HotTubHelp
New member
- Location
- Denver,Colorado,USA
Hello All,
I recently hired local electricians to install a 50 AMP circuit for a Master Spas Healthy Living HL8 Spa. The manual states the following (which I described to the electrician when placing the service order on the phone):
HAVE YOUR ELECTRICIAN READ THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION BEFOREINSTALLATION BEGINS
Electrical connections made improperly, or the use of wire gauge sizes for incurringpower which are too small, may continually blow fuses in the electrical equipmentbox, may damage the internal electrical controls and components, may be unsafe andin any case will void your warranty.
It is the responsibility of the spa owner to ensure that electrical connections are madeby a qualified electrician in accordance with the National Electrical Code and any localand state electrical codes in force at the time of installation.
These connections must be made in accordance with the wiring diagrams foundinside the control box. This equipment has been designed to operate on 60Hz. alter-nating current only, 240 volts are required. Make sure that power is not applied
while performing any electrical installation. A copper bonding lug has been providedon the electrical equipment pack to allow connection to local ground points. Theground wire must be at least 8 AWG copper wire (unless local or state codes requirea heavier gauge wire) and must be connected securely to a grounded metal structuresuch as a cold water pipe. All equipment packs are wired for 240 VAC only. The onlyelectrical supply for your spa must include a 50 AMP switch or circuit breaker to openall non-grounded supply conductors to comply with section 422-20 of the NationalElectrical Code. The disconnect must be readily accessible to the spa occupants, butinstalled at least five feet from the spa. A Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) mustbe used to comply with section 680-42 of the National Electrical Code. A groundfault is a current leak from any one of the supply conductors to ground. A GFCI isdesigned to automatically shut off power to a piece of equipment when a groundfault is detected.
Power hook-up to the spa must be 240 volt 3 wire plus 8 AWG copper ground (6 AWGcopper) 8 AWG copper ground.
Route the cable into the equipment area for final hook-up to terminals inside the con-trol panel. The spa must be hooked up to a “dedicated” 240 volt, 50 amp breakerand GFCI. The term “dedicated” means the electrical circuit for the spa is not beingused for any other electrical items (patio lights, appliances, garage circuits, etc.). If thespa is connected to a non-dedicated circuit, overloading will result in “nuisance trip-ping” which requires resetting of the breaker switch at the house electrical panel.
Rev. 11/07
Permanently Connected Equipment Assembly with Pump(s), Heaters, Luminaine, Ozone, SpaSide Control(s), Pump shut off device, and Audio/Video Components.
NOTE: Some of the above components may be optional or not available with every spa model.
When I arrived home to inspect the work I noticed they installed 8AWG wire and 40 AMP breakers from the main and GFCI box. I called to ask about why 40 instead of 50 as the manual states and they said that they have to go by the equipment plate and not the manual.
The equipment plate states the following:
CIRCUIT AMPACITY, 40 AMPS MAXIMUM
FOR INDOOR/OUTDOOR USE, CSA ENCLOSURE 3
CONNECT ONLY TO CIRCUIT PROTECTED BY A CLASS A 50AMP GFCI
MINIMUM 6AWG SUPPLY WIRING, COPPER CONDUCTORS ONLY.
So I am a bit confused as it appears the installers saw the ampacity rating and used that for the installation circuit requirements although the subsequent label information/statements appear (at surface value) to conflict with the 8AWG and 40AMP circuit breakers and GFCI used in the installation?
While I am not trying to second guess the professionals interpretation, thought it would be prudent to check with the collective professional community for confirmation of the data used to determine the requirements.
Is the installation ok as is without risk to damaging the electrical controls and components as described in the manual? Is the wiring with 8AWG adequate for the unit even though the manual and the name plate seem to specifically state to use 6AWG and 50AMP breakers and GFCI?
All help in clarifying the requirements and installation are greatly appreciated.
I recently hired local electricians to install a 50 AMP circuit for a Master Spas Healthy Living HL8 Spa. The manual states the following (which I described to the electrician when placing the service order on the phone):
HAVE YOUR ELECTRICIAN READ THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION BEFOREINSTALLATION BEGINS
Electrical connections made improperly, or the use of wire gauge sizes for incurringpower which are too small, may continually blow fuses in the electrical equipmentbox, may damage the internal electrical controls and components, may be unsafe andin any case will void your warranty.
It is the responsibility of the spa owner to ensure that electrical connections are madeby a qualified electrician in accordance with the National Electrical Code and any localand state electrical codes in force at the time of installation.
These connections must be made in accordance with the wiring diagrams foundinside the control box. This equipment has been designed to operate on 60Hz. alter-nating current only, 240 volts are required. Make sure that power is not applied
while performing any electrical installation. A copper bonding lug has been providedon the electrical equipment pack to allow connection to local ground points. Theground wire must be at least 8 AWG copper wire (unless local or state codes requirea heavier gauge wire) and must be connected securely to a grounded metal structuresuch as a cold water pipe. All equipment packs are wired for 240 VAC only. The onlyelectrical supply for your spa must include a 50 AMP switch or circuit breaker to openall non-grounded supply conductors to comply with section 422-20 of the NationalElectrical Code. The disconnect must be readily accessible to the spa occupants, butinstalled at least five feet from the spa. A Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) mustbe used to comply with section 680-42 of the National Electrical Code. A groundfault is a current leak from any one of the supply conductors to ground. A GFCI isdesigned to automatically shut off power to a piece of equipment when a groundfault is detected.
Power hook-up to the spa must be 240 volt 3 wire plus 8 AWG copper ground (6 AWGcopper) 8 AWG copper ground.
Route the cable into the equipment area for final hook-up to terminals inside the con-trol panel. The spa must be hooked up to a “dedicated” 240 volt, 50 amp breakerand GFCI. The term “dedicated” means the electrical circuit for the spa is not beingused for any other electrical items (patio lights, appliances, garage circuits, etc.). If thespa is connected to a non-dedicated circuit, overloading will result in “nuisance trip-ping” which requires resetting of the breaker switch at the house electrical panel.
Rev. 11/07
Permanently Connected Equipment Assembly with Pump(s), Heaters, Luminaine, Ozone, SpaSide Control(s), Pump shut off device, and Audio/Video Components.
NOTE: Some of the above components may be optional or not available with every spa model.
When I arrived home to inspect the work I noticed they installed 8AWG wire and 40 AMP breakers from the main and GFCI box. I called to ask about why 40 instead of 50 as the manual states and they said that they have to go by the equipment plate and not the manual.
The equipment plate states the following:
CIRCUIT AMPACITY, 40 AMPS MAXIMUM
FOR INDOOR/OUTDOOR USE, CSA ENCLOSURE 3
CONNECT ONLY TO CIRCUIT PROTECTED BY A CLASS A 50AMP GFCI
MINIMUM 6AWG SUPPLY WIRING, COPPER CONDUCTORS ONLY.
So I am a bit confused as it appears the installers saw the ampacity rating and used that for the installation circuit requirements although the subsequent label information/statements appear (at surface value) to conflict with the 8AWG and 40AMP circuit breakers and GFCI used in the installation?
While I am not trying to second guess the professionals interpretation, thought it would be prudent to check with the collective professional community for confirmation of the data used to determine the requirements.
Is the installation ok as is without risk to damaging the electrical controls and components as described in the manual? Is the wiring with 8AWG adequate for the unit even though the manual and the name plate seem to specifically state to use 6AWG and 50AMP breakers and GFCI?
All help in clarifying the requirements and installation are greatly appreciated.
