Patient Care Areas

[Chevnutt]

Can you run PVC conduit underground into a Patient Care Area of a Health Care Facility? 517.13 reads as if no, however 517.11 states the installation criteria and wiring methods of the article.

 

[roger]

No, conduits in the Patient Care Areas or conduit feeding into the Patient Care Areas MUST comply with 517.13.

 

[brantmacga]

you cannot, but, southwire makes a PVC jacketed HCF cable if your specs allow for MC.

 

[roger]

you cannot, but, southwire makes a PVC jacketed HCF cable if your specs allow for MC.

But the catch here is that it could only be used for the Normal Branch.

 

[brantmacga]

But the catch here is that it could only be used for the Normal Branch.

Ah. I don’t do a lot of patient care. I just finished a dentist office and in the middle of a doctors office right now, but no hospital stuff. So is this code 517.31(C)(3)(2) saying you can use PVC-HCF cable for critical circuits if you embed it in the slab?

(3) Mechanical Protection of the Essential Electrical System.
The wiring of the life safety and critical branches shall be mechanically protected by raceways. [99:6.7.5.2.2] Where installed as branch circuits in patient care spaces, the installa- tion shall comply with the requirements of 517.13(A) and (B) and 250.118. Only the following wiring methods shall be permitted:

(1) Nonflexible metal raceways, Type MI cable, Type RTRC marked with the suffix -XW, or Schedule 80 PVC conduit. Nonmetallic raceways shall not be used for branch circuits that supply patient care areas.

(2) Where encased in not less than 50 mm (2 in.) of concrete, Schedule 40 PVC conduit, flexible nonmetallic or jacketed metallic raceways, or jacketed metallic cable assemblies listed for installation in concrete. Nonmetallic raceways shall not be used for branch circuits that supply patient care areas.

(3) Listed flexible metal raceways and listed metal sheathed cable assemblies in any of the following:
a. Where used in listed prefabricated medical headwalls
b. In listed office furnishings
c. Where fished into existing walls or ceilings, not other-
wise accessible and not subject to physical damage
d. Where necessary for flexible connection to equip-
ment
e. For equipment that requires a flexible connection
due to movement, vibration, or operation f. Luminaires installed in ceiling structures

(4) Flexible power cords of appliances or other utilization equipment connected to the emergency system.

(5) Cables for Class 2 or Class 3 systems permitted by Part VI of this article, with or without raceways.

 

[roger]

Yes it does and I should have clarified that but note the wording encased meaning in the slab not under.