VA Electrician key terms

The organization, office, or individual responsible for enforcing the Code and approving equipment, materials, installations, and procedures. In Virginia this is typically the local building or electrical inspector.

The maximum current, in amperes, that a conductor can carry continuously under its conditions of use without exceeding its temperature rating and damaging its insulation.

The circuit conductors between the final overcurrent device protecting the circuit and the outlets or utilization equipment supplied by that circuit.

All circuit conductors between the service equipment, a separately derived source, or another power supply and the final branch-circuit overcurrent protective device serving the load.

The equipment, usually circuit breakers or switches and fuses with their accessories, that connects premises wiring to the supply and provides the main means of disconnecting the building.

The reduction in voltage along circuit conductors caused by resistance and reactance, which leaves less voltage at the load than at the source.

Listed means equipment appears on a list published by a nationally recognized testing laboratory; labeled means it bears that laboratory's mark showing it meets the applicable standard.

An enclosed channel of metal or nonmetallic material designed expressly to hold wires, cables, or busbars and to provide physical protection and a path for conductors.

A factory assembly of two or more insulated conductors with an overall nonmetallic sheath, permitted in dry, normally protected locations such as inside the walls of dwellings.

Reducing a conductor's allowable ampacity to account for conditions of use such as high ambient temperature or more than three current-carrying conductors bundled in a raceway.

The total volume of conductors, splices, devices, and fitting allowances permitted inside an outlet, junction, or device box, calculated from the volume marked on the box.

The maximum number of conductors of a given size and insulation type permitted inside a raceway, based on the raceway's internal cross-sectional area.

The clear space required in front of electrical equipment, measured in depth, width, and height, that allows a person to work on the equipment safely.

Describes wiring capable of being removed or exposed without damaging the building structure or finish, and not permanently closed in by the building's construction.

A single panel or group of panel units with buses and automatic overcurrent devices, mounted in a cabinet, used to control and distribute power to branch circuits.

Equipment that uses electrical energy for electronic, chemical, heating, lighting, or similar purposes, such as appliances, motors, and luminaires.

A point on the wiring system at which current is taken to supply utilization equipment, such as a receptacle, luminaire, or appliance connection.

A device or group of devices, such as a switch or breaker, by which the conductors of a circuit can be disconnected from their source of supply.

A device that protects a motor from sustained overcurrent, such as a running overload, by opening the circuit; it is separate from short-circuit and ground-fault protection.

A receptacle with internal shutters that block foreign objects from entering the slots unless a proper plug is inserted, required in many dwelling-unit locations.

An area where flammable gases, vapors, dusts, or fibers may be present in quantities that could ignite or explode, requiring special wiring methods and equipment.

The portion of a health care facility's wiring that supplies life-safety and critical-care loads, arranged so power is restored automatically when the normal supply fails.

A compartment or chamber that forms part of an air-handling system; wiring installed there must be listed for the environment because it carries moving air.

A circuit supplied from a limited-energy source and rated so that any fault is unlikely to create a fire hazard, commonly used for signaling, control, and communications.

The conductive path installed to connect normally non-current-carrying metal parts of equipment together and to the system grounded conductor or grounding electrode conductor.

A circuit conductor, often called the neutral, that is intentionally connected to earth and that normally carries current as part of the circuit.

The conductor that connects the grounded circuit conductor, equipment, or both, to a grounding electrode or to the grounding electrode system.

A conductor that ensures electrical continuity between metal parts required to be connected together, forming a low-impedance path for fault current.

A fuse or circuit breaker that opens a circuit when current exceeds a predetermined value, protecting conductors and equipment from overheating and short circuits.

A device that de-energizes a circuit when it senses a small difference between the current leaving and returning, indicating leakage current that could shock a person.

A device that recognizes the characteristic signature of dangerous arcing in branch-circuit wiring and opens the circuit to reduce the chance of a fire.

A premises wiring system whose power comes from a source, such as a transformer or generator, that has no direct electrical connection to the supply conductors.

The state board within the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation that licenses contractors and tradesmen, including electricians, and enforces related statutes and regulations.

In Virginia, the highest electrician license; the master may serve as the designated employee for an electrical contractor and is responsible for supervising the electrical work performed.

A Virginia electrician license earned after meeting experience requirements and passing an examination, qualifying the holder to perform electrical work but not to hold the electrical contractor license.

A Virginia business license authorizing a firm to engage in electrical contracting, issued by the Board for Contractors once a qualified master electrician is designated for the firm.

A fund administered by the Virginia Board for Contractors that can pay valid claims to consumers harmed by certain improper or dishonest conduct of a licensed contractor.

An inspection the authority having jurisdiction performs after framing and wiring are installed but before walls or ceilings are finished, so concealed work can be examined.

A legal claim recorded against real property by a contractor or supplier who has not been paid for labor or materials furnished to improve that property.