Receptacle height near gas water heater.

[Kg808]

Another C-10 and myself had a discussion today while roughing in a residential garage with a gas water heater. The client wanted some receptacles at regular level (16” top of box) and some at 48”. The other C10 (who was the prime on the job) mentioned I was wrong and that I installed the receptacles against NEC requirements. That since there was a gas appliance with a constant pilot light I needed to have the receptacles be at least 18” to bottom of box.

I know the water heaters are elevated, but is there a code for the same requirement on receptacles??

i have never heard this, or seen this. I have combed through my 2014 code book as well as doing online research and can find nothing against receptacle height in this case. Other than maybe the commercial garage requirement.

so while I changed my box height because it wasn’t worth an on site code book challenge, was this really a code violation?

Thanks as always!

 

[kwired]

No not a violation. 18" off the floor leaves me thinking he was confused with some commercial garages where the area up to 18" above the floor is a hazardous location. This doesn't apply to a residential garage, nor does the presence of the gas water heater create a hazardous location. Gas isn't expected to escape from such a water during normal operation or even during somewhat normal malfunctions of such an appliance.

 

[jumper]

No not a violation. 18" off the floor leaves me thinking he was confused with some commercial garages where the area up to 18" above the floor is a hazardous location. This doesn't apply to a residential garage, nor does the presence of the gas water heater create a hazardous location. Gas isn't expected to escape from such a water during normal operation or even during somewhat normal malfunctions of such an appliance.

Agree.

 

[infinity]

Agree too. Hear this quite often about dwelling garage receptacles need to be above 18".

 

[drcampbell]

.... 18" off the floor leaves me thinking he was confused with some commercial garages where the area up to 18" above the floor is a hazardous location. This doesn't apply to a residential garage, nor does the presence of the gas water heater create a hazardous location. Gas isn't expected to escape from such a water [heater] ...

Where applicable, the first 18 inches are a hazardous location because of gasoline vapors escaping from parked vehicles, not natural gas escaping from a water heater. Natural gas is lighter than air; gasoline vapors are heavier than air.

That's largely obsolete now, because modern vehicles are equipped with sealed fuel tanks and vapor-recovery systems that prevent gasoline vapors from escaping.

 

[kwired]

Where applicable, the first 18 inches are a hazardous location because of gasoline vapors escaping from parked vehicles, not natural gas escaping from a water heater. Natural gas is lighter than air; gasoline vapors are heavier than air.

That's largely obsolete now, because modern vehicles are equipped with sealed fuel tanks and vapor-recovery systems that prevent gasoline vapors from escaping.

Propane water heater would introduce more of a hazard at the floor level, but the point I was trying to make is that they don't ordinarily leak gas during operation, which doesn't cause any hazardous location to be associated with them at all. Even if a pilot light goes out they detect that in short time and minimal gas leaks before it's supply is shut off.

Automobiles - maybe older vehicles did have more escaping vapors as a normal thing, Inspectors around here don't seem to care what kind of fuel is used in the vehicles being repaired. Most all major repair garages they seem to consider to have classified area even though NEC doesn't exactly say all of them are. They seem to take that "what if approach" Place may be a diesel truck repair place, but that one gasoline powered car that possibly happens to come in between every couple hundred trucks or even the occasional repair on the facilities lawn mower makes the difference, yet people make similar repairs at residential garages all the time - we should see many more fires started in residential garages because of this classified area if they are right about the danger here shouldn't we??