Adoption of the new C22.1-12 - Canadian Electrical Code in Nova Scotia
On May 1, 2012, the 2012 edition of the Canadian Electrical Code (CEC), Part 1, was adopted and now requires adherence within Nova Scotia as authorized by the Electrical Installation and Inspection Act and the associated Electrical Code Regulations.
In 2011, the 2010 National Building Code was adopted in NS. The following is a brief summary of some of the new requirements from the NBC (section 3.1.4.3 buildings of combustible construction and section 3.1.5.18 buildings of non-combustible construction cover all the requirements and situations in more detail):
- open wiring with combustible insulation in a building of non-combustible construction must be FT-4 rated
- open wiring used for the transmission of voice, sound or data with combustible insulation in a building of non-combustible construction installed in a plenum space must be FT-6 rated
Whether a building is combustible or not is determined by the building inspector or the architect designing the building. Any issues with regard to the FT rating of cables or raceways within a building should be addressed by the local building inspector.
The FT rating requirements for cables, including low voltage cable, are dictated by the National Building Code and not the Canadian Electrical Code.