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It denotes the wire gauge to make it easy to inspect. Orange is 10 GA, Yellow is 12 GA, and white is 14 GA.
Or a basic rule of thumb
30 A Breaker - Orange 10 GA wire
20 A breaker - Yellow 12 GA wire
15 A breaker - White 14 GA wire
but not always. there still some white 12 out there.
and I'm pretty sure I've seen yellow 14ga, but I'm not positive.
I think all new wire follows orange-10 yellow-12 white-14. Old wire was mostly white.
Headstrong, I'll take on anyone!
unless my electrican was yank'n my chain he said no more 14ga is allowed in our area for anything...
?
p
Wow, that would be quite a local code change! - no 14 AWG period?!?!?
http://jhausch.blogspot.comAdventures in Home BuildingAn online journal covering the preparation and construction of our new home.
No 14 ga? It's easy enough to call around and find out. The inspector would know but the only reason to not use 14 ga is so the electrician can stock less kinds of wire and charge more for every job. If he does residential, there's more 14 ga than any other and he stands to make a killing, especially with copper prices being what they are now.There's no reason whatsoever to use 12ga for a 15A circuit unless it's a really long leg.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
like you said easy enough to find out... I know to never accept what someone who should know... tells me... but... with 12 of 20 units roughed in with no 14ga wire I almost hate to find out at this point... btw... I'm supply'n all the wire so who knows... this guy does like to make up code as he goes... I guess it makes him feel "special"
p
Anyone else notice 14ga today isn't the same as 14ga from even 10 years ago?
Maybe it's just because I bought it at HD? I needed about 8 feet of 14-3. The customer was paying T&M and I didn't want to charge them for a 25ft box and certainly didn't want to end up with the rest myself as we don't use it much...
Anyway HD sells by the foot and I was there, when I stripped the new stuff it was smaller then the old, and unless the sheathing was mis-marked I am sure the old was 14 and not 12
Cross-sectional area determines the gauge so I don't know how they could call it one thing when it's not that. Not that an inspector will use a wire gauge instead of the markings.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
I understand how they determine the gauge and I swear the 14 ga I bought was thinner then the 14 ga that was existing.
Yeah, I have things that seemed bigger in the past too. Biceps, shoulders, that kind of thing. My gut is bigger, maybe that's where the others went.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
What is really different is the insulation.NM-B uses a much better nylon coated PVC. And the sheathing is PVC. And it is all much thinner than the old NM. so the cables are smaller. But the wire whould be the same.But you would need to mike the wires to verify that. But I suspect that it is just an optical confusion..
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Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
I held the two pieces of stripped copper against each other, it was certainly a smaller dia. It was wierd
you still have any of the old?
http://www.quittintime.com/
No, old was in the wall, we had to remove a section of wall to rebuild it do to rot, the cable was running through it with not enough slack to cut it in the middle and add one receptacle as a junction.
Didn't want to get into more drywall work so I added two receps, one at either side of the wall.... There wasn't much left over and I didn't think to save it.
But I swear on my mother and all things I hold dear, the older 14ga was thicker, had a larger dia, then the new 14ga I purchased at HD.
If you say so I have no reason not to believe you. Stranger things have occurred dealing with old construction.
The other day I was finishing up an old roll of standard white 12-2 romex w/ground that I'd had around like forever and wanted to be done with it.
The outer jacket of the thing was so much thicker than the new same 12-2 that from across a room it would stand out as different.
Much stiffer and the black wire coating went all the way thru instead of just the thin black coating over the same white jacket of the neutral.
I wonder what the requirements of the jacket coatings are in that buying new wire sometimes one manufacturer will have the black coating just mentioned and a different manu will have the same and also have a clear plastic coating included in the mix.
And is the quality of the copper permitted to vary much?
http://www.quittintime.com/
Did you look at the markings.I bet the one was NM-B with 90C rating. That will have the nylon coated insulation on the wire and a thinner sheathing.The old is NM and is rated for 60C had has thicker insulation..
