Swimming pool issues

[kevinware]

Hey everyone,
I am concerned about a pool installation I came a crossed the other day and I would like a little help. A friend of mine is looking at a house to buy and asked me to come over and look at the electrical part of the house and give him and opinion on it, good or bad. I told him I appreciated the trust he had in me but that he might want to get a home inspection done and go from there, I am just an apprentice and I may miss something important. Well my friend is my friend but he is CHEAP!!!!! and he wasn't going to pay for an inspection. I was concerned for his and his families safety so I went over and looked around. Well I don't know who wired this house but I would like to meet them so I could hit them right in the mouth. (Sorry for the violence Sir Moderator) This was a smaller house, it had a 100 amp service drop but the panel was replaced with a panel that IMO was physically way to small. It was a 100 amp panel, but it looked like something someone bought at a yard sale. There were not enough spaces to accommodate all the circuits I thought the house needed, let alone circuits required by the NEC (Article 210). When a service panel is replaced should the house be brought-up to code? or is that just when the service is being upgraded? (Ex. 60 amp to 100 amp) As far as the reason for this thread. The swimming pool should fall under the definition of "Storable Swimming or Wading Pool" in 680.2 and this is how it is presently installed: The branch circuit supplying the filter motor is being tapped off the load side of the A/C unit disconnect so the pool and the A/C unit are sharing the same 30 Amp breaker, the circuit wire is type UF 12/2.w.g ran underground direct burial for about 10 yards and stubbed-up a short wood pole to a GFCI duplex receptacle with a broken cover about 5 feet or less from the wall of the pool. I voiced my opinion as follows:

1. 12/2WG being supplied by a 30 amp breaker is a violation of 240.4(D)
2. Violation of 680.30, 680.10 I would have ran this circuit in rigid nonmetallic conduit because I am 5 foot or less from the wall of