1 hot tub gfci breaker or more

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benmin

benmin

Senior Member
Location
Maine
Occupation
Master Electrician
Working on a job that has a custom hot tub. It has a control panel, 3/4HP recirc pump, two 2.5 HP jet pumps, hydrolic cover motor, heater, perimeter lights and lights within the tub. The control panel is designed like a breaker panel and can hold 8 OCPD's. I am debating wether to use a GFCI breaker for the whole control panel or just install GFCI breakers within the control panel for the items that require it. What would you do?
 
How many prewired tubs come exactly the way I described it. You usually wire it with a dp 50 GFCI.

Nothing wrong with your way but at $100 a dp GFCI breaker it gets pricey. What on the tub could you avoid a GFCI anyway. The perimeter lights???? Everything else needs GFCI protection. If the lights are tripping the breaker than turn off the lights and you can still use the tub.
 
It's T&M and not a money issue. More a issue with if problems arise, do I want everything to shut off or just the problem circuit
 
Stickboy and I differ on this issue. I do not like the idea of many Gfci's in the same panel. Extra heat is created with GFCI and I have had problems in the past (many years ago) with a few GFCI next to each other. The only way I could fix the problem was to put a GFCI recep. in line-- no problems since.

I am sure the technology is there to do all GFCI breakers but why waste money even if it isn't yours. So what if the tub goes out-- they need a technician or an electrician either way so why have more issues to deal with. Make it simple-----one GFCI Breaker.
 
I would use separate GFCI breakers for the loads that require it. Cumulative leakage would result in one GFCI breaker nuisance-tripping more than several separate ones, too.
 
The hot tube that I have was made for (1) 220 50 amp GFCI. It had internal fuses that you could pull to the light, motor, heater, and circulation pump.

I do not see how to change the setup with out changing the board. Then if something did happen it is your fault because you modified the hot tube.

What dose the book call for?
 
got_nailed said:
The hot tube that I have was made for (1) 220 50 amp GFCI. It had internal fuses that you could pull to the light, motor, heater, and circulation pump.

I do not see how to change the setup with out changing the board. Then if something did happen it is your fault because you modified the hot tube.

What dose the book call for?
Click to expand...

I am not changing the board setup. It is a custom gunite hot tub. all the pumps, heaters, hydrlic cover, lights and chemical mixing are located away from the hot tub and controlled by relays within a pool panel. Within the panel are 8 breaker locations so I am debating wether to use 1 GFCI breaker to feed the panel or multiple GFCI breakers with in the panel.
 
benmin said:
Within the panel are 8 breaker locations so I am debating wether to use 1 GFCI breaker to feed the panel or multiple GFCI breakers with in the panel.
Click to expand...

Read my response and reasoning above.
 
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