Receptacle spacing
- Thread starter augie47
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I do wish I had a job I could do that on because once you enter the real world where devices take up space and are not a theoretical point it would work I will give you that. Of course on most jobs Id probably be fired if I did it
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So you don't use a cut in box or use blocking between the studs on a 12' wall so the receptacle will be perfectly centered at 6' from each end?
Cause if you mount a box to the side of an existing stud without anything else, the 6' dead center will never take place on a standard framed wall of this length.
JAP>
So why waste time and money on 2 outlets when you could add blocking and just use one as you had suggested earlier?
Now who's laughing.
JAP>
Correct.If it is an inside corner, you could use a single floor receptacle placed in the corner, 18" off each wall.
If it's an outside corner, I don't think it is possible.
Cheers, Wayne
JFletcher
Senior Member
- Location
- Williamsburg, VA
"Food for thought" question:
Residence has a 12 ft wall space between door openings and the only receptacle is a duplex mounted at 5' AFF which will power a flat screen.
Common sense dictates a more easily accessible receptacle is needed but what about a Code reference ?
210.52(A)(1) states "no point measured horizontally along the floor line in any wall space is more than 6 ft from a receptacle outlet". Does that cover this situation ? Does that measurement mean literally on the floor ?
If so, adding a duplex receptacle 18" AFF would not technically resolve the problem on a 12 ft wall as the 18" AF would make it slightly over 6' along the floor line
I think it meets the wording of the code but is a **** design to have one receptacle behind a flatscreen serving a 12' wall. I'd probably one run receptacle at 18" AFF under the TV recep (provided no entertainment center was supposed to go there) and jump it from the TV recep... at least that's what I'd do if the inspector dinged the 1st install.
210.52(A)(2) does not mention the real world diagonal measurement from receptacle to floor point. If the recep is 18" AFF, then 6' away on the floor gives a hypotenuse of 6.18' or 6'2.2". A recep at 5.5' AFF gives a hypotenuse of 8.14' or 8' 1.68". Doesnt matter tho since both are over 6' cord lengths. Only way one outlet can serve a 12' wall w/o requiring a longer than 6' cord would be to mount it dead center horizontally in the baseboard (eta: or raise the plane of the object needing power to the same plane as the receptacle).
Exactly. The contractor balked at adding a receptacle as the one at 5 ft was centered on the wall. He asked for a Code reference. Since there is no "common sense Article" the inspector was looking for a reference to require the receptacle.
JFletcher
Senior Member
- Location
- Williamsburg, VA
I would have had 2 receptacles on that wall plus the TV receptacle; that one for the TV is going to be useless as "general use" as the TV plus something else will be plugged into it all the time, and moving a flatscreen or snaking up behind it with all the attendant mess of LE/comm wiring to plug in something isnt happening.
Real world, that wall would be 12'6 anyway needing 2 receptacles.
wwhitney
Senior Member
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- Berkeley, CA
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- Retired
Agreed, so as a result the hypotenuse measurements are immaterial, code-wise, even though they would matter for a real power cord.
I take the wording "measured horizontally along the floor line" to mean that all points (including the receptacle locations) should be projected onto the floor line before measuring the distance.
Cheers, Wayne
Now hold it.
Your explanation of the measurement makes too much sense.
The 1st 5 posts say specifically that's not the way you measure the distance, and now it is?
210.52(a)(2) does not mention that that's not the way it's supposed to be measured either, so is it a free for all and we're just going by what the accepted interpretation is?
JAP>
How do you take it to mean that ?
The receptacle in question is not on the floor line. The measurement for the point of origin is.
It does not say to a point on the floor that is projected downward to the floor line from the centerline of the receptacle.
JAP>
JFletcher
Senior Member
- Location
- Williamsburg, VA
LOL
The code measures single plane, straight line horizontal distance. A single duplex receptacle under 5.5' mounted dead center in a 12' straight wall is compliant as I read 210.52(A)(2).
In the real world, it's wholly inadequate*, especially if that receptacle is mounted 5' up and more or less dedicated to a TV. That effectively leaves that wall without a receptacle despite it being code compliant, hence why I'd have 3 rececptacles on that wall as mentioned above.
*If this were, say, an office waiting room, the lack of a receptacle there could pose little problem; the only thing it would likely be used for is a vacuum, a vac with a 25' cord in a room with numerous other receptacles. In a residence, a lack of receptacle there could be much more a headache.
wwhitney
Senior Member
- Location
- Berkeley, CA
- Occupation
- Retired
I take the phrase "measured along the floor line" to mean that your measuring tape (or other device) must be placed along the floor line. So the only way to measure to/from points not on the floor line itself is by projecting the point to the floor line.
The notion of projecting a point to a straight line is well defined. For a point on a wall surface directly above the floor line, you just drop the point down vertically until you hit the floor line (assuming the floor line is level). Which is how the section is commonly understood.
Cheers, Wayne
I agree with the measurement "Measured along the floor line" meaning to define the first point you measure from.
The 2nd part in the code which actually reads "From a Receptacle Outlet" turning into "The point on the wall surface directly above the floor line where you had dropped a plumb point down vertically until you hit the floor line at which point is the 2nd point"
is where it all gets a little fuzzy for me.
Must have been an agreement the CMP made at a card game one night after a few cold one's .
JAP>
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