Cap off unused outdoor power?

I had my old hot tub removed.

Now there is an unused 240v power coming out of the garage wall in a conduit, down a few feet to the ground, then run along the edge of the house about 15 feet, and end with a cable sticking out the conduit, temporarily wrapped with electrical tapes.

The power is turned off at the breaker panel, of course.

What is the least amount of work to make this code compliant? Can I cut off the cable flush with the conduit exit, and then put a conduit cap on it? Do I have to put something at the end of the cut cables to cover the exposed copper wires?

Reply to
bob
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I'd suggest to call the building department, where you live. Do what they say, not follow the advice of internet writers.

On a practical level, I'd disconnect that wire from the double breaker. That way, it won't power the wire if someone turns on the breaker.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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Now there is an unused 240v power coming out of the garage wall in a conduit, down a few feet to the ground, then run along the edge of the house about 15 feet, and end with a cable sticking out the conduit, temporarily wrapped with electrical tapes.

The power is turned off at the breaker panel, of course.

What is the least amount of work to make this code compliant? Can I cut off the cable flush with the conduit exit, and then put a conduit cap on it? Do I have to put something at the end of the cut cables to cover the exposed copper wires?

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

Put a weather rated electrical box with a blank cover on the end of the conduit, properly secured to the house. Then the circuit is safe and ready for any future use. Should cost

Reply to
Pete C.

Is this a temporary termination or 100% permanent?

You could...

1 - Remove the cable from the panel 2 - Cut it off high above the panel, perhaps enclosing the cutoff end in a junction box in case you ever want to use the cable again. 3 - Label it for future reference 4 - Add a junction box at the conduit end in case you ever want to use the cable again or if there is room, push it back into the conduit and cap it. 5 - Label it for future reference

Bottom line is that you should remove the cable from the panel box.

Reply to
DerbyDad03

I've heard of people suggesting wireing nutting the hot to the neutral at teh far end so that the breaker will trip if it's ever turned on. I've even heard that Mike Holmes suggested this (not verified).

I think it's a pretty dumb suggestion.

Pulling the cable from the panel and cutting it up high seems like the best idea.

Reply to
DerbyDad03

It would depend partly on what the future holds. If there is no future value in leaving the wiring in place, and you want to get rid of it all together, then I would:

disconnect it at the breaker

remove the breaker

pull the cable from the panel

cut off the panel end of the cable back to a reasonable/convenient point

outside, remove the conduit, cut back the wiring to where it enters the house or similar convenient point, perhaps in the basement, etc if possible.

Fill the holes as needed.

On the other hand, if I thought it could be of future use for another hot tub, etc, then I'd just put a weatherproof box on the end, put wire nuts on the current carrying conductors and if the box is metal, connect the ground. Turn the breaker off and mark it.

Reply to
trader4

I'm in favor of being very safe, and also leaving the wire for future use. Combine this, with disconnect and label the end at the panel box, and I think we've got a winner.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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Put a weather rated electrical box with a blank cover on the end of the conduit, properly secured to the house. Then the circuit is safe and ready for any future use. Should cost

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

I got a furnace repair call, one time. The breaker tripped, so the woman (educated, wife of an attorney) reset the breaker. It tripped again, so she reset it again. She reset it some large number of times, until the breaker stayed on.

The original breaker trip was from a furnace blower fan motor that was probably $75. The motor had shorted to ground. A fairly simple repair. After she reset many times, she vaporized the contacts, on the relay on the $200 prioprietary Carrier Bryant circuit board.

I think that Holmes solution is inviting disaster.

Instead of "cut it high", I'd coil it, label it, and tuck it into the cellar ceiling. So it can be reused.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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I've heard of people suggesting wireing nutting the hot to the neutral at teh far end so that the breaker will trip if it's ever turned on. I've even heard that Mike Holmes suggested this (not verified).

I think it's a pretty dumb suggestion.

Pulling the cable from the panel and cutting it up high seems like the best idea.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

How do you cover the hole, where the breaker was?

Much better to label it "spare" and leave the breaker in.

Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus

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disconnect it at the breaker

remove the breaker

Fill the holes as needed.

Reply to
Stormin Mormon

re: "How do you cover the hole, where the breaker was?"

With breaker panel blanks. They're sold by "panel manufacturer" but you don't have to buy them from the manufacturer, if you know what I mean.

Reply to
DerbyDad03

Reply to
DerbyDad03

Given the amount of effort and money it took to install it, f it was compliant in the first place and not on the way of any new construction (deck, patio and such), I would put an outdoor outlet box ontop of that conduit, wirenut each wire and install a blank outlet cover (also outdoor rated) to block any access. Definitely tag the disconnected 2-pole breaker at the panel end. You never know if you need to sell the place in the future and hot tubs are back in vogue. May be useful to throw in a "free hot tub hookup" one day ...

If you are willing to fuss with converting it to 120V, there may be some use for an actual working outdoor outlet back there for an electrical mower, trimmer, edger and whatever else they may come up with that plugs in.

Oh, and another thing: let's say you buy a Nissan LEAF or another electric car at some point in the future (who knows?) - you've already got a 240V service passing through the garage. Depending on how it was pulled to get there, it may be easier to just reroute this cable to your brand spanking new 240V rapid charing station :)

------------------------------------- /\_/\ ((@v@)) NIGHT ():::() OWL VV-VV

Reply to
DA

If you cut the cable off at the conduit, you're pretty much rendering the feeder useless, so you may as well disconnect it at the panel and rip the whole thing out. If you want to keep it useable for the future, and legal and safe for the present, the easiest option is to terminate the conduit in a 3R rain-tight enclosure, leaving the cable intact within the box, with the ends insulated.

Reply to
RBM

What are your suggestions for the panel end?

Would you leave it attached to the breaker or pulled out of the box, coiled and labeled?

The assumption is that, at least at this point, you have no idea when, or even if, you'll ever use it again.

Reply to
DerbyDad03

Pull the breaker or remove the wires from the breaker - or better yet, both.

Reply to
clare

If the wiring is there anyway, wouldn't it make sense to put in an outdoor-rated box and a 240v outlet for the few bucks it would cost?

There are certainly power tools that are considered to be "better" in their

240v. models - table saws, air compressors, etc., so why not have a convenient way to use them if such units are purchased in the future?

Art

Reply to
Arthur Shapiro

His question was, what was easiest and legal. Disconnecting the conductors in the panel is more work. Insulating the conductors certainly makes them safe, and he can always throw a label inside the box with them. It may be that the OP doesn't feel comfortable to work inside the panel

Reply to
RBM

There are just too many possibilities for that to be useful. If this is a typical full sized hot tub, the feeder is going to be 50 amp 4 wire.

Reply to
RBM

It is if they are wire-nutted or taped.

Reply to
clare

Cutting off the wires will make them worthless, and they are not cheap these days. If you never plan to use them again, remove the wires and conduit entirely. If there is a chance of needing them again (another hottub), remove the breaker, tape the wire ends on BOTH ends of the wires. Better yet, pull the wires out of the conduit and save the wire. Leave conduit intact and cap the end. Unless the conduit has many bends, it's not that hard to put the wires back at a later time.

Reply to
fred.flintstone

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