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Got me curious now. I'll have to go check.
heh heh
You changed yer byline again.
gunner invented the bi-line
http://www.quittintime.com/
Edited 12/28/2006 5:20 pm ET by rez
Okay, I had to go see what was what with that wire and I see the newer wire takes the clear pastic coating they place over the top of the white coating defining the neutral and on the other instead of transparent they place the colored thin black coating over the same white jacket of the neutral.
Now the older wire which has the black jacket all the way thru to the copper also has the thin topping of a transparent plastic.
And both old and newer wire have the same wording and numbering on the outer jackets except the newer wire has a slight slant to the digits while the older has the more standard block lettering:
ESSEX 12-2 G NON-METALLIC SHEATHED CABLE TYPE NM-B 600V E10816F (UL)
I took some pics I hope are detailed enough to see both the thickness of the jacket in the end shot has decreased with the newer version and the height and width are also noticably thinner in comparison when laid side by side.View Image
be a savings in overhead costs
http://www.quittintime.com/
If I am forced to run #12 it won't be on a 15 amp circuit.My preference is run #14 for lighting and #12 for receptacles.With lighting you often have 3-way and 4-ways switches. Dimmers 3-wire for fans, multiple gang boxes, ect. And either the light box or the switch box will have 3 cables in it. Easier to keep it #14. 99% of the receptacles have 1 or 2 cables, all 2 wire.I have heard of places that restrict wiring to #12. And other that prohibits 20 amp breakers on circuits that feed lights.But I have been told that. Have not seen any of the amendent that have those restrictions..
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Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
I ran everything in my house as 12. It was easiler to buy a 1000 ft roll instead of two different types.
Had planned on buying 1000 ft role a couple years ago (at HD). For whatever reason 4 - 250's were cheaper.The smaller diameter sheathing on the 12-3 and 14-3 sure do make for easier pulling. I'm pretty sure the wire gauge measures he same.
My county stopped allowing 14ga 10 (probably more) years ago. Smallest that's allowed is 12. No breakes smaller than 20a after that.
"My county stopped allowing 14ga 10 (probably more) years ago."That is stupid..
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Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
somebody had to stop the crafty ones from pulling a fast one..
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!<!----><!---->
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
You could still buy rolls of 14 and spray-paint them yellow.
What is their rationale?
Do you have to use all 20A recepticles?
Or, can you use 14ga ones downstream?
It doesn't make sense to me, but, what do I know?
Yes, all 20a on new construction that I've seen. Remember, I'm a reno/flipper/carpenter and not an electrician.
Stupid? Maybe, but who do I argue it with?
Edit to add http://www.coweta.ga.us/Resources/Electrical%20Addendums.pdf for the list of addendums to the NEC for my locale.
Edited 12/27/2006 8:24 pm ET by john7g
There is also old gray 12 gauge romex. But most yellow romex is 12 gauge, especially if it's newish.
zak
"When we build, let us think that we build forever. Let it not be for present delight nor for present use alone." --John Ruskin
"so it goes"
Thankxx
Is'nt the gray UF and not ga specific?
some of the old, old, old romex was gray
This is a different, darker gray, the one I was thinking of.
But you're right, UF wire is gray. Just don't assume any old wire is color coded, because it wasn't always standardized. When I pulled old romex out of my house, I had gray, white, and silver 12 gauge romex. No yellow.zak
"When we build, let us think that we build forever. Let it not be for present delight nor for present use alone." --John Ruskin
"so it goes"
Most rag wire romex was gray, some black IIRC. But you are right.
I believe that there was some brownish also and some yellow. But in both cases they where more of a off color tint rather and purpose color.I would not be surprised if different manufactured used colors to brand their product.And as said some of the early romex with rubber insulation had silver and black sheathing..
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Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Gray is outdoor/underground.