Are home inspectors allowed to open electrical panels?
Q. Several electricians have told me that a live breaker panel or fuse panel should only be opened by a licensed electrician, not by a home inspector. I cannot find a reference to this in the National Electric Code and I am planning to call the local electricians union. According to OSHA, live electrical equipment should not be handled without proper training and the use of properly insulated tools. By what authority do home inspectors take the risk of opening an energized panel?
A. The electricians you spoke with may feel territorial about their professional turf. Every home inspector I've ever known has routinely inspected the inner workings of electrical panels, as specified in the standards of practice for the profession. Having personally opened more than 20,000 electrical panels, it would be unsettling to learn that all of these inspections had been performed without proper authority.
Electrical defects in breaker panels and fuse panels are discovered so routinely that no home inspection would be complete without an internal inspection of the panels. This is why panel inspections are included in the Standards of Practice of all recognized home inspector associations. It is also why home inspector associations required ongoing education for members, including seminars in electrical inspections. In states where home inspectors are licensed, state standards also include this requirement.
Safety is a prime consideration for home inspectors when inspecting an electrical panel. The cover is carefully removed, using an insulated tool. The inspector makes no actual contact with any of the interior components of the panel. The inspection is strictly visual, after which the cover is carefully reattached.
The electricians who told you home inspectors are not qualified or permitted to open electrical panels should provide some authoritative documentation for their opinion.
Q. In one of your electrical articles you said old, two-prong outlets should not be replaced with three-prong outlets unless a ground wire or metal conduit is provided for grounding. However, even if there is no ground wire or conduit, ungrounded outlets are OK if a GFCI outlet is used because GFCI's work without a ground. Homeowners with older wiring can make use of this upgrade.
A. Thanks for the suggestion, but there is a problem using GFCI outlets when there is no ground. However, as a clarification to readers, it should be mentioned that GFCI outlets are the ones with two built-in buttons, typically seen in bathrooms. They are required in potentially wet locations in order to prevent electric shock.
GFCI's do provide shock protection without a ground, but they do not make up for the other advantages of an actual ground connection. For example, in the event of an electrical surge, as might occur during an electrical storm, your computer would not be protected by a surge suppressor unless there was a ground. In that situation, a GFCI outlet would be total useless.
• To write to Barry Stone, visit him on the web at www.housedetective.com, or write AMG, 1776 Jami Lee Court, Suite 218, San Luis Obispo, CA 94301.
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