Limits of Electrical Wiring

Limits of Electrical Wiring for Refrigeration Contractors

If you hold an active refrigeration contractor’s license from this Board, you do not need a limited electrical license to do your electrical work on refrigeration equipment from the disconnect, provided you comply with the following requirements:

1. Related wiring shall be restricted to circuits (and parts thereof) which operate at voltages not exceeding 600 volts phase-to-phase.
2. All such wiring shall be electrically isolated from the building wiring system by means of a suitable protective device (fused switch or circuit breaker) of a size and type to meet the National Electrical Code requirements for load, location and other pertinent conditions.
3. The isolating device is to be installed, complete with line-side connections, by a qualified electrical contractor. Related wiring must originate at the load-side terminals of the isolating device.
4. Except for control wiring, the related wiring is physically adjacent to the refrigeration equipment involved and is in sight of and not more than 50 feet from the equipment. Control wiring that receives its control power from the refrigeration equipment involved may extend beyond these limits if the control voltage does not exceed 120 volts to ground and the wiring is protected from overcurrent.
5. No such wiring, or any part thereof, may be installed in any location defined as hazardous by the National Electrical Code.

      If you choose to do electrical wiring from the refrigeration equipment to the disconnect, you do need a local electrical permit. For further information on the permit requirements, contact the inspection department in the city or county in which you plan to engage in the work.

      A copy of the National Electrical Code book may be purchased at the State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, P.O. Box 18727, Raleigh, North Carolina 27619.

      If you also engage in the air conditioning and/or heating business, you do need at least a Special Restricted SP-PH Class I electrical license from the State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors to do special wiring on air conditioning and/or heating equipment from the disconnect to the equipment. For further information concerning this matter, contact the State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors at 919-733-9042.

STATE REFRIGERATION CODE

      The state refrigeration code is found in the North Carolina Mechanical Code, 2002 edition. A copy of the Mechanical Code may be purchased from the N. C. Department of Insurance, 322 Chapanoke Rd., Suite 200, Raleigh, NC 27603, 919-661-5880.