Changing the electrical code...

This was the situation at the back of the house. The electrician installed a pair of wires for the generator plug in (on the back wall) and for the air conditioner (on the side wall not far from the propane regulator). The air conditioner salesman said this wasn't right, and any source of ignition (i.e. an electrical spark from the a/c compressor starting up, or plugging something in) had to be a minimum of 10' from a potential propane leak.

The electrician said he did everything according to the electrical code. This didn't make sense to me. How could the codes be in conflict? So I emailed the above photo along with the explanation to the Electrical Safety Authority. This was the response:

"You are correct, the Propane Storage and Handling Code - CSA B149.2-05 and the Ontario Electrical Safety Code (OESC) do not match regarding the minimum clearance required between electrical sources of ignition and the propane tanks / regulator.

OESC Rule 2-322 (Electrical Equipment near Combustible Gas Meters and Other Devices) states "When installed outdoors, arc producing electrical equipment shall not be installed within 1 m of the discharge of a combustible gas relief device or vent."

The Propane Storage and Handling Code requires minimum 3 m clearance between the tanks and any source of ignition.

As in any installation, if there are two codes that can be applied, then the most stringent shall take precedence.

ESA is now researching the discrepancy between the codes and taking action to correct. "

Isn't it strange that I had to do this???

Note that the electrician was not even compliant to the electrical code - the wire for the air condition was only 18" from the propane regulator, not the required minimum of 1m. The generator plug was about 24" away. He asked me where I wanted the wires, and I said to put them where they are in this photo. However, I don't know the codes and if what I wanted wasn't compliant to the codes he should have told me he couldn't do it!