×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

(OP)
On a small project, the Architect wants to put the house panel and it's 15 KVA transformer on the wall in a small 6.5 by 15 ft. fire riser room. It is a tight spot considering the fire sprinkler riser piping and fire alram equipment.
What are the governing codes for stuff in fire riser rooms? Are there any restrictions from NEC?
Thanks,

RE: Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

Where is your electrical counter part? Does this meet clearances required by NEC?

RE: Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

(OP)
Hi rbulsara,
You are replying to my post with two questions...instead of answers :)
What are the NEC clearances? That is part of my question also.
regards

RE: Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

Do you know the local officials in jurisdiction where the  building is being built?  If not you should at least have their phone number.  Most jurisdictions have a fire marshall, a good source to know.
The only electrical equipment you can put in the Fire riser room is a light.              

RE: Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

Depending on the system voltages, the clearance requirements vary slightly.  Since you mention a "house" panel, I'll assume this supplies lighting and receptacle loads at some common system voltage of perhaps, 208Y/120 Volt,3 phase, 4 wire.  If this is the case the system is below 300 volts to ground, NEC requires 3 ft. clear in front of the panel for access and maintenance.  This 3' is a minimum of 30" wide x 6'-6" in height.  This depth of clearances will change for higher voltage systems depanding on what the material is that faces it.

Code also requires that the footprint of the panel, (20"w x 6"d?) be clear from floor to structure above and below the panel for conduit access.  The same clearances are required at the access sides of the transformer-however this small of a unit would be allowed to be mounted above or below the branch circuit panel as long as it did not extend more than 6" in front of the face of the panel.  No piping, ductwork or other equipment/systems can be within these zones.

This is true for "small" equipment.  You should be aware that if the equipment is larger, (6'wide or 1200 Amps in rating), additional access, entry and exit requirements apply.

As always, electrical equipment should be located as far from any potential water sources, leaks, valves etc..., as is practicable, but this is just good practice, not a specific code issue.

RE: Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

My "hunch" is there are no NEC violations assuming you keep the min. clearances around electrical equipment.

However, I'm not a sprinkler system designer so ther may be some NFPA issues I don't know about.


  

RE: Electric Panel in Fire Riser Room

Golestan:

You did not provide sufficient data to give you a meaningful answer.  As you can see from other posts, most are just conjectures. You still need answers to my questions before anyone can be of any help to you.

You need to review NEC codes to determine vailidity of your situation.



 

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources