About 210.11 (C)(3) Bathrooms outlet

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Heresmil

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Could some body explain me what is the reason of this requirement if I am using GFCI outlet.Moreover, what is the reason for the exception.We know that only bathrooms are used shavers and hair dryers. In the HAndbook when I read about this requirement it says that I do no have to compute any load.
Thank you
 
Heresmil said:
Could some body explain me what is the reason of this requirement if I am using GFCI outlet.Moreover, what is the reason for the exception.We know that only bathrooms are used shavers and hair dryers. In the HAndbook when I read about this requirement it says that I do no have to compute any load.
Thank you
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I have seen hair dryers use over 15 amps. The OCPD and wiring must be able to support the connected load. Why would you *not* want to supply a 20 amp circuit to a bathroom, that is my question....
 
Heresmil said:
Could some body explain me what is the reason of this requirement if I am using GFCI outlet.Moreover, what is the reason for the exception.We know that only bathrooms are used shavers and hair dryers. In the HAndbook when I read about this requirement it says that I do no have to compute any load.
Thank you
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I am not quite sure what you are asking but I am going to answer what I think you are asking.

A GFCI does not give overload protect -- it is not a circuit breaker. A 20 amp circuit is required in order to handle the large wattages that appliances have today. Many hair dryers run at 1500 watts on high so that would be pushing a 15 amp circuit. Then people have electric shavers, toothbrushes, curling irons, etc.

You do not need to calculate the load of any handheld appliances. Those are all figured into the 3 watts/ sq.ft. calculation for loads.
 
The GFI requirement is for shock prevention. The 20-a circuit requirement is to make sure there's adequate power to run hair dryers, curling irons, etc.
 
K8MHZ said:
I have seen hair dryers use over 15 amps. The OCPD and wiring must be able to support the connected load. Why would you *not* want to supply a 20 amp circuit to a bathroom, that is my question....
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My exact question is Why is the reason because I can not put the bathroom receptacle in a branch circuit of corridors or a room.What could happen if so?. Why an exclusive circuit branch for only on receptacl outlet? Thank you.
 
Heresmil said:
My exact question is Why is the reason because I can not put the bathroom receptacle in a branch circuit of corridors or a room.What could happen if so?. Why an exclusive circuit branch for only on receptacl outlet? Thank you.
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Because given the high wattage of appliances used in a bathroom, any additional load on that circuit may result in the breaker tripping.
 
Heresmil said:
My exact question is Why is the reason because I can not put the bathroom receptacle in a branch circuit of corridors or a room.What could happen if so?. Why an exclusive circuit branch for only on receptacle outlet? Thank you.
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It was not uncommon to see an electric space heater on in a bedroom that was sharing a circuit with a bathroom where a hair dryer was on , bye bye circuit breaker "TRIP". Once the code on this changed and bathrooms needed there own 20amp circuit the problem was greatly reduced.
 
When I wire larger homes I usually supply each bathroom with its own 20 amp circut. I think its lame when you wire a million dollar plus home with one or two 20 amp circuts for the bathrooms. Besides ill make up the cost somewere else . And its not unusual for my own wife to use a blow dryer and curling iron at the same time. Id be pretty pee ohed if I bought a house for over a mill and the breakers trip. I would think the EC was and idiot and scratch off his sticker from my panel.
 
Thank all your for your valious opinions. I am agree with you but I think that NEC is a little contradictory. If read NEC 2008, the exception for 210.11(3) sas:

"Where the 20 Ampere circuit supplies a single bathroom, outlets for other equipment within the same bathroom shall be permitted to be supplied in accordance with 210.3(A)(1) and (A)(2)."

Then NEC is not only considering tripping problems with the breaker,:confused:
May be my problem is my very poor english.

Thank you all you again.

Milton
 
Heresmil said:
"Where the 20 Ampere circuit supplies a single bathroom, outlets for other equipment within the same bathroom shall be permitted to be supplied in accordance with 210.3(A)(1) and (A)(2)."
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This simply means if you use the 20a bath circuit to power up something else besides the receptacles, it must stay in that bath. For instance, if you use the bath circuit for a heat lamp. Then you must have another 20a bath circuit if there's another bath.
 
480sparky said:
This simply means if you use the 20a bath circuit to power up something else besides the receptacles, it must stay in that bath. For instance, if you use the bath circuit for a heat lamp. Then you must have another 20a bath circuit if there's another bath.
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Even there though there is no load calc to do - they shut you off from putting too much on it.
 
Ask people with homes that were wired 20 years ago.It was common back then to catch 2 bedrooms,hall bath all on 1 circuit.I am sure they hate what they got.As time passes nec tries to fix problems.And it was a 15
 
Jim W in Tampa said:
Ask people with homes that were wired 20 years ago.It was common back then to catch 2 bedrooms,hall bath all on 1 circuit.I am sure they hate what they got.As time passes nec tries to fix problems.And it was a 15
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I still do an occasional update where there's a total of 2 120v circuits for the entire house!
 
Jim W in Tampa said:
Ask people with homes that were wired 20 years ago.It was common back then to catch 2 bedrooms,hall bath all on 1 circuit.I am sure they hate what they got.As time passes nec tries to fix problems.And it was a 15
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Way back I have done that. When you work for someone else and they say do it with #14 thats the way you do it. My favorite is when all the gfci outlets ore on the load side of a plug in the garage. Now that can be a egg hunt when no one knows where its at.
 
Jim W in Tampa said:
Ask people with homes that were wired 20 years ago.It was common back then to catch 2 bedrooms,hall bath all on 1 circuit.I am sure they hate what they got.As time passes nec tries to fix problems.And it was a 15
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I'm not an electrician, just a piddling engineer ... and not asking advice here ... my upscale home appears to have been wired well and conservatively in 1996 EXCEPT it has one 15 amp GFCI breaker for 2 duplexes in the garage, the front porch and rear deck outlets with in use covers, and 2 bathroom's receptacles ... the wife and daughter using hairdryers trip it every time. (The garage has a freezer on one there.)

WHY? It doesn't look like they did any other cheap things.

One of these days, I'll have an electrician pull 2 circuits for the bath receptacles and have him put GFCI devices in. There is spare panel space.
 
GeorgeB said:
my upscale home appears to have been wired well and conservatively in 1996 EXCEPT it has one 15 amp GFCI breaker for 2 duplexes in the garage, the front porch and rear deck outlets with in use covers, and 2 bathroom's receptacles ...
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In the 1980s when I was doing condo work we would never provide more then one GFCI device regardless of how many receptacles where served by it. I did not like it but I was not the boss and that is how he wanted it, even if I had to burn up extra cable to do it.
 
iwire said:
In the 1980s when I was doing condo work we would never provide more then one GFCI device regardless of how many receptacles where served by it. I did not like it but I was not the boss and that is how he wanted it, even if I had to burn up extra cable to do it.
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That is because all of the GFCI protected receptacles could be on the same circuit and the GFCI circuit breakers cost about $40 in 1980 dollars (They didn't have GFCI receptacles then.). :cool:
 
Yeah I know it was 'legal' but it was awful design, yard receptacle stops working and you had to go on a treasure hunt to find where to reset it.

This was about 85-89 and I think I can remember using GFCI receptacles but I bet they where also expensive.
 
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