Cracking the NEC Code

Have you ever played the board game Mastermind? It was a favorite at my home when I was growing. Well, a favorite for me, but not so much for my siblings. As a two player game, it alienated one of my siblings while two of us were playing. Though they mostly disliked the game because I wanted to play it so often.

The objective of Mastermind is to correctly guess the code that your opponent set. You have the whole board to try different combinations of colored pegs for your guesses and after each guess the code maker places smaller pegs off to the side of your guess to indicate whether you have any correct colors. It is extremely rare and extremely good luck to guess correctly on the first try, which is why I love the game. It involves a lot of deduction.

In a similar way the National Electric Code is constantly being looked at and revised every few years to account for new technology. Though, I would not call the NEC changes guesses since those are straight from the experts, but it does remind me of the Mastermind gameboard as more guesses are added to the board like further changes are added to the National Electric Code. In the 2023 NEC update is code 406.12 requiring receptacles to be listed tamper resistant (15- and 20-ampere, 125- and 250-volt nonlocking-type, according to the code) in residential, commercial, and agricultural buildings that the general public can visit.

With NEC 406.12 in mind, Arrow Hart by Eaton recently introduced their new code-compliant GFCI receptacles! These latest versions are built and tested for safety with a modern design. Some of the new line’s features are:

• Tamper and weather resistant
• Control marked
• Saving you time on installation with captive screws and more new design features
• “One of the slimmest depths on the market,” according to Eaton. 1.03 in. depth profile
• Ready for retrofit and two-gang applications
• Secure wire termination with external backwire clamp
• The TEST/RESET buttons are now wider and include a bigger indicator light for easier access even with a plug already in the receptacle
• Ground integrity is stabilized by grounding staple
• Made of durable thermoplastic
• Available in a variety of colors

Check out these Eaton tamper resistant receptacle options at Gordon.

~Kristine