Installing new electric baseboard: junction box behind??

Hi, I'm planning on installing a new 220V electric baseboard while finishing my basement. I've run the dedicated 10AWG wire from the main panel to the Ts tat. But now I'm confused. All electric baseboards I see from big box sto res allow you to pull the cable into a small panel on either side of the ba seboard and make the connection. What's confusing me is, do I leave these

10AWG cables loose in the wall and just poke them through a hole in the dry wall when I install said drywall? I'm tempted to install a junction box, but I think that's a code violation because the baseboard will be in front of the j-box, making it "buried."

Advice appreciated on the right way to wire these things before I put up th e drywall. Thanks

Theodore

Reply to
millinghill
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--I'm sure you will staple them. I'm not an expert, but I would staple them within 6" of the "junction box" as usual. I assume these connections will remain accessible.

Reply to
Bill

Without seeing what you have, it's hard to say, but from the baseboard heaters I have seen, one end of the heater is "it's own box". So you put a romex clamp into one of the knockouts on the heater, run your cable into it, fasten the heater to the wall, and connect the wires inside the heater. Once connected, there is a screw on cover that goes over those wire conections.

If this is the case, figure out the exact location of the heater, and mark the appropriate knockout location. Thats where you want to cut a hole in the sheetrock, an just let the wire stick out of that hole. As long as the heater covers the hole, it can be bigger than the wire itself.

You should always staple wires inside a wall, so they dont get pinched behind the sheetrock and/or worse yet,shoot a drywall screw thru the wire.

Reply to
Paintedcow

Understood. All of the installation videos for these heaters show the NM c able just sticking out of the finished wall. My wall is currently unfinishe d/without sheetrock. I don't like the idea of running the cables to the loc ation and then just let them sit in the wall, waiting for me to sheetrock i n front of them, and then (with some difficulty) fish the wires through a s mall hole I make in the sheetrock, into the baseboard panel. My thought is to put a junction box lined up RIGHT behind where the panel would be for th e baseboard heater, and spool a few extra inches of wire left inside said j

-box, and then sheetrock and cutout for the j-box open, and place the baseb oard in front of the j-box. Is this common practice? Is this an NEC violati on? What would you do?

Reply to
millinghill

cable just sticking out of the finished wall. My wall is currently unfinis hed/without sheetrock. I don't like the idea of running the cables to the l ocation and then just let them sit in the wall, waiting for me to sheetrock in front of them, and then (with some difficulty) fish the wires through a small hole I make in the sheetrock, into the baseboard panel. My thought i s to put a junction box lined up RIGHT behind where the panel would be for the baseboard heater, and spool a few extra inches of wire left inside said j-box, and then sheetrock and cutout for the j-box open, and place the bas eboard in front of the j-box. Is this common practice? Is this an NEC viola tion? What would you do?

Leaving a short tail out is normal practice as installing a junction box wo uld cost more. The drywallers just punch a small hole and pull the wire th rough as they hang the drywall.

John Grabowski

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Reply to
John G

Wake Up!!!! You dont leave the wire in the wall. You leave it STICK OUT. Cut a piece of your wallboard away at the bottom of the sheet, about 3" high and 1" wide. Position wallboard with the wire sticking out of that knotch, and fasten the wallboard. Allow at least 10" to stick out of the wall. If the knockout is higher than 3" from the floor, make that knotch higher from the bottom.

This is easier than trying to cut the wallboard to fit around a jct-box, but if you really want a box, then use a box, but leave a foot of wire jammed inside that box, which will then go to the heater. You wont gain anything, and will have the cost of the box added to the job. As long as the wire is continuous, with no connections inside the box, it's not likely a code violation.

Reply to
Paintedcow

The heater IS the junction box. If you install a junction box behind the heater it should NOT have any connections in it - just a place to anchor the cable - which is NOT required. - just staple to the wall within 6 inches of where it exits the drywall to the heater.

Reply to
clare

Not common practice but as long as no joints are made in the box I don't THINK it is a code violation.

Reply to
clare

You need to read a bit better. NO WALLBOARD YET. So the cable stays curled up in the wall between the studs untill he installs the "drywall" or wallboard.

Reply to
clare

I think YOU need to read better.... I clearly said to cut the wallboard to fit around or over the wire, then to install the wallboard, leaving the wire stick out of the wall....

Whether the wire is curled up in the framed wall, or sticking out of the wall framing prior to hanging the wallboard is insignificant...

Reply to
Paintedcow

As usual you spout off without reading the original post. HE IS NOT DRYWALLING YET. He asked if he should leave the wire "curled up in the wall" or install a junction box BEFORE drywalling.. He's not installing the heaters yet either. So you are way ahead of the guy.

Reply to
clare

On Saturday, November 26, 2016 at 12:47:04 PM UTC-5, snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wro te:

cable just sticking out of the finished wall. My wall is currently unfinis hed/without sheetrock. I don't like the idea of running the cables to the l ocation and then just let them sit in the wall, waiting for me to sheetrock in front of them, and then (with some difficulty) fish the wires through a small hole I make in the sheetrock, into the baseboard panel. My thought i s to put a junction box lined up RIGHT behind where the panel would be for the baseboard heater, and spool a few extra inches of wire left inside said j-box, and then sheetrock and cutout for the j-box open, and place the bas eboard in front of the j-box. Is this common practice? Is this an NEC viola tion? What would you do?

Why are you concerned with leaving the wires in the wall before you hang th e drywall? They are not going to be powered are they?

When you hang the drywall, determine where the wires should come out, cut t he hole in the drywall, pull the wire out of the wall and through the hole *before* yo u hang the drywall. Leave enough length for that to be done easily.

The j-box solution shouldn't be a code issue as long as there are no connec tions in the eventually-buried box, but why go through the extra cost and work?

Reply to
DerbyDad03

No, they won't be powered. Ok, what you (and others) are saying makes more sense now.

Many thanks to ALL who have replied.

Reply to
millinghill

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