Frequently Asked Questions

Not really. For nearly all of the credits, plumbing, mechanical and electrical systems are excluded. This also applies to "Materials Reuse" and "Recycled Content". Although there may be some creative way to get an Innovation in Design credit, wire and cable are really not addressed in the basic LEED system.

NEMA has issued the following statement regarding wire and cable and the LEED rating system:

NEMA Bullletin 98 LEED Rating System

If you would like to learn more about LEED, go to www.usgbc.org.

No. The conductors within a Service Entrance Cable are not tested to the same standard as our Type XHHW-2 single conductor products. The service entrance cables are tested as an assembly according to UL 854, while our Type XHHW-2 conductors are tested individually according to UL 44. If the conductors are removed from the SE cable, they are no longer UL Listed. The entire service entrance cable can be pulled into conduit if the installation is aboveground. The conduit should be sized according to Chapter 9, Note 9 of the NEC.

There are many general and some specific code rules that apply to hotel and motel guest suites, here are the highlights:

1. 210.8(A)(1) requires GFCI protection for every 125-volt bathroom receptacle.
2. 410.10(D) contains bathtub and shower area lighting provisions.
3. 404.4 prohibits switches from being installed within tub or shower spaces unless part of a listed tub or shower assembly.
4. 210.52(H) states that hallways of less than 10 feet in length do not require a receptacle.
5. 210.70(B) requires at least one wall switch-controlled lighting outlet or receptacle must be installed in hotel, motel, or similar occupancy guest rooms or suites.
6. 210.52(A)(1) requires that receptacles be installed so that no point along the floor line in any wall space is more than 6 feet, measured horizontally, from an outlet in that space. (Note, 210.60(B)
may allow a greater distance due to permanent furniture layout.)
7. 210.60(A) requires that receptacle outlets be installed in accordance with 210.52(A) General Provisions and 210.52(D) Bathrooms. (If there are kitchen facilities present, 210.52(B) Small Appliances and (C) Countertops must also be followed.)
8. 210.52(D) requires that at least one wall receptacle be located within 36 inches of the outside edge of each basin, and this receptacle outlet must be located on a wall adjacent to the basin.
9. 210.60(B) requires that receptacles installed behind the bed must either be positioned so that the bed does not contact any installed attachment plug, or the receptacle must include a suitable guard.
10. 210.60(B) also requires that the total number of receptacle outlets must comply with the minimum number of receptacles provision of 210.52(A). However, these receptacle outlets can be located conveniently for permanent furniture layout.
11. 210.60(B) also requires that at least two receptacle outlets must be readily accessible.
12. 210.19(A)(2) requires that branch-circuit conductors supplying more than one receptacle for cord and plug-connected portable loads must have an ampacity at least equal to the rating of the branch circuit.

Since the language in 310.15(B)(6) changed in the 2008 NEC, there has been a great deal of confusion on how to size SE Cable for branch circuits and feeders. Even jurisdictions that have adopted the 2008 NEC are enforcing it in a variety of ways. Here are some common interpretations of the new language:

1. If the SE Cable is being used as a service cable, there is no change from previous practice. Continue to use the 75C column of Table 310.16, or use Table 310.15(B)(6) if it is a dwelling meeting the requirements of that section.

View Diagram SE1

2. If the SE Cable is being used as a "main power feeder" for a dwelling, use Table 310.15(B)(6). Note, however, that the language has changed in 2008, and this only applies to a single cable feeding a single panel that serves the entire dwelling and all associated loads (swimming pool, shop, etc.). This interpretation seems to be the most common, although many inspectors disagree with this restriction. Check with your local inspector if you need a formal interpretation.

View Diagram SE2
 
3. If the SE Cable is being used for any other type of interior feeder or branch circuit, the ampacity is limited to the 60C column of Table 310.16. However, note that 215.2(A)(3) states that: “Feeder conductors for individual dwelling units or mobile homes need not be larger than service conductors. Paragraph 310.15(B)(6) shall be permitted to be used for conductor size.”

View Diagram SE3        View Diagram SE4
 
4. If the SE Cable is being used as an exterior feeder or branch circuit, the ampacity is limited to the 75C column of Table 310.16. (Remember that SE Cable can not be used underground, even in a conduit.) However, note that 215.2(A)(3) states that: “Feeder conductors for individual dwelling units or mobile homes need not be larger than service conductors. Paragraph 310.15(B)(6) shall be permitted to be used for conductor size.”

View Diagram SE5

This requirement is not new for all installations, only for separate buildings on the same property, fed by feeders or branch circuits (NOT services, per the code definition).

2008 NEC 250.32(B)
(B) Grounded Systems. For a grounded system at the separate building or structure, an equipment grounding conductor as described in 250.118 shall be run with the supply conductors and be connected to the building or structure disconnecting means and to the grounding electrode(s). The equipment grounding conductor shall be used for grounding or bonding of equipment, structures, or frames required to be grounded or bonded. The equipment grounding
conductor shall be sized in accordance with 250.122. Any installed grounded conductor shall not be connected to the equipment grounding conductor or to the grounding electrode(s).

Also, note the exception for existing systems when you read the code. For the 2008 NEC, the panel switched the code requirement and the exception, which is why you are seeing the different requirement now.

For service applications, you do not need an equipment ground conductor (EGC). For feeder applications (including mobile home feeders), you do need an EGC.

Prior to the 2008 NEC, separate buildings or structures on a single property did not necessarily have to have an EGC. Now, the code is clear that they must have a separate EGC.

310.15(B)(6) allows a grounded (neutral) conductor smaller than the ungrounded (phase) conductors for a feeder to a separate building. If you follow all the code references, you end up at Table 250.66 as the minimum size for your neutral. However, this assumes that you have met all the requirements for the
types of loads to be fed, the voltage system requirements, etc.

Without knowing the specific installation it is safer to provide a full sized neutral and the appropriate EGC per Table 250.122.

Mobile home feeders are single-phase, 120/240 V residential systems. The requirements for a neutral conductor are found in various code articles, including 220.61 Feeder or Service Neutral Load. Feederrequirements for mobile homes are found in 550.33. 550.33 requires these feeders to comply with all therequirements of 310.15(B)(6) and 250.32(B). 310.15(B)(6) allows a grounded (neutral) conductor smallerthan the ungrounded (phase) conductors for a feeder to a separate building. 220.61 includes the methodfor calculating the feeder neutral load. The neutral size supplied with our mobile home feeder cable isconservatively sized based on expected loads found within mobile homes.