GFCI at Dental Office Sink

[augie47]

It appears, from reading 210.8(B)(5) exception 2 and the definition of a Patient Care Area in Art 517, that GFCI protection is not required at a sink in a dental office patient area.
Am I overlooking something ?

 

[ceb58]

It appears, from reading 210.8(B)(5) exception 2 and the definition of a Patient Care Area in Art 517, that GFCI protection is not required at a sink in a dental office patient area.
Am I overlooking something ?

Gus, I don't see it in the exception. It states in patient bed location or critical care areas. I don't see a dental office qualifying.

 

[jamesoftn]

210.8 B 5, Exception No 2 to 5 in patient care areas of health care facilities,

517 Def Patient Care Area, where patients are intended to be examined or treated

517 Def Health Care Facilities portions of building medical, DENTAL ETC. cares are provided.

I believe I agree with GUS.

 

[kwired]

I say it comes down to whether or not the "chair" in the dental office is considered a "patient bed".

Patient Bed Location. The location of a patient sleeping bed, or the bed or procedure table of a critical care area.

I don't think a dentist chair is normally considered a patient sleeping bed nor is a dental care area normally a critical area.

Maybe this is not true for some specialty oral surgeons, but for general dental care I don't think we have a "patient bed location"

 

[LEO2854]

It appears, from reading 210.8(B)(5) exception 2 and the definition of a Patient Care Area in Art 517, that GFCI protection is not required at a sink in a dental office patient area.
Am I overlooking something ?

No I believe you have it right.

 

[JDBrown]

I say it comes down to whether or not the "chair" in the dental office is considered a "patient bed".



I don't think a dentist chair is normally considered a patient sleeping bed nor is a dental care area normally a critical area.

Maybe this is not true for some specialty oral surgeons, but for general dental care I don't think we have a "patient bed location"

What version of the Code are you looking at? I only have the 2008 NEC, where 210.8(B)(5) Exception No. 2 to (5) says:

For receptacles located in patient care areas of health care facilities other than those covered under 210.8(B)(1), GFCI protection shall not be required.

210.8(B)(1) says: "Bathrooms". So, if the receptacles are in patient care areas, they don't need GFCI protection unless they're in a bathroom.

I don't see any mention of "patient beds" in the Exception. Was the language changed for the 2011 edition?

 

[LEO2854]

What version of the Code are you looking at? I only have the 2008 NEC, where 210.8(B)(5) Exception No. 2 to (5) says:


210.8(B)(1) says: "Bathrooms". So, if the receptacles are in patient care areas, they don't need GFCI protection unless they're in a bathroom.

I don't see any mention of "patient beds" in the Exception. Was the language changed for the 2011 edition?

This is the definition in the 2011 NEC 517.2


Patient Care Area. Any portion of a health care facility wherein patients are intended to be examined or treated. Areas of a health care facility in which patient care is administered are classified as general care areas or critical care areas. The governing body of the facility designates these areas in accordance with the type of patient care anticipated and with the following definitions of the area classification.
Informational Note:  Business offices, corridors, lounges, day rooms, dining rooms, or similar areas typically are not classified as patient care areas.
General Care Areas. Patient bedrooms, examining rooms, treatment rooms, clinics, and similar areas in which it is intended that the patient will come in contact with ordinary appliances such as a nurse call system, electric beds, examining lamps, telephones, and entertainment devices. [99, 2005]
Critical Care Areas. Those special care units, intensive care units, coronary care units, angiography laboratories, cardiac catheterization laboratories, delivery rooms, operating rooms, and similar areas in which patients are intended to be subjected to invasive procedures and connected to line-operated, electromedical devices.
Wet Procedure Locations. Those spaces within patient care areas where a procedure is performed and that are normally subject to wet conditions while patients are present. These include standing fluids on the floor or drenching of the work area, either of which condition is intimate to the patient or staff. Routine housekeeping procedures and incidental spillage of liquids do not define a wet procedure location.

 

[augie47]

It does appear to depend on which Code cycle is in effect. "Patient bed" wording was added to 210.8 in the '11 Code.

 

[jumper]

I gotta look into this, all the receptacles in my dentist's exam area have been GFCI.

Office, waiting room, etc-no

Chair exam and clean/drill/torture area-yes.

 

[augie47]

I gotta look into this, all the receptacles in my dentist's exam area have been GFCI.

Office, waiting room, etc-no

Chair exam and clean/drill/torture area-yes.

Every one I have inspected has been GFCI also and I assumed that was Code...in many cases the drawings spec'ed GFCI, Another inspector, who I must admit is far more thorough, brought it to my attention. It seemed like common sense that they should be GFCI, but when I check our current Code ('08) it seemed they did not have to be.
I thought I might be mis-reading so I posted the uestion.
I have not yet read the ROPs, but apparently by the time the '11 was written it was changed to "patient bed" areas.

 

[jumper]

Interesting, I have been seeing an ENT doctor lately and the exam areas are all GFCI also.

Aside: It is funny that we notice/look at this stuff waiting for the Doctor, I wonder what normal people do....

 

[kwired]

Interesting, I have been seeing an ENT doctor lately and the exam areas are all GFCI also.

Aside: It is funny that we notice/look at this stuff waiting for the Doctor, I wonder what normal people do....

Well if you were an accountant, they generally don't have their accounting methods on display in the exam rooms, so you are probably just sitting there bored to death.:happyyes:

 

[jumper]

Well if you were an accountant, they generally don't have their accounting methods on display in the exam rooms, so you are probably just sitting there bored to death.:happyyes:

Yeppers...

 

[kwired]

This had me thinking the wrong way for a bit, but lets break things down again:

210.8(B)(5) exception 2:

Exception No. 2 to (5): For receptacles located in patient bed locations of general care or critical care areas of health care facilities other than those covered under 210.8(B)(1), GFCI protection shall not be required.

517.2 definitions:

Patient Bed Location. The location of a patient sleeping bed, or the bed or procedure table of a critical care area.

Typical general dental care area does not have a 517.2 defined patient bed location.

Now lets review 210.8(B)(5) again - and remember 210.8(B) requires GFCI protection of 15 and 20 amp 125 volt receptacles in the 8 places listed and number 5 is within 6 feet of sinks. Exception 2 relieves this requirement in patient bed locations of general care or critical care areas.

If it is determined that the dental chair is not a patient bed then the exception does not apply which means GFCI is required.

 

[LEO2854]

Well if you were an accountant, they generally don't have their accounting methods on display in the exam rooms, so you are probably just sitting there bored to death.:happyyes:

They're probably calculating the Tax liability of all the equipment in the room..:lol:

 

[steve66]

Most dental chairs would not qualify as a patient bed location. Its not a 24 hour location, and its not critical care.

I feel GFCI is required.

I believe the intent of this exception is for critical care patient rooms where a sink is in the same room as the bed. This allows a designer to omit GFCI protection for receptacles at the bed location (receptacles that may be used for life support) even though the outlet may be within 6' of a sink in the same room.

Many critical care rooms (surgery recovery, ICU, etc) have a sink and toilet right beside the bed.

 

[cowboyjwc]

I didn't read all the other posts, but you're not missing anything. I was actually missing it the other way and requiring it.

 

[eprice]

I would say gfci protection is not required under the 2008 NEC, but is required under the 2011 NEC because of the addition of the patient bed location language. IMO a dental chair does not meet the definition in 517 of a patient bed location.

 

[cowboyjwc]

This had me thinking the wrong way for a bit, but lets break things down again:

210.8(B)(5) exception 2:


517.2 definitions:



Typical general dental care area does not have a 517.2 defined patient bed location.

Now lets review 210.8(B)(5) again - and remember 210.8(B) requires GFCI protection of 15 and 20 amp 125 volt receptacles in the 8 places listed and number 5 is within 6 feet of sinks. Exception 2 relieves this requirement in patient bed locations of general care or critical care areas.

If it is determined that the dental chair is not a patient bed then the exception does not apply which means GFCI is required.

The 2008 says: For receptacles located in patient care areas. Not patient bed.

But that did change in the 2011, to patient bed, so it would depend on which code cycle you are in.

 

[steve66]

The 2008 says: For receptacles located in patient care areas. Not patient bed.

But that did change in the 2011, to patient bed, so it would depend on which code cycle you are in.

I still believe this exception was only added so it doesn't contridict 517.21 (in the 2008 NEC), and similar language that has been in NFPA 99 for quite some time. The rewording in 2011 was intended to clarify the exception as it applies to 517.21.

If it were my call, I would require a GFCI receptacle. (Even though the sink probably doesn't even have a plug - I'm picturing a spit sink. You would probably have to try very hard to get an appliance wet enough with that sink to shock someone.)