Pool heat pumps

[Captorofsin1]

Hello everyone. Went to someone's house and it looks like a pool heat pump was installed after the house was built.

It was either installed 2014 NEC or 2017 NEC. House was built in 2018. North Florida. In 2018 they were going off of 2014 NEC. The homeowner can't give me a direct answer because she said she bought the house with the pool heat pump already there.

It's a 220V. Min circuit ampacity of 43.26 amps. Max breaker is 60 amps. Has copper 6/2 "Romex" (max 55 amps).

If this was a brand new install, I wouldn't posting this.

2014 NEC does specifically state for pool heat pump circuits 50 amps or less. It looks like 2014 NEC might have have required GFCI protection for a pool heat pump. Something about under 150 volts would require GFCI protection.

Just sit on one website I would read, "150 volts".

On another website I would read, "150 volts to ground". This means each leg to ground (not across) the legs.

If I'm interpreting this right, it looks like (under 2014 NEC) pool heat pump would require GFCI protection.

Please help me interpret this. I went to public schools in Alabama

 

[retirede]

Hello everyone. Went to someone's house and it looks like a pool heat pump was installed after the house was built.

It was either installed 2014 NEC or 2017 NEC. House was built in 2018. North Florida. In 2018 they were going off of 2014 NEC. The homeowner can't give me a direct answer because she said she bought the house with the pool heat pump already there.

It's a 220V. Min circuit ampacity of 43.26 amps. Max breaker is 60 amps. Has copper 6/2 "Romex" (max 55 amps).

If this was a brand new install, I wouldn't posting this.

2014 NEC does specifically state for pool heat pump circuits 50 amps or less. It looks like 2014 NEC might have have required GFCI protection for a pool heat pump. Something about under 150 volts would require GFCI protection.

Just sit on one website I would read, "150 volts".

On another website I would read, "150 volts to ground". This means each leg to ground (not across) the legs.

If I'm interpreting this right, it looks like (under 2014 NEC) pool heat pump would require GFCI protection.

Please help me interpret this. I went to public schools in Alabama

60A breaker = no GFCI required. 150V to ground is the correct interpretation.

 

[infinity]

240 volts is 120 volts to ground so it's less than 150 volts to ground. Is the pump hardwired?

 

[Dennis Alwon]

240 volts is 120 volts to ground so it's less than 150 volts to ground. Is the pump hardwired?

I have never seen a heat pump, pool or otherwise, that wasn't direct wired.

 

[suemarkp]

Hello everyone. Went to someone's house and it looks like a pool heat pump was installed after the house was built.

It was either installed 2014 NEC or 2017 NEC. House was built in 2018. North Florida. In 2018 they were going off of 2014 NEC. The homeowner can't give me a direct answer because she said she bought the house with the pool heat pump already there.

It's a 220V. Min circuit ampacity of 43.26 amps. Max breaker is 60 amps. Has copper 6/2 "Romex" (max 55 amps).

If this was a brand new install, I wouldn't posting this.

2014 NEC does specifically state for pool heat pump circuits 50 amps or less. It looks like 2014 NEC might have have required GFCI protection for a pool heat pump. Something about under 150 volts would require GFCI protection.

I don't see anything about GFCI for pool heaters in the 2014 NEC. Were you looking at 680.44(B) which mentions heater loads of over 50A not needing a GFCI? That is for hot tubs, not pools. Same with 680.62(A)(2) but a therapy tub. Those need GFCI on their heater circuits if they are 50A and under, but again a hot tub isn't a pool.

Pool pump motors, 120V or 240V, need GFCI protection. But I don't consider a pool heat pump a pool pump motor. I think the intent is a water circulation pump.

I don't believe a hard wired pool heat pump would require a GFCI circuit. A cord and plug connected one porbably wouldn't either in the 2014 NEC if it was 240V or over 20A.

If you are changing things and it is under a newer code, then it may be required. If manufacturers can't get normal AC or heat pumps to work on GFCI circuits, I would think you'd have the same trouble with a pool heat pump. The household AC compressor unit GFCI rule got delayed until sometime in 2026 to give the manufacturers more time to make them work on a GFCI.