Repairing Vandalized Wires
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Repairing Vandalized Wires
When this house was purchased, it was a fixer upper, it had been sitting abandoned for awhile. A large portion of the the wiring in the basement ceiling had been cut out, and likely sold to the scrap yard by the local junkies.
It was fixed by replacing the missing sections and splicing them to the existing with wire nuts, and wrapped in electrical tape. They are good solid connections and have been working flawlessly for several years.
However it has come time to sell this house and move on, I fear the splices may be an issue when someone has the house inspected. I was told splices have to be in junction boxes to pass inspection, is this true? If so, is there a way I can enclose the splices in something acceptable without having to open them up one by one, which is what I would have to do to snake them into a typical junction box.
It was fixed by replacing the missing sections and splicing them to the existing with wire nuts, and wrapped in electrical tape. They are good solid connections and have been working flawlessly for several years.
However it has come time to sell this house and move on, I fear the splices may be an issue when someone has the house inspected. I was told splices have to be in junction boxes to pass inspection, is this true? If so, is there a way I can enclose the splices in something acceptable without having to open them up one by one, which is what I would have to do to snake them into a typical junction box.
#2
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I was told splices have to be in junction boxes to pass inspection, is this true?
If splices are in accessible area, just undo the splices and put them in the junction box with a blank cover.
If splices are in the wall, you will have to cut the drywall and put junction box or pull new cable all the way.
Another option is using this. However, it may be illegal in some jurisdictions.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Tyco-Ele...001477%7D%3Aqu
#3
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That's one of the basics of electrical code and something any savvy buyer will notice and complain about. I would start fixing this now or it likely will make it harder to sell the house.
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If splices are in accessible area, just undo the splices and put them in the junction box with a blank cover.
#5
50-100 splices ...... You've got a mess on your hands.
Sorry. The splices must be broken open and installed into an electrical junction box.
Sorry. The splices must be broken open and installed into an electrical junction box.
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i meant 50-100 total in terms of individual wire nut splices, a single run of 14/3 romex that had a section of it removed took 6 connections to fix, 3 on each end. Maybe a dozen or so actual runs of 14/3(or 12/3) cable were damaged.
Half the basement has finished drywall, running new wire to the box was never an option, a lot of walls/ceilings would have to be ripped open. That's why I chose to do it this way from the start.
Half the basement has finished drywall, running new wire to the box was never an option, a lot of walls/ceilings would have to be ripped open. That's why I chose to do it this way from the start.
#9
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Originally Posted by suprant
However it has come time to sell this house and move on, I fear the splices may be an issue when someone has the house inspected.
first many states have a "seller disclosure law" which require the seller to tell the buyer about issues like this,
second the buyer will likely do a home inspection and they will find the issue,
third is the mortgage company, which may have an inspection, and
fourth and finally is the local government which sometimes require a safety code inspection before they will issue a certificate of occupancy.
An outlet box with removable sides might be slightly altered to allow it to fit around a pre-existing junction, but might still be flagged as a code violation.
Last edited by Hal_S; 01-21-19 at 06:20 AM.
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The slack in the wire will certainly be an issue in some situations down there. I may have to try that box with the removable sides, thank you for the input.
As far as seller disclosure goes, how can they expect the seller to disclose a problem, if they don't consider it to be a problem. They can't expect every seller to be an expert on building codes.
Also I live in a rural area, building codes are not super strict out here.
As far as seller disclosure goes, how can they expect the seller to disclose a problem, if they don't consider it to be a problem. They can't expect every seller to be an expert on building codes.
Also I live in a rural area, building codes are not super strict out here.
#12
A retrofit junction box is on the market that does not require the splices to be opened. I just can't remember who makes it.
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https://drive.google.com/file/d/18xW...wpdMTk_dB/view
I believe Hal_S was trying to post this image.
I doubt inspector will allow that, although that might just slip through.
Also, I don't think that is any easier than undoing splices in my opinion. You also have to ground metal junction box.
I believe Hal_S was trying to post this image.
I doubt inspector will allow that, although that might just slip through.
Also, I don't think that is any easier than undoing splices in my opinion. You also have to ground metal junction box.
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You also have to ground metal junction box.
#17
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I was under the impression that this is only necessary with metal sheathed cable like bx
BX or AC cable actually does not need additional grounding of metal junction box since it gets grounded through metal sheathing.
MC cable still does require grounding wire attached to a metal junction box because aluminum sheathing of MC cable does not provide good grounding and therefore it has a green ground conductor.
With NM cable, you have to attach ground wire to the junction box using grounding screw. (Same with MC cable)
#18
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Originally Posted by lambition
I doubt inspector will allow that, although that might just slip through.
Also, I don't think that is any easier than undoing splices in my opinion. You also have to ground metal junction box.
I was going to mention seeing a kludge fix with a BX spliced using a clipped box, but that was "barn wiring"... As noted above, given the number of junctions, and the requirement to add a ground wire to each box, it's just as much trouble to do it correctly.
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If you cut that box to slide the wires in from the side it no longer a listed device. It is an uncertified modification.
the only real issue is me not being able to meet the 6 inch slack rule doing this, which seems like such a petty thing to fail for
#22
the only real issue is me not being able to meet the 6 inch slack rule doing this, which seems like such a petty thing to fail for
#23
Hi, the more of those boxes you use the more obvious the situation will be, is there anyway you could install a short section of trough and make splices in it, post some pics so we can see what you have.
It won’t be an easy fix!
Geo
It won’t be an easy fix!
Geo