Code Change Summary: New code section pertaining to reconditioned equipment.

In the past, the NEC^® has not prohibited installing used, reconditioned electrical equipment, but Section 104.9.1 of the International Building Code requires the following:

104.9.1 Used materials and equipment. Materials that are reused shall comply with the requirements of this code for new materials. Used equipment and devices shall not be reused unless approved by the building official.

In the 2020 NEC^®, a movement has occurred throughout the code book regarding what can and cannot be reconditioned but it all begins with the new definition in Article 100 of the term “reconditioned”.

Reconditioning of electrical equipment means restoring something to operating conditions. Typically, when this is permitted by the NEC^®, the equipment is required to be rebuilt to the most current UL standard which would apply to new equipment.

Reconditioning differs from the normal servicing of equipment that remains within a facility, or replacement of listed equipment on a one-on-one basis.

Section 210.15 is new in the 2020 NEC^® and provides a list of three items that are not permitted to be reconditioned due to the inherent safety characteristics and requirements for those products:

• Equipment that provides ground-fault circuit-interrupter protection for personnel is not permitted to be reconditioned. This is typically the Class A device such a GFCI type receptacle or circuit breaker that trips when 4 to 6 mA of current leakage to ground is detected.
• Equipment that provides arc-fault circuit-interrupter (AFCI) protection is not permitted to be reconditioned.
• Equipment that provides ground-fault protection of equipment (GFPE) is not permitted to be reconditioned. This is typically the Class B device such a circuit breaker equipped with a GFPE feature that trips when 30 to 60 mA of current leakage to ground is detected. A Class B GFPE device is generally not meant to protect personnel but rather to protect the electrical equipment from low-level ground faults.

Below is a preview of the NEC^®. See the actual NEC^® text at NFPA.ORG for the complete code section. Once there, click on their link to free access to the 2020 NEC^® edition of NFPA 70.