Whats with the blue 12/3 NM-B cable?

[rodm1]

I see blue 12ga NM-B at the stores is there a code change? Never seen blue before just wondering if its brand or a code change.

 

[jarhead]

is it Cerro brand? I think it is there identifier 12/3 with ground

 

[rodm1]

I think the brand is other then Southwire it could be Cerro. Never seen it before just wondered if there whose a code change. Probable just the store changing to another supplier.

 

[Jake M]

There is no code requirement for the jacket colors of NM or NM-B, only that it's properly labeled. I've been in a building where all of the romex (NM, not B) was white. 14, 12, and 10. Same color. The only reason I picked up on it is because I was adding an outlet and had the cover off of the breaker panel. There is some convention, but no requirements. Cerro Wire (Cerrowire?) has been showing up at the DIY stores lately in a rainbow of colors. Since you said it, you raised my curiosity as to why they'd do that. I hadda go figure it out.

The purple and blue are for 12/3 and 14/3, which allows you to tell them from the "correct" colored 12/2 and 14/2 from a distance. Or maybe the building inspectors want to do drive by windshield inspections like the tax appraisers do. Allegedly it's slippery too, pulls without lubricant if you're doing long runs that would have otherwise required that. Sounds plausible to me, but it's sure gonna mess with the ambiance in the basements of all of us on the east coast where the defacto (legal, inspectable) standard in basement wiring consists romex stapled all over the joists and sill plates. It'd be like having party decor.

 

[Ulma Doctor]

blue wire designates the 3rd phase in a 3 phase system.
often the white wire is used for neutral or the 3rd phase (the wire should be tagged or identified as a phase conductor)

since you only have 3 wires, the blue is a phase conductor

 

[Jake M]

blue wire designates the 3rd phase in a 3 phase system.
often the white wire is used for neutral or the 3rd phase (the wire should be tagged or identified as a phase conductor)

since you only have 3 wires, the blue is a phase conductor

I think rodm1 meant not the wires in the "romex", but the actual jacket colors are blue and purple.

Cerrowire 250 ft. 14/3 Light Blue Solid CerroMax SLiPWire Copper NM -B Wire 147-14043G - The Home Depot

Now you can tell CerroMax 3-conductor NM-B from 2-conductor at a glance. Whether you're an electrical pro or an apprentice who's just learning the trade, CerroMax at The Home Depot makes it easy to distinguish

www.homedepot.com

 

[Ulma Doctor]

I saw something new!
I have not seen the different colors of romex insulation until @Jake M pointed it out.
Thank you for the information.

 

[pontiac428]

I like the colors. All the 12 gauge I hung in my shop is yellow, no matter how many conductors. All of the 10 gauge is orange. Makes following those circuits easy, for the most part.