Property & Building Inspection · Task 5 of 19

Electrical study notes

Inspect the service, panels, grounding, branch wiring and a representative number of devices.

Key points

• GFCI: kitchen counters, baths, garages, outdoors, unfinished basements, crawlspaces, laundry and near sinks.
• AFCI protects against arcing faults (bedrooms and most living areas in newer homes).
• Common defects: double taps, overfusing (14 AWG on 30 A), open knockouts, missing covers, reversed polarity and open grounds.
• Neutrals and grounds are bonded only at the service equipment; they are separated in subpanels.
• Panel clearance: 30 in. wide by 36 in. deep. No panels in closets or bathrooms.
• Concerns to refer: solid aluminum branch wiring, knob-and-tube, panels with documented defects (e.g. FPE Stab-Lok).

Exam tip

inspectors use normal controls; they don't do load calculations.

Practise this task

Try free electrical practice questions with answers and explanations, or look up terms in the glossary.

These notes are an original study aid and may contain errors. Verify against current IRC, NEC and NFPA editions and your state's standards of practice.