Wiring recptcl & switch technique -- legal?

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augie47 said:
I know one electrician that wires the entire branch circuit without making a joint. He folds his NM at the box and never cuts. When he goes to install the devices he cuts off the outer jacket, then skins back insulation on each conductor to wrap the connection around the screw.
:grin:
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That sounds insane. He has to fold the wire in have (literally) to push the cable through the box openings. On plastic boxes I would bet that is no easy task. I wonder about the bending radius of the wire doing that?
 
augie47 said:
before I get off my soapbox:
I know one electrician that wires the entire branch circuit without making a joint. He folds his NM at the box and never cuts. :grin:
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So how do you adress the conductor count:grin:
 
Back to OP. We used to leave a conductor long and strip it in say 3 places on a 3 gang. I prefer not to do that anymore, but I don't see anything wrong with it.
 
It seems after thinking ,..and reading way too much on this issue, that this practice of wrapping around the terminal screw is acceptable, as I can't find anything that conclusively prohibits it .

I still have a bit of an issue with the hazard of a bare current carrying conductor jumping between devices though
 
M. D. said:
One more crack,.. what do you think of 300.14 in regard to this practice??
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You can still have the 6" and then begin the loop. I have done so many times. I have also done it with 3 and 4 gang switch boxes. The wire is left unbroken but still has 6" or more before the first loop.

I am not sure that stripping the conductor less than 6" would matter as long as the conductor extended 6" uncut
 
So Dennis, we have 6'' of free conductor to the first switch then looped to the next this looped wire feeding switch number two is not require to be a certain length for device removal and such? .. I guess not :rolleyes:
 
Just a few days ago i wired 12 single pole switches in one box .I had 1 hot wire loop all the way and did same with ground and 12 switch legs.Looks a lot better than a big blue wire nut with 12 pigtails.Very little chance of a short.
 
M. D. said:
I still have a bit of an issue with the hazard of a bare current carrying conductor jumping between devices though
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First off, it wouldn't be bare.
Second, what about all the terminals on the devices themselves?
And third it really is a pain in the rear when you have to work in a box with this setup.
 
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electricmanscott said:
I didn't agree with anything you said in this thread until now. :)
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Ha ,Ha ,Ha very funny:roll: ,,Yeah,I don't have much to do today, the wife left me and the kids this weekend,...she is off with her five sisters partying in Maine.
 
electricmanscott said:
First off, it wouldn't be bare.
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Well the O.P. states that it is bare for what seems to be three inches and Bob does not think the N.E.C. prohibits it, so it just might be .:roll:

So laugh all you want but if I picked up the device box and it said strip 5/8 of an inch and joe took off what looks like 3" I think I would try to talk to him,... then I might chuck 110.(3)(B) at him... this kind of installtion is a hazard.
 
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M. D. said:
Well the O.P. states that it is bare for what seems to be three inches and Bob does not think the N.E.C. prohibits it, so it just might be .:roll:
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Could be. I pictured it differently. The way I have seen it done is to take the long hot conductor, strip small 3/4" sections and wrap those bare areas around the terminals.

Again I din't see a problem with it but I do hate when I open up a box and have to deal with it. I will usually cut it out and pigtail some leads.
 
electricmanscott said:
Could be. I pictured it differently. The way I have seen it done is to take the long hot conductor, strip small 3/4" sections and wrap those bare areas around the terminals.

Again I din't see a problem with it but I do hate when I open up a box and have to deal with it. I will usually cut it out and pigtail some leads.
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Do you see a problem with bare current carring conductors employed as I describe it and as described it the O.P.??? Just curious
 
I just reread op and it does seem like he is saying bare from first device to second.I have a problem with that even if it is legal.One long wire striped every 6 inches for 3/4 inch i do like for the simple reason that it takes up less space and no junctions.Will admit it could be a pain to replace a device.
 
M. D. said:
Well the O.P. states that it is bare for what seems to be three inches and Bob does not think the N.E.C. prohibits it, so it just might be .:roll:

So laugh all you want but if I picked up the device box and it said strip 5/8 of an inch and joe took off what looks like 3" I think I would try to talk to him,... then I might chuck 110.(3)(B) at him... this kind of installtion is a hazard.
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M.D., first off I think the op may be saying 3 inches when in fact that is probably an over statement. I believe he was saying it was stripped to go around the screw.

5/8 inch is the strip gauge for inserting into the back of the device not for looping around the screw.

Are you saying if I strip 3/4" it is a violation???? 5/8" won't make it around the screw and clear the insulation.
 
We have used this method for years, including leaving loops for hooking up multiple keyless fixtures or hooking up pullchains (when we used to use them)with more than one feed in the box. Only an idiot would loop between devices with bare wire and think he/she wasn't going to have a problem.
 
Dennis Alwon said:
M.D., first off I think the op may be saying 3 inches when in fact that is probably an over statement. I believe he was saying it was stripped to go around the screw.

5/8 inch is the strip gauge for inserting into the back of the device not for looping around the screw.

Are you saying if I strip 3/4" it is a violation???? 5/8" won't make it around the screw and clear the insulation.
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It will if you tighten it up with strippers first,but i never got called over it being a little over
 
Dennis Alwon said:
M.D., first off I think the op may be saying 3 inches when in fact that is probably an over statement. I believe he was saying it was stripped to go around the screw.

5/8 inch is the strip gauge for inserting into the back of the device not for looping around the screw.

Are you saying if I strip 3/4" it is a violation???? 5/8" won't make it around the screw and clear the insulation.
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" the original installer stripped a portion of the incoming ungrounded conductor about half-way along its length in the box, probably about 3 inches now exposed in the segment."

Seems pretty straight forward to me. Perhaps "lordofpi" can confirm

The "side wire" instructions for side wiring on a 15 amp duplex receptacle from Leviton calls for "about 5/8 " stripped and 3/4 around the screw. .

I would not get too fussy with it being 3/4 stripped and all the way around the screw,... hell I admitt that it is an acceptable practice to loop through,... but 3" stripped and it jumping bare is over the top and I would cite 110.3(b) if reasoning were to fail.
 
lordofpi said:
. When two or more switches and or duplex receptacles exist in a box fed from the same circuit, the original installer stripped a portion of the incoming ungrounded conductor about half-way along its length in the box, probably about 3 inches now exposed in the segment. This portion was then looped around the screw terminal, and then the very same wire continues to feed the other switch/receptacle in the box.
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Do we still have the required free conductor??
 
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