Jim Katen

Richard & Kurt covered the answer to this pretty well. I'll just add that having double tapped neutrals makes it hard to isolate the circuit when you need to work on it in the future. - Jim Katen, Oregon

It depends on what you want the CO alarm to tell you. After all, it isn't really a "false reading," you're just percieving it as a nuisance. If that was a standard-issue alarm that went off near the water heater, I'd be concerned. They only sound when exposed to CO for quite a while. - Jim Katen, Oregon

They *are* AFCIs. That's not the issue. Look behind them at the neutral terminal bar. There's a whole row of double-tapped neutrals. - Jim Katen, Oregon

That's not required. It might be a local custom kind of thing or someone's idea of a "workmanlike" practice. I think you're right there. A Texan buys a round of drinks for all in the bar because, he announces, his wife has just produced "a typical Texas baby boy weighing 25 pounds." Congratulations shower him from all around, and many exclamations of "Wow!" is heard. A woman faints due to sympathy pains. Two weeks later, he returns to the bar. The bartender says, "Say, you're the father of the typical Texas baby that weighed 25 pounds at birth. How much does he weigh now?" The proud father answers, "Seventeen pounds." The bartender is puzzled, concerned. "Why? What happened? He already weighed 25 pounds at birth." The Texas father takes a slow swig from his long neck Lone Star, wipes his lips on his shirtsleeve, leans into the bartender and proudly says, "Had him circumcised." - Jim Katen, Oregon

I can't tell you about "in need of repair." That phrase has a very specific meaning in Texas. However, the double-tapped neutrals in your picture are wrong. The panel's UL listing doesn't recognize that use of the equipment and the 2002 NEC, section 408.21 says: Grounded Conductor Terminations. Each grounded conductor shall terminate within the panelboard in an individual terminal that is not also used for another conductor. The condition is exactly the same as double-tapping a breaker that isn't rated for it. Bad form, but low-risk. - Jim Katen, Oregon

It depends on the size of the SEC. If it's rated for 225 amps (3-0 copper or 250kcmil aluminum), I'd say it's fine for a 225-amp service. If the SEC is too small, then I'd say that the main breaker's too big. Remember that a class 200 electric meter is actually rated for a maximum load of 250 amps. The "200" designation is 80% of its maximum capacity, often called its "continuous rating" because it's rated to pass 80% of its full load "continuously." It's the same thing with Class 320 meters. They're usually installed in 400-amp services. - Jim Katen, Oregon

But did you test the CO at the draft hood? If the pilot is causing 5ppm throughout the whole house, that's a hell of a balancing act. I think it's something else. Good hunting. It should only take a few weeks to figure it out. BTW, just for fun, I measured the CO in my water heater's flue with only the pilot on -- 2ppm. Then I lit a candle from our blackout kit and measured the air ten inches above it -- 26ppm. There are lots and lots of things in addition to the water heater that you should be suspecting. (Did you ever measure the CO emitted by an electric oven during its cleaning cycle?) - Jim Katen, Oregon

You're probably remembering that old BX cable had a bonding wire that was supposed to be terminated outside the box -- kind of like what your picture shows. With that method, the bonding wire was only there to ensure continuity of the armor, which itself provided the ground path. With NM cable, the grounding wires *are* the ground path. I'd recommend fixing the mess in your picture whether they were going to upgrade the panel or not. - Jim Katen

I guess it depends. If you're talking about #14, #12 & #10 wires in a breaker box, I can't imagine why someone would think a splice covered with only electrical tape would be more desirable than a simple wire nut. If you're talking about putting electrician's tape *over* the wire nuts, I don't see how it can hurt, but it's certainly not necessary. OTOH, if you're fixin' to splice, say, the 4-0 aluminum service wires with big ol' split bolts then, yes, you'll be wantin' to wrap them with a heapin' helping of electrician's tape. (Or a condom that's listed for that purpose.) (Notice how I translated that last paragraph into Texan for you.) If you want to talk chapter & verse, I'll fall back on my favorite all purpose section -- 110-3(b). - The Reverend Jim

Terry, I don't have any experience with copper-clad aluminum, but I have a deep distrust of aluminum wiring in general, be it old or new alloy. One of my wife's co-workers recently had his house burn to the ground. The fire was traced to the home's aluminum wiring. I think that if I were to find a house with it, I'd say something like: The house is wired with copper-clad aluminum wire. This is an obsolete product and a possible fire hazard. Find an electrician who's experienced in working with it and pay him whatever it takes to ensure that the home's wiring is safe. My favorite oral comment upon finding aluminum wiring: Wow! This house has aluminum wiring. Y'know, you don't see too many of these, they've mostly burned down by now. - Jim in Oregon

Michael, I am shocked. Shocked and appalled that you would say such a thing. Blue light sales are a *K-Mart* thing. Not a WalMart thing. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I've seen the ones with brass covers that flip up and ones with screw-on brass covers. Recently I've seen plastic versions. In each, there's a faceplate that prevents touching the nasty parts. I've never seen one with foam. (Maybe it's a Texas thang.) If I had to make up a name I'd probably call it a "protective gasket." - Jim Katen, Oregon

