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Friday, June 30, 2017
Question:
Years ago I watched a Tom Henry study video. He went over torquing and stated it's the first thing he checked when inspecting house fires. I was sold immediately. What bothers me the most is the utility companies landing the line side of my meter with a taped up socket wrench and hammering it till the lugs almost break off the plastic. I've tried torquing breakers, neutral and ground lugs but it takes too much time in the residential world. With all of the different specs for wire sizes I spent more time adjusting the screwdriver than landing the panel. But if you've never torqued a breaker before you would be amazed at how much force it takes to get to the required inch pounds. Keep up the good work!
Eric Gooding
A
Answer:
Hey Eric thanks for your comment and the compliment. You are correct that torqueing of terminations is a very important for electrical installations - even if it does take more time. That utilities practice you mention bothers me also. Previously torqueing of terminations was required by 110.3(B) as part of the listing instructions. A new 110.14(D) in the 2017 NEC requires that a calibrated torque tool be used where manufacturers provide a torque value.