and a few lights in what is a 4 post shelter that is maybe 20x20. Many times we have a bath house or maintenance building within 20-30' of the shelter that we feed circuits from. We typically just circuit the receptacles to the bath house and no one ever knows or questions if it is compliant with 225.30. Many times the park may be full of similar and existing structures that are fed from a panel located at a service wireway adjacent to a small pad mounted transformer which feeds all sorts of things in the park from lights, to plugs, to PA systems, etc.

In my mind there isnt anything different to having a dedicated plug on each of 4 columns any different or dangerous than "complying" in a passive aggressive way and placing a plug on a post just outside the "structure".

Am i missing something about what the danger is and its really just the NEC trying to codify something that doesnt really have a good way to define structure that cant be abused? Weve done public vendor areas in parks around ballfields that simply have a post or other unistrut structure for vendors to plug into power at each location. I dont really see any difference, but maybe I'm missing something or some concept. Ive never been questioned about this by any AHJ or electrical contractor, but i think its a code violation by the letter but perhaps not the spirit of the NEC.
 
Most shelters around here have a panel. Many shelters around here will have a cluster of receptacles in the area where setting up a food table makes sense. Each receptacle is on its own 20A breaker, to handle the forest of crock pots that appears for family reunions.
 
I'm being argumentative, but what is the difference from a safety standpoint having a small single phase transformer with a meter and panel on a unistrut rack 30' from a 20'x20' four post "shelter" as opposed to putting this exact same panel and trying to find a way to mount this panel on a 6x6 tube steel column and having conduits in and out running up/down these columns, instead of having conduit pop up at the base of each column from the panel 30' away in the grass. Sometimes these shelters in a city park are prefab purchased by the city and contractor installed, and i can guarantee you the prefab people have no clue about this requirement (and they will just tell you you get what you get). Putting a panel on a 6x6 tube steel looks horrible, and in my opinion causes more problems with users trying to get in a locked panel, hanging stuff from it during parties, setting a beer on top of it, etc, etc... I get the community here will say "put in the panel", but it really rubs me raw.
 
wkent said:
I'm being argumentative, but what is the difference from a safety standpoint having a small single phase transformer with a meter and panel on a unistrut rack 30' from a 20'x20' four post "shelter" as opposed to putting this exact same panel and trying to find a way to mount this panel on a 6x6 tube steel column and having conduits in and out running up/down these columns, instead of having conduit pop up at the base of each column from the panel 30' away in the grass. Sometimes these shelters in a city park are prefab purchased by the city and contractor installed, and i can guarantee you the prefab people have no clue about this requirement (and they will just tell you you get what you get). Putting a panel on a 6x6 tube steel looks horrible, and in my opinion causes more problems with users trying to get in a locked panel, hanging stuff from it during parties, setting a beer on top of it, etc, etc... I get the community here will say "put in the panel", but it really rubs me raw.
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Well, one difference would be, without the rule for one feeder or one branch circuit to feed a structure that would limit the number of throws to completely shut the power off, one could have 8 individual circuits on each of the 8 support legs, 1- from the Maintenance Shed,1 from the restroom, 1 from the City Hall, 1- from the Police Station, 1- from the Fire Station, 1- from the Church, 1- from the Bank, and 1- from the Post office,,,,

Who would want to deal with all that nonsense? :)

Jap>
 
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