Journeyman Electrician Practice Exam

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Prepare for the Journeyman Electrician Exam. Test your skills with multiple-choice questions designed to help you succeed. Each question comes with hints and detailed explanations to assist in your study process.

Practice this question and more.

In a device box, how many conductors is a single-pole switch counted as equal to for fill calculations?

One
Two
Three
Four

The correct answer is: Two

For fill calculations in a device box, a single-pole switch is counted as equivalent to two conductors. This is due to the way electrical systems are designed, where each switch requires space not just for the incoming (supply) conductor but also for the outgoing (load) conductor. When determining the box fill capacity, the National Electrical Code (NEC) considers the physical space that each of these conductors occupies along with the switch itself. This ensures that there is adequate room to prevent overheating and maintain safety standards. Therefore, recognizing a single-pole switch as two conductors helps to accurately calculate the overall conductor count, aligning with NEC guidelines to ensure compliance with electrical safety regulations. This understanding is essential for electricians to prevent overcrowding in boxes, which could lead to potential electrical hazards.