Emergency lighting turned off by a switch

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svenoaks

Member
Location
Deerfield Beach, FL, USA
With emergency lighting designed to transfer to an emergency source such as a generator upon failure of the normal circuit, with a device such as the Bodine emergency lighting control relay GTD20A (see attached pdf), can the switch (be it a regular wall switch, occupancy, or lighting control panel relay) be located on the load side of the Bodine relay? In this case the lighting will not come on when normal power fails and the switch has the lighting turned off.

What would be the code section from NEC, NFPA 101 or other that prohibits such an installation? I can't seem to find anything.
 

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Ragin Cajun

Senior Member
Location
Upstate S.C.
Absolutely NOT. Why would you want to put a switch there? It defeats the purpose of the device!

Put the switch were the drawings calls for. That's what this device is for.

I have specified many of these over the years. No use these days having "nignt lights" or whatever. Turn them off. BUT, when normal power soes out, the emergency lights go on.

What am I missing here???


RC
 
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svenoaks

Member
Location
Deerfield Beach, FL, USA
Ragin Cajun said:
Absolutely NOT. Why would you want to put a switch there? It defeats the purpose of the device!

Put the switch were the drawings calls for. That's what this device is for.

I have specified many of these over the years. No use these days having "nignt lights" or whatever. Turn them off. BUT, when normal power soes out, the emergency lights go on.

What am I missing here???


RC
Click to expand...

I agree with you, we are an engineering firm that makes the drawings. I always show the switch as the Bodine diagram depicts, so the switch position will be overridden when normal power fails and lights will come on regardless. However, I have a coworker who was putting the switch downstream of the device, so they could put multiple switches on one device. I wanted to find the specific code section that prohibits it.

I'm thinking NEC 700.20 is a pretty good prohibition against this: "The switch or switches installed in emergency lighting circuits shall be arranged so that only authorized persons have control of emergency lighting." Obviously a wall switch occupancy sensor is going to be controllable by unauthorized persons. What do you think? Any other code sections that would be more specific?
 
Electric-Light

Electric-Light

Senior Member
A switch? no...
A disconnect to lock out the lights form getting energized during service even if the power goes to alternate source, I can see....
 
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jglavin427

Member
Location
Denver, CO
svenoaks said:
I agree with you, we are an engineering firm that makes the drawings. I always show the switch as the Bodine diagram depicts, so the switch position will be overridden when normal power fails and lights will come on regardless. However, I have a coworker who was putting the switch downstream of the device, so they could put multiple switches on one device. I wanted to find the specific code section that prohibits it.

I'm thinking NEC 700.20 is a pretty good prohibition against this: "The switch or switches installed in emergency lighting circuits shall be arranged so that only authorized persons have control of emergency lighting." Obviously a wall switch occupancy sensor is going to be controllable by unauthorized persons. What do you think? Any other code sections that would be more specific?
Click to expand...
When I was doing lighting design at my last job, I used the regular Bodine GTD (Not GTD20) which is smaller (3A max at 120/277) and good for applications like a training room where you might have 4-5 emergency lights using a few amps.

As for code, I'd say if you're not wiring the device per the wiring diagram, you're violating the UL924 listing.
 
ron

ron

Senior Member
Location
New York, 40.7514,-73.9925
From the building code (IBC), when power fails you need to automatically illuminate several area types. It does not say automatically illuminate after the switch is turned on.

1006.3 Emergency power for illumination.
The power supply for means of egress illumination shall normally be provided by the premises? electrical supply.

In the event of power supply failure, an emergency electrical system shall automatically illuminate all of the following areas:
 
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