- Location
- Windsor, CO NEC: 2017
- Occupation
- Service Manager
1.) NEC Section/Paragraph: 210.11(C)(3)
2.) Proposal/Comment Recommends: [revised text]
3.) Proposal/Comment: Revise the section to read as follows:
(3) Bathroom Branch Circuits. In addition to the number of branch circuits required by other parts of this section, at least one 20-ampere branch circuit shall be provided to supply the bathroom receptacle outlet(s) required by 210.52(D). Such circuits shall have no other outlets.
4.) Substantiation: A code-minimum installation calls for a receptacle installed within 3' of a bathroom sink, served by a circuit dedicated for that purpose. When someone adds a voluntary and permitted receptacle for lighting or other purposes in the bathroom above and beyond the minimum expectations of the NEC, there is no reason to consider them the required bathroom receptacles that are required to be served from the required circuit.
As the text currently stands, it can be interpreted that every circuit that serves a receptacle in a bathroom (regardless of the designers intent for that circuit) must be served from a 20A circuit that serves only bathrooms.
This would have no impact on GFCI requirements as posed by other sections. It would serve to clarify the section and the minimum code-required receptacles it should be referencing. The proposed language would also serve to isolate the required receptacles from other loads away from the sinks; if this effect is undesirable an exception permitting other receptacles inside the bathroom to be served would counteract that.
2.) Proposal/Comment Recommends: [revised text]
3.) Proposal/Comment: Revise the section to read as follows:
(3) Bathroom Branch Circuits. In addition to the number of branch circuits required by other parts of this section, at least one 20-ampere branch circuit shall be provided to supply the bathroom receptacle outlet(s) required by 210.52(D). Such circuits shall have no other outlets.
4.) Substantiation: A code-minimum installation calls for a receptacle installed within 3' of a bathroom sink, served by a circuit dedicated for that purpose. When someone adds a voluntary and permitted receptacle for lighting or other purposes in the bathroom above and beyond the minimum expectations of the NEC, there is no reason to consider them the required bathroom receptacles that are required to be served from the required circuit.
As the text currently stands, it can be interpreted that every circuit that serves a receptacle in a bathroom (regardless of the designers intent for that circuit) must be served from a 20A circuit that serves only bathrooms.
This would have no impact on GFCI requirements as posed by other sections. It would serve to clarify the section and the minimum code-required receptacles it should be referencing. The proposed language would also serve to isolate the required receptacles from other loads away from the sinks; if this effect is undesirable an exception permitting other receptacles inside the bathroom to be served would counteract that.
