Phase coupler

[Al D. Bolt]

Is it appropriate to install phase couplers in electrical panels?

[Marc D. Shunk]

Yes, you can certainly compliantly install a phase coupler device in a panel as long as the gutter fill does not exceed 40% (which doesn't seem to be the case) and as long as the overcurrent device is appropriate (which it seems to be). You can install many things compliantly in the gutter space of a panel. The objection to a doorbell transformer is the low voltage wire inside the box without a barrier.

I guess my general feeling is that I wouldn't do it this way, but I'd be hard pressed to tell you why this is either non-compliant or unsafe. Just ugly. Some companies make phase couplers that mount on a 4-square and some that just plug in a receptacle. I'd go that route if it was me.

edit...spelling

[Al D. Bolt]

Thanks Marc.

[jtedesco1]

Originally Posted by abolt

Is it appropriate to install phase couplers in electrical panels?

NO
2008 NEC - 312.8 Enclosures for Switches or Overcurrent Devices.
Enclosures for switches or overcurrent devices shall not be used as junction boxes, auxiliary gutters, or raceways for conductors feeding through or tapping off to other switches or overcurrent devices, unless adequate space for this purpose is provided. The conductors shall not fill the wiring space at any cross section to more than 40 percent of the cross-sectional area of the space, and the conductors, splices, and taps shall not fill the wiring space at any cross section to more than 75 percent of the cross-sectional area of that space.
NECH HANDBOOK COMMENTARY
Most enclosures are intended to accommodate only those conductors connected to terminals for switches or overcurrent devices within the enclosures themselves. Where adequate space is provided for additional conductors, such as control circuits, the total conductor fill in the enclosure may not exceed 40 percent of the cross section of the wiring space in the enclosure and no more than 75 percent if splices or taps are necessary.

[Marc D. Shunk]

Originally Posted by jtedesco1

NO

I disagree, and I can do the math to prove it.

[jtedesco1]

Originally Posted by abolt

Is it appropriate to install phase couplers in electrical panels?

AGAIN NO!



110.3(B) Installation and Use. Listed or labeled equipment shall be installed and used in accordance with any instructions included in the listing or labeling.

[Marc D. Shunk]

Find me any panel instruction that prohibits items like a heating contactor or a phase coupler in the gutter space. Plainly put, there isn't one, thus no 110.3(B) violation. They might not have intended for these items to be there, but they sure are not prohibited. They don't even come close to approaching the gutter fill limitation. I don't mind saying that this is a stupid installation, I wouldn't do it this way, but it's not prohibited. The second line of that PPC instruction says "or equivalent enclosure". All they want is for it to be in a box of some kind, which it is.

[Steven C. Waskewicz]

Where is a device like this used? i.e. what can it be used for?

[Marc D. Shunk]

Originally Posted by swaskewicz

Where is a device like this used? i.e. what can it be used for?

It's for some of the home automation stuff that "communicates" between devices with a radio type signal over the wiring. The phase coupler just bridges those communication signals from one hot wire to the other to make sure the whole home is covered. It could really be installed anywhere in the home that both hot legs are present.

[jtedesco1]

From the instructions for this product:

The PPC-1 is designed to install in a suitable junction box and wire to two phases (circuits) of the circuit breaker panel.

[Speedy Petey]

Here is the real quote from the instructions with the "or equivalent enclosure" text:

The main breaker must be turned off during installation and the coupler must be installed in a suitable junction box or equivalent enclosure.

[jtedesco1]

Cabinet. An enclosure that is designed for either surface mounting or flush mounting and is provided with a frame, mat, or trim in which a swinging door or doors are or can be hung.

Enclosure. The case or housing of apparatus, or the fence or walls surrounding an installation to prevent personnel from accidentally contacting energized parts or to protect the equipment from physical damage.

FPN: See Table 110.20 for examples of enclosure types.

Panelboard. A single panel or group of panel units designed for assembly in the form of a single panel, including buses and automatic overcurrent devices, and equipped with or without switches for the control of light, heat, or power circuits; designed to be placed in a cabinet or cutout box placed in or against a wall, partition, or other support; and accessible only from the front.

[Marc D. Shunk]

A panelboard cabinet is still an enclosure. It's just a specific type of enclosure.

If I was called to put in a phase coupler, I'd put it in a seperate box. If the homeowner was to ask me why I didn't just stick it in the panel cabinet, I'd lie and tell them it was a code violation just to get them off my back, since it seems totally believable. I still maintain, however, that this phase coupler as pictured is a legal install. Dumb, but legal.

[Ian Gills]

Hmmmmmm a battle of the giants. Don't get many of these. Normally it's just an exchange of self-congratulatory statements on these threads.

This will keep the viewing figures up!

[jtedesco1]

Originally Posted by abolt

Is it appropriate to install phase couplers in electrical panels?

Again, no. This time I have an email message from this company supporting my previous reply.