Electrical panel and working space inspection checklist

Before you use it

• OSHA 29 CFR 1910.303(g) applies to electric equipment operating at 600 volts, nominal, or less to ground. Under (g)(1)(i), the working space in front of equipment likely to require examination, adjustment, servicing or maintenance while energized must be at least the depth in Table S-1, measured from exposed live parts or from the enclosure front: 0.9 m (3.0 ft) at 0–150 volts to ground, and 0.9 m, 1.0 m or 1.2 m (3.0, 3.5 or 4.0 ft) at 151–600 volts for conditions A, B and C. The width must be the width of the equipment or 762 mm (30 in.), whichever is greater, doors or hinged panels must open at least 90 degrees, and the space must be clear from the floor to the required headroom: 1.98 m (6.5 ft) for installations built on or after August 13, 2007, and 1.91 m (6.25 ft) before that.
• Working space may not be used for storage (1910.303(g)(1)(ii)), and at least one entrance of sufficient area must give access to it ((g)(1)(iii)). Illumination must be provided for working spaces about service equipment, switchboards, panelboards and motor control centers installed indoors, and in electric equipment rooms it may not be controlled by automatic means only ((g)(1)(v)). Switchboards, panelboards and motor control centers must be in dedicated spaces and protected from damage; indoors, the space equal to the width and depth of the equipment, from the floor to 1.83 m (6.0 ft) above it or to the structural ceiling, is dedicated to the electrical installation, and piping, ducts or equipment foreign to it may not be located there unless protected ((g)(1)(vii)).
• Live parts of equipment operating at 50 volts or more must be guarded against accidental contact by approved cabinets or enclosures, or by location in a room accessible only to qualified persons, by partitions or screens, by a balcony or platform, or by elevation of 2.44 m (8.0 ft) or more ((g)(2)(i)). Where equipment is likely to be exposed to physical damage, enclosures or guards must be strong enough to prevent it ((g)(2)(ii)), and entrances to rooms or guarded locations with exposed live parts must carry conspicuous warning signs forbidding unqualified persons to enter ((g)(2)(iii)).
• Marking: each service, feeder and branch circuit must be legibly marked at its disconnecting means or overcurrent device to indicate its purpose, unless the purpose is evident, with markings durable enough for the environment (1910.303(f)(2)–(3)); disconnecting means must be capable of being locked in the open position ((f)(4)); and equipment must carry the manufacturer’s name or trademark and its voltage, current, wattage or other ratings ((e)(1)). Under 1910.303(b)(1), equipment must be free from recognized hazards, judged by factors that include mechanical strength, insulation, and heating and arcing effects.
• OSHA sets no inspection interval for these conditions; they must hold at all times. Run the checklist once per panel, switchboard or motor control center. It covers what is visible with covers closed; opening a dead-front cover or working on energized parts is for qualified persons under your site’s electrical safety program.