Range hood on small appl circuit

Status
Not open for further replies.
D

DavidTu

Member
Location
Seattle, WA
My understanding is that a gas range can be on the small appliance circuit to supply clock, timer, lights, etc. Is the range hood considered part of the range and/or can it be on the small appliance circuit as well?

I have read a lengthy (closed) thread where a dedicated circuit for it is not required but recommended by many because of possible microwave hood. However we are installing a stainless designer hood $800 value so no one is swapping it out for microwave (plus we have dedicated spot & circuit for microwave elsewhere).

We are on NEC2008 here and so it must be AFCI then? GFCI? Either way we don't want the extra expense (and before you say it, no we did not pay that much for the hood just got an amazing deal--so money is an object!)
 
Most don't, but depending on the unit some range hoods do require a dedicated circuit.
Read the specs of the hood you can probably connect the range hood to the lighting circuit.
 
Cavie said:
NO AFC. No Gfi.
Click to expand...

Why do you say that? Don't all 15 & 20A circuits have to be AFCI under NEC 2008?

Instructions do call for a separate 15A circuit. Thanks! (but seems odd to be that many can be on lighting circuit but not sabc... why would 20A sabc be worse than 15A lighting?)
 
Last edited:
DavidTu said:
(but seems odd to be that many can be on lighting circuit but not sabc... why would 20A sabc be worse than 15A lighting?)
Click to expand...

It's not about giving the hood a 15A or a 20A circuit, it's about using up your SABC capacity for things that don't belong on that circuit.
 
Dennis Alwon said:
Not in kitchens, laundry rooms and bathrooms or other areas not mentioned in 210.12
Click to expand...

Fair enough, but does that assume those are protected w/ GFCI? In my case my lighting is on a different circuit than my receptacles so if that exception holds I would not have either AFCI or GFCI on the kitchen & laundry lighting? (bath lights are on same circuit as receptacles)
 
DavidTu said:
Fair enough, but does that assume those are protected w/ GFCI? In my case my lighting is on a different circuit than my receptacles so if that exception holds I would not have either AFCI or GFCI on the kitchen & laundry lighting? (bath lights are on same circuit as receptacles)
Click to expand...

It's a common misconception that the absence of AFCI requires GFCI...it's just a coincidence that most receptacles that aren't in "living" areas are on GFCI.

If you had a lighting circuit that only fed kitchen and bathroom lights, it would not be required to be on an AFCI nor a GFCI.
 
jaylectricity said:
It's a common misconception that the absence of AFCI requires GFCI...it's just a coincidence that most receptacles that aren't in "living" areas are on GFCI.
Click to expand...

Yeah I guess I'm confused by the NEC's intentions. It seems to me they really want to require AFCI on EVERY circuit but it's too expensive other than 15 & 20A circuits. On the other hand, as you say they do not require both on kitchen, bath or laundry and I don't understand why. The living room lights are to be AFCI but not the kitchen? I wonder if this is because in certain situations (such as multiwire) it would require a dual function AFCI/GFCI breaker (which I have not been able to find, for Siemens at least)?
 
I have no idea why the bathroom, kitchen and laundry lights don't need afci. I would have thought it was an oversight but the new 2011 has not changed the wording. It would not hurt to have the lights in those areas on afci but it is not required.
 
DavidTu said:
Yeah I guess I'm confused by the NEC's intentions. It seems to me they really want to require AFCI on EVERY circuit but it's too expensive other than 15 & 20A circuits. On the other hand, as you say they do not require both on kitchen, bath or laundry and I don't understand why. The living room lights are to be AFCI but not the kitchen? I wonder if this is because in certain situations (such as multiwire) it would require a dual function AFCI/GFCI breaker (which I have not been able to find, for Siemens at least)?
Click to expand...

I have my suspicions that it has to do with motor loads and not GFCI protection. The areas that don't require AFCI protection are the areas with the most motors loads such as the kitchen, bathrooms, laundry room and garages.

JMHO,

Chris
 
raider1 said:
I have my suspicions that it has to do with motor loads and not GFCI protection. The areas that don't require AFCI protection are the areas with the most motors loads such as the kitchen, bathrooms, laundry room and garages.

JMHO,

Chris
Click to expand...

That is the main reason I won't install afci in bathrooms.
 
Jdb

Jdb

I have been putting the range hood on a dedicated circuit, not only because of the possibility of a microwave, but some of the hoods that I have been running across, do require a 20 amp circuit, some have been of the commercial type (in residences) with the motor on the roof.
 
I do not believe that it has anything to do with motor circuits. Even though the motors are not large I put ceiling fans in all the bedrooms that are AFCI protected. Also many vacum cleaners are plugged into the AFCI protected receptacles in bedrooms. So I do not see where the motors come in to play as far as AFCI protection is required.
 
CONDUIT said:
I do not believe that it has anything to do with motor circuits. Even though the motors are not large I put ceiling fans in all the bedrooms that are AFCI protected. Also many vacum cleaners are plugged into the AFCI protected receptacles in bedrooms. So I do not see where the motors come in to play as far as AFCI protection is required.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that AFCI's do not detect series arcs less than 5 amps so most ceiling fans even if they had a series arc would not trip an AFCI breaker.

Chris
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top