Lights on gfci breaker allowed ?

Status
Not open for further replies.
S

Stevenfyeager

Senior Member
Location
United States, Indiana
Occupation
electrical contractor
In old houses, inspectors allow us to replace two hole ungrounded outlets with 3 hole gfi outlets. NEC 406.4 That is hard to do in this one, so I had my worker replace the breaker with a gfi breaker. Problem is now the lights on that circuit are gfi protected, are lights allowed to be on gfi ? Thank you
 
Yes according to the NEC lighting is permitted to be GFCI protected. I've heard that home inspectors like to write it up as a defect because someone could be in the dark if the GFCI trips.
 
I think it was in the 99 book . If you had a lighting circuit with no equipment ground. You were still allowed to install new lights as long as the lights were GFCI protected.
 
Little Bill said:
I don't believe I've ever seen that or heard of it. Do you have a code reference?
Click to expand...
I don't have a code section . I remember discussing it in a Jeff Rodriguez code class in 98 . So it may have been in the 97 or 99. It was about the time that every one was changing two prong outlets to three prong with no equipment ground. Code officials made us use gfci breakers or outlets.

At first the lights with no ground wire had to have a grounding wire ran to them. If I'm not mistaken at some point the lights were then allowed to be on gfci protection without running the additional wire. Maybe a local thing I can't find it.
Their is plenty of code writing about the two prong outlets not the lights that I can find. .
 
infinity said:
Yes according to the NEC lighting is permitted to be GFCI protected. I've heard that home inspectors like to write it up as a defect because someone could be in the dark if the GFCI trips.
Click to expand...
The last new home I wired, a KCMO inspector wrote that up as a fail item on the final inspection.

Furnace room service receptacle was on a general lighting circuit. He didn't like being in the dark after he pushed the button on his plug-in tester.

I called to the planning department and told them I want it removed from the inspection report because it was not a code violation.

After they had a pow wow, the guy called me back and said the powers that be did not agree with me....but that they couldn't find it in the book so they had to yield.
 
James L said:
The last new home I wired, a KCMO inspector wrote that up as a fail item on the final inspection.

Furnace room service receptacle was on a general lighting circuit. He didn't like being in the dark after he pushed the button on his plug-in tester.

I called to the planning department and told them I want it removed from the inspection report because it was not a code violation.

After they had a pow wow, the guy called me back and said the powers that be did not agree with me....but that they couldn't find it in the book so they had to yield.
Click to expand...
Short answer, show me in the codebook or it's not a violation. I don't like it does not make it wrong.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top