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When the cords on kitchen counter top appliances were five or six feet long it was found that they often draped over the front edge of the counter so that a passer-by could brush the cord, or catch it on a button and inadvertently pull the connected appliance off the counter. Even worse, these cords were just at the right height for a child of 2,3, or 4 years to grasp the cord and pull down on his or her head a skillet of hot grease or a slow cooker full of stew. The injuries, scalds from hot liquid, were severe and lasting.
Beginning in 1969 the manufacturers of kitchen counter appliances and Underwriters Laboratories, Inc., cooperated in reducing the cord lengths to two feet. When the receptacle was installed in the wall behind the counter there was not enough cord left to drape over the front edge of the counter.
In the 1996 National Electric Code there is wording which tends to undo this historical safety achievement.
The appearance in kitchens of peninsular and island counters has created a problem regarding the placement of receptacles, for at these locations there is no backsplash - no wall in which to mount the receptacles. The NEC tries to require receptacles wherever needed in order to eliminate the use of extension cords, but the absence of wall space at peninsular and island counters limits the available locations for receptacles.
'96 NEC Section 210-52 covers receptacles in dwelling units, and (c)(5) requires that receptacles not be located in a face-up position in work surfaces or counter tops, and prohibits receptacles from being installed more than 18 inches above the counter top. This Exception follows:
"Where acceptable to the authority having jurisdiction and to meet the special conditions as specified in a or b below, receptacle outlets shall be permitted to be mounted not more than 12 inches(305 mm) below the counter top. Receptacles mounted below the counter top in accordance with this exception shall not be located where the counter top extends more than 6 inches (153 mm) beyond its support base.
a. Construction for the physically impaired
b. Where island or peninsular counter space construction precludes practical mounting above the counter top." NEC® 210-52
The "authority having jurisdiction" refered to in the Exception is the electrical inspector. The restriction for not mounting receptacles below the counter top where there is an overhang of 6 inches or more makes sense. This is the face of the counter where high stools are stored and where persons partake of snacks or light meals. The short cords in use today would not even reach from an appliance on the counter to a receptacle under such an overhang. As to "condition a.", there can be no argument. If the dwelling unit is designed for and occupied by a physically impaired person(s) the receptacles must certainly be placed so that they are accessible to the occupant. As to "condition b", it is hoped that the inspector will not install receptacles below the level of the countertop, and that home owners will not allow receptacles to be so located.
There are other, much safer, locations for receptacles. "Pedestals", "tombstones", or "monuments" are names given to outlets designed for mounting on the surface of the floor, but which are eminiently suitable for mounting on a counter top, and are available in many attractive finishes. A centrally located pedestal outlet on a counter top is more readily accessible from a greater area than a receptacle below the counter top on one side or end of an island or peninsula would be.
There are often cabinets supended above these counters, and where they exist receptacles can be intalled facing down in the bottom thereof.
No doubt the least desirable from the aesthetic point of view, but one of the most convenient and the safest arrangement is a cord pendant extending from an outlet box in the ceiling to a cord body recetpacle hanging a foot or so above the counter top.
So, there are practical locations for receptacles other than below the counter top and when it is considedred that any of these arrangements could save a child from painful injury, often leaving permanent scarring, the choice is clear.
W Creighton Schwan is one of America's formost electrical authorities. Two of his widely read books are:
Mr Schwan is a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, International Association of Electrical Inspectors, and a life member of the National Fire Protection Asscociation.
He has been an electrical inspector for Alameda County, CA, Electrical Safety Engineer for the California State Division of Industrial Safety, and Senior Field Engineer for nine western states for the National Electrical Manufacturers Association.
He currently is a consultant on electrical code matters to owners, engineers, contractors and inspectors and testifies as a legal expert in code litigation.
He is member of the Uniform Electrical Code Interpretation Committtee of Alameda County and of the Electrical Recommendations Committee, Santa Clara County.
Check ©1998
by Redwood Kardon