Building panel will review circuit breaker aimed at fire safety

RALEIGH -- A group that sets building standards moved Tuesday toward relaxing a rule intended to prevent electrical fires in homes.

The vote by the N.C. Building Code Council restarts a debate over a special type of circuit breaker that is designed to prevent fires caused by frayed or damaged wire. Such conditions are often invisible to homeowners until they ignite. The breaker is designed to electronically detect the problem and cut the voltage in response.

The circuit breaker is not without its critics. The device costs about $30 to $40 at retail while conventional circuit breakers, the kind found in home breaker boxes, cost a few dollars. Since 2002, the breakers have been required for bedrooms. The debate is whether to require them for most other rooms in a home.

Homebuilders say the increased costs make building affordable homes difficult, while experts say the additional cost, about $150 for modestly sized homes, is nothing compared with the potential to save lives and protect property.

The winner won't be determined until June, when the council is scheduled to vote on the issue.

"Most of the members of this council don't understand what this device does," said Ed Moore Sr., a council member and Charlotte electrical contractor.

Moore said changing the code would add about $150 to the cost of a house because of the increased cost of the breakers combined with some necessary changes in how a home's wiring would be set up.

Mack Nixon, a council member and Perquimans County homebuilder, said the code change would cause homebuilders to use fewer circuits in a home to reduce costs.

Nixon said the extra cost of building a house could keep many from buying homes. And current electrical codes already take precautions against the types of incidents that can lead to electrical fires, Nixon said.

"All of us are in favor of safety," Nixon said. "You can't price people out of the market."

The circuit breaker issue was settled until the legislature asked the council to take a second look at the code change. Council chairman Dan Tingen said the issue didn't get a full and fair discussion the first time.