Subpanel: Can it be used as a junction box too?


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Old 01-26-13, 08:16 AM
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Subpanel: Can it be used as a junction box too?

Hi

I would never have thought about doing this except that last summer I had to replace a breaker in my pool subpanel and noticed that the electrician who wired it made some wire nut connections in the panel itself. That is, the pool light comes into the subpanel and then a switch leg runs out of the panel to a switch near the door of the shed everything is housed in. He used the breaker box as both a subpanel AND a junction box.

I am wiring my basement shop right now using a separate subpanel. There won't be a lot of breakers: Dust collector (2-pole 20 amp), a 20 amp outlet circuit and a lighting circuit with room for expansion someday. The lighting circuit, and to a lesser extent, the outlet circuit each run in two different directions from the subpanel. Rather than install a junction box for each circuit, make the connections and then run the single runs to the subpanel for each circuit, can I do what the electrician who wired the pool subpanel did and make the connections in the subpanel before I hook it up to the breaker, or is that a code violation.

I know I have other options such as installing a separate breaker for each direction but that seems like overkill given the number of outlets/lighting fixtures I have, and I know I could install junction boxes and cover them with solid plates, but I like the cleaner aesthetics of no extra boxes if I don't need them.

I hope that makes sense, and thank you in advance for the replies.
 
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Old 01-26-13, 08:24 AM
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You can run the circuit in 2 directions from the panel.
 
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Old 01-26-13, 08:32 AM
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Thanks for the quick reply! That will save some work.
 
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Old 01-26-13, 06:17 PM
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Just for clarification (in case non-US members read this), in the US you can. It is permitted by NEC. In Canada, it depends.. There is a rule in CEC that specifically allows it in one situation and a rule that specifically forbids it in another. I believe you are allowed to do it as long as the joint in question lands on a breaker (the OP's situation). You are not allowed to use the panel as a junction point for circuits that do not land on a breaker (ie: a passthrough junction, 3 way switch travelers, etc)
 
 

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