quote:

---

> What types of appliances require a disconnecting means nearby?
>
> Maybe it might be easier to answer which do NOT require it.
>
> My father's electric water heater has no disconnecting means other than
> going out to the garage where the panel is and flipping it's breaker off.
> There is a junction box where some watertight flex conduit goes to the
> tank. It would have been easy enough to have a disconnect there. But
> would there be an issue with having a disconnect in a closet dedicated
> to the water heater due to possible corrosion effects or such?
>
> --
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> | Phil Howard KA9WGN | http://linuxhomepage.com/
> http://ham.org/ |
> | (first name) at ipal.net | http://phil.ipal.org/
> http://ka9wgn.ham.org/ |
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------

quote:

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>What types of appliances require a disconnecting means nearby?

quote:

---

>What types of appliances require a disconnecting means nearby?
>
>Maybe it might be easier to answer which do NOT require it.
>
>My father's electric water heater has no disconnecting means other than
>going out to the garage where the panel is and flipping it's breaker off.
>There is a junction box where some watertight flex conduit goes to the
>tank. It would have been easy enough to have a disconnect there. But
>would there be an issue with having a disconnect in a closet dedicated
>to the water heater due to possible corrosion effects or such?

quote:

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>On Tue, 28 Jun 2005 01:58:36 GMT me@home.com wrote:
>
>| If in US, NEC article 590 (if I remember right)
>| Disconnect required line of site, which is why the A/C unit has one
>| outside. Most appliances tend to be in basement, if you have one. Plug
>| connections are suitable as a disconnect. There are exceptions to the
>| line of site rule, but none of them exist in a house.
>|
>| Exception 1: over 600 volts AC
>| Exception 2: Only trained people will work on it (with written safety
>| program)
>| Exception 3: Local disconnect would be unsafe (does not mean
>| inconvenient)
>|
>| Fitting the switch into the closet may also create another violation
>| if there is not suitable working space to access the switch, by
>| standing directly in front of it, without obstruction.
>
>Although the water heater tank fills the closet, there is plenty of
>space to access where the switch would be. I would have no trouble
>installing a switch there. But if they want the standard working
>space in front of the switch facing it, there isn't, because it
>would be on the wall to the side, right next to the door, directly
>above where a light switch would be. In fact, on the opposite wall,
>next to the door on the door's hinge side, is a light switch to turn
>on the light in the closet.
>
>The switch would be easily and safely reachable, despite there not
>being space in the closet to literally stand in front of it. You
>can stand in the space in front of the tank itself and easily see
>the side of the junction box where the switch would go, and can
>easily reach it. So if I put one there, it would be safe with
>respect to reaching it. The tank is not above shoulder level.
>
>
>| There is no reason that a small selfcontained circuit breaker could
>| not be mounted to the top of the water heater, CAREFULLY. As long as
>| it faces the closet door. There should not be any corrosion or you
>| will have other problems.
>
>I would not attach it to the tank itself. I would attach it to the
>wall on the side where the junction box is, so that it would clearly
>be off to anyone servicing the tank, if that would ever be needed.
>I could, in theory, turn the switch sideways so it faces the door,
>but I see no reason to as it would be as easy to operate when facing
>the other sidewall where the light switch is.