# Found this gem yesterday...



## Archania (Mar 16, 2009)

I have worked on this cottage a few times, but never got down to this end until yesterday... The real scary part is that the romex on the left went to an outlet in the bathroom that of course wasn't grounded!!!








then the after pic...


----------



## Greg (Aug 1, 2007)

Is that NMC? My interpretation would have that as a damp location, which NM is not allowed. But at least it is safer that the previous install and the recept. is grounded.


----------



## Archania (Mar 16, 2009)

Its actually very dry, surprisingly. So I wouldn't consider it a damp location, or else I would have run some conduit...


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

Greg said:


> Is that NMC? My interpretation would have that as a damp location, which NM is not allowed. But at least it is safer that the previous install and the recept. is grounded.


if thats the case, they would have to rewire every house in New Orleans...almost every house is raised , and there is nm-b run underneath...thats ridiculous to even consider that a wet or damp location


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Absolutely mind-boggling. They didn't even wrap the wirenuts with tape!


----------



## Archania (Mar 16, 2009)

Ha! one wirenut I took off, the wire broke off!! Whoever did that twisted the hell out of the wires... Not like it makes it legal if you twist them really good though!


----------



## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

i hate crawl spaces


----------



## Noe (Apr 7, 2009)

Just curious...are those cables run along the ground?:001_huh:


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

I wonder if that metal plate between the post and beam can build up a nice 120v charge........


----------



## william1978 (Sep 21, 2008)

Wow I've seen several jobs like that one. Do it yourselfer


----------



## ampman (Apr 2, 2009)

the h.o. saved 2 cents buying thhn instead of romex


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

ampman said:


> the h.o. saved 2 cents buying thhn instead of romex


Only if they were going to buy 3 times as much romex as the 3times as much THHN that was used.:thumbsup:


----------



## Greg (Aug 1, 2007)

NolaTigaBait said:


> if thats the case, they would have to rewire every house in New Orleans...almost every house is raised , and there is nm-b run underneath...thats ridiculous to even consider that a wet or damp location



Just looking at def. that's all. The few crawl spaces I've been in, is wet. It's hard to find dry ground in Florida even in the sand ridge area of the state. I just like to go the extra step to avoid call backs.


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

You dig that piece of romex up out of the back yard before you used it? It looks like it's been through the war.


----------



## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

its amazing what you find in crawl spaces. i had to fix many flying splices because of hacks through out the century


----------



## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

i hate handy boxes as well


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

electricalperson said:


> i hate handy boxes as well


i swear, i was thinking the same thing


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

Greg said:


> Just looking at def. that's all. The few crawl spaces I've been in, is wet. It's hard to find dry ground in Florida even in the sand ridge area of the state. I just like to go the extra step to avoid call backs.


what would you do?...use nm-c...or uf?????...


----------



## running dummy (Mar 19, 2009)

whyd you change it?  looked fine to me ha ha ha


----------



## John (Jan 22, 2007)

MDShunk said:


> You dig that piece of romex up out of the back yard before you used it? It looks like it's been through the war.


If it was through the war it would be fuzzy and silver colored not yellow...at least it may be from this century. Plus I would label it "Sloppy Seconds".:laughing:


----------



## John (Jan 22, 2007)

NolaTigaBait said:


> i swear, i was thinking the same thing


There is nothing wrong with handy boxes....they are handy ain't they.:whistling2:


----------



## Greg (Aug 1, 2007)

NolaTigaBait said:


> what would you do?...use nm-c...or uf?????...


NMC in a pinch, but more than likely pipe. I always try to up sell.


----------



## seo (Oct 28, 2008)

MDShunk said:


> You dig that piece of romex up out of the back yard before you used it? It looks like it's been through the war.


I was thinking the same thing but didn't want to say it. You can get more for it by installing it than selling it as scrap.


----------



## Archania (Mar 16, 2009)

ha, I know the romex doesn't look good... Its a scrap piece I had...


----------



## MF Dagger (Dec 24, 2007)

Monday I used up the very last chunk of 14-2 I had on the truck and the last of my 1/2" EMT. I had maybe 5 inches of scrap wire and I didn't even have to cut the emt. I'll chime in that I hate handy boxes too. Except the two gang ones work out nice for dryer outlets sometimes.


----------



## user4818 (Jan 15, 2009)

All kidding aside for a moment, how is free air THHN any different than knob and tube?


----------



## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

Peter D said:


> All kidding aside for a moment, how is free air THHN any different than knob and tube?


 not too different besides being tied to knobs and insulated from the wood


----------



## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

Two people have mentioned NM-C so far, but I was always under the impression that it doesn't even exist in the marketplace. Is it a specialized product, only available in certain regions? Or, are you just going by the NEC, and assuming that it actually exists?


----------



## MF Dagger (Dec 24, 2007)

Peter D said:


> All kidding aside for a moment, how is free air THHN any different than knob and tube?


Less brittle.


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

Peter D said:


> All kidding aside for a moment, how is free air THHN any different than knob and tube?


THHN w/o a raceway isn't a NEC-recognized wiring method.


----------



## user4818 (Jan 15, 2009)

480sparky said:


> THHN w/o a raceway isn't a NEC-recognized wiring method.



No kidding. 

My point was that I don't see the danger other than the lack of an EGC.


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

> Or, are you just going by the NEC, and assuming that it actually exists?


i've never seen it, i'm assuming it exists


----------



## kbsparky (Sep 20, 2007)

NolaTigaBait said:


> what would you do?...use nm-c...or uf?????...


Is there any difference between the 2? :blink:


----------



## B4T (Feb 10, 2009)

*Beware of swamp thing.....*

I'm curious about romex in a damp location. It's plastic and won't melt like a lollipop.. or is that "chainsaw swinging" swamp thing living in damp crawl spaces now :laughing:


----------



## NolaTigaBait (Oct 19, 2008)

kbsparky said:


> Is there any difference between the 2? :blink:


 i guess you can't bury nm-c


----------



## LGLS (Nov 10, 2007)

MDShunk said:


> You dig that piece of romex up out of the back yard before you used it? It looks like it's been through the war.


He USED to tie the ladder to the roof rack with that! :jester:


----------



## micromind (Aug 11, 2007)

I'm just guessing here, but it sounds a lot like something the code would require. 

If NM cable is 60C, and NM-B is 90C, possibly NM-C is 105C? 

If the above is correct, then Uncle Gomers solution to a breaker tripping (put a 30 in it) would actually be somewhat safer!!

Just a thought.

Rob


----------



## 480sparky (Sep 20, 2007)

micromind said:


> I'm just guessing here, but it sounds a lot like something the code would require.
> 
> If NM cable is 60C, and NM-B is 90C, possibly NM-C is 105C?
> 
> ...


It would have 90°C conductors. 334.112.


----------