First of all, air is only about 20% oxygen. (It's mostly nitrogen.) The difference in weight between CO and air is very slight. Next, gases tend to diffuse into each other anyway, regardless of their weights. (Do you hear about people getting worried about the oxygen in a room floating to the top and the nitrogen settling to the bottom?) There's no valid scientific reason to put them high or low. If you wanted the earliest possible warning, I suppose you should put them in the place where you suspect the gas will originate, like in the airstream of a supply register. If you wanted the greatest safety level for the occupants, you'd suspend them in front of the occupants' faces. - Jim Katen, Oregon

Just quote Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8 (or the Byrds) and hand her an extension cord. I'm a tad weak in this area. You want to get Cramer to answer this one for sure. One thing I do know for sure, however, is that the receptacle's grounding terminal had better not *only* go to the ground rod. There *must* be a real, honest-to-goodness wire that, eventually, leads back to the neutral terminal bar at the service. As for adding supplementary grounding rods near the pool, I don't see why that would be bad; current doesn't normally travel on those things, they're just there to dissipate surges from lightning & such. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I'd guess 1978, though it could be 1982. (In York coding, H=1978, M=1982) The picture doesn't look like rollout. More like the small amount of spillage that happens sometimes at startup. After 20+ years of this, you'll see rust in this area. That in itself isn't a big deal. Another very strong possibility is that the faceplates are cracked. Did you remove that flame shield? If not, turn around and bang your head against the wall three times. The faceplates on that furnace are separating the combustion chamber from the circulating room air. A crack in the faceplate on this particular furnace is just like a crack in a heat exchanger. That's why I like old York furnaces. No handwringing or waffling. Just take off two screws, point out the cracks and condemn the furnace. - Jim Katen, Oregon

Vulcrum, Schmulcrum. Whatever the hell it is, it's installed wrong. Put the bear on his back. Tell him to produce the installation instructions. - Jim Katen, Oregon

You'll have to try harder than that to look like a dummy. It was a perfectly reasonable question. But feel free to keep trying. - Jim Katen, Oregon

*Some* natural gas contains sulfur compounds that can deteriorate copper. But that has nothing to do with propane. Copper is fine for that. Around here it's standard. - Jim Katen, Oregon

Well, you're definitely going to include it in your report to your clients. I don't see anything wrong with telling the people who live in the home. However with a crack like that, I usually don't bother. Calling the gas utility is overreaching. The thing about cracked heat exchangers is that they're really not the big bad wolf that a lot of inspectors seem to imagine. They rarely contribute CO to the household air in significant quantities. When you hear about people getting sick from CO or being killed by it, it's almost always a venting problem, not a small crack in a heat exchanger. Now when you start talking about fist-sized cracks or holes, that's a different matter. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I drive an '02 Honda CRV. For the rural environment I cover, it's been excellent. However, there are certain features I miss. So I'll be replacing it with a Bradley Fighting Vehicle. A good selection of ordnance is *so* necessary these days. - Jim Katen, Oregon

Dave, It might not be unacceptable. The NEC isn't as cut & dry as we home inspectors might like. If a few conditions are met, you might be able to apply the 75-degree column from Table 310-16 in which case the #6 aluminum wire can safely serve a 50-amp circuit. First of all, if it's a motor circuit like a well pump or AC unit, it's probably fine. Second, if the aluminum cable is Romex (NM), you can't use the 75-degree column. You must use the 60-degree column. In this case, the breaker would be too large. (Or the cable too small.) However *if* it's an SE cable and *if* the breaker is dual rated for 60/75-degrees and *if* the equipment terminations are dual rated at 60/75-degrees, then it's probably ok. (I've noticed that most equipment terminals have been dual rated for the past 10-15 years.) All this is in 110-14©(1). So, if you really want to make a determination about proper ampacity in the field, start taking apart those equipment terminations and get out your magnifying glass to read the temperature ratings on them. Also, if you really, really want to go by the book, don't forget to derate the conductors if they go through a hot attic. Personally (and I'm not recommending you do this, it's just what I do) if I see SE cable, I use the 75-degree ratings. If I see NM cable, I use the 60-degree ratings. And frankly, when you get right down to it, 10 extra amps on a #6 aluminum wire isn't going to make it warm let alone start any fires. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I'll try. Nothing wrong so far. You don't mention whether or not there's a bonding wire to connect the water pipes to the grounding system at the service. It should be there. It's ok to connect the sub-panel's grounding bus to the water pipe, but it can't replace the grounding wire that goes back to the service panel. So, if there were four wires between the service panel and the sub-panel *plus* the wire to the water pipe, that's fine. There's nothing wrong with connecting the grounding system to the earth at multiple locations. Around here, it's downright common to see this when there've been additions to a house. However, these connections can't *replace* the connections that are required at the service. - Jim Katen, Oregon

That's not a beam. It's a post. Yes. It's fine to notch it. I'd be more comfortable, though, if it were connected to the girder with bolts that went all the way through, not just lag screws. - Jim Katen, Oregon

Danny, I'll ask around and find out whether or not multiple panels assembled together constitute a switchboard. (Though I doubt it.) In any case, it wouldn't apply in Donald's photo anyway. That's clearly a plain vanilla, dime-a-dozen panelboard. - Jim Katen, Oregon

I've never seen one anywhere else. Why would I call it out? - Jim Katen, Oregon