Attached garage load center
What's wrong here?
- An unused breaker opening in the dead front has no filler plate
- Spare breaker spaces may not be left in the middle of a column
- A panelboard is not permitted in an attached garage
- Nothing. This installation is compliant
Show the answer and the code reference
The answer
A breaker space in the dead front has been left open with no filler plate, exposing the energized bus stab.
Correct choice: 1. An unused breaker opening in the dead front has no filler plate
When a breaker is pulled or a twist-out is knocked out and not used, the hole in the dead front lets a finger, a screwdriver, or a kid's toy reach the energized bus. 408.7 requires unused openings for circuit breakers to be closed using identified closures or other approved means that give protection equivalent to the enclosure wall, and 110.12(A) carries the same idea for electrical equipment in general. Tape or a piece of cardboard is not an identified closure; a listed filler plate or an installed (spare) breaker is.
How to fix it
Install the panel manufacturer's filler plate (breaker blank) listed for that dead front in the open space, or install a breaker there if one is needed. Do not rely on tape or homemade covers.
Code references
NEC 2023 408.7 — Unused Openings
Unused openings for circuit breakers and switches must be closed using identified closures, or other approved means that provide protection substantially equivalent to the wall of the enclosure.
Drills citing 408.7NEC 2023 110.12(A) — Unused Openings
Unused openings, other than those intended for the operation of equipment, those intended for mounting purposes, or those permitted as part of the design for listed equipment, must be closed to afford protection substantially equivalent to the wall of the equipment.
Drills citing 110.12(A)
2026 NEC:same rule and number. No 2026 change to 408.7 turned up in code-change summaries (the Article 408 revisions found concern 408.6 short-circuit current rating and marking), so the identified-closure rule appears unchanged; not confirmed against the 2026 text. Confidence: low
Minnesota
Minnesota adopts the NEC by reference without amendment (Minn. Rules 1315.0200; Minn. Stat. 326B.35), so 408.7 applies as published. The 2023 NEC governs permits filed July 1, 2023 through Aug. 16, 2026; the 2026 NEC governs permits filed on or after Aug. 17, 2026 (exams moved to the 2026 NEC on Sept. 8, 2026). See the 2026 NEC note on this drill.
How Minnesota adopts the NECWhy the other choices are wrong
- Spare breaker spaces may not be left in the middle of a column. The NEC doesn't care where spare spaces sit. What it requires is that the opening in the dead front be closed (408.7).
- A panelboard is not permitted in an attached garage. A garage is not one of the 240.24 prohibited locations (clothes closets in 240.24(D), bathrooms in 240.24(E), over the steps of a stairway in 240.24(F)). Garage panels are common and fine with proper working space.
- Nothing. This installation is compliant. The open space exposes the energized bus stab to fingers and tools with the door open. 408.7 requires it to be closed.