NEMA rating or UL listing requirement for enclosure

[teejer]

A customer of ours wants to buy a steel cabinet we make to use as a housing for a UL listed pond aerator and UL listed Ventilation fan. Our steel cabinet is not UL listed.

Under 682.10 of the NEC, it states:

Electrical Equipment and transformers, including their enclosures, shall be specifically approved for intended location...

The definition of approved under the NEC is :

Approved: acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction

This seems to rule out the necessity of UL listing in this situation, right? It seems like ?approved? is a subjective term here. Do we have to bring it up to any standard, like NEMA 3R since the aerator and the ventilation fan need a verifiable dry location? I know that the NEMA standards are voluntary, but there is some spray testing necessary to prove that it is weatherproof for NEMA 3R. We are trying to avoid any testing by UL or someone else, but if it is required then, we will do it. What is the right course of action here? The customer who wants to buy the cabinet from us says that none of his competitors have their enclosure UL listed or NEMA rated, but that isn't a good enough reason for me. Thanks in advance for your replies.

 

[George Stolz]

I think the interior of most 3R enclosures installed outdoors are considered damp locations on the interior of the enclosure, hence the presence of weepholes to discharge condensation, IMO.

 

[petersonra]

One could also argue that the NEC might not apply to such a piece of equipment in the first place.

Why would anyone make a GP enclosure that was not UL listed in the first place?

 

[Rockyd]

The definition of approved under the NEC is :

Approved: acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction

Have you talked to anyone at the AHJ?

If they are willing to except it, might pay to get it in writing from the AHJ.

Then again, if it's a no fly, you at least know where you stand in the AHJ's eyes, before there is any outlay of serious cash in this direction - or an opportunity to fix whatever the perceived problems are that exist, and seal the deal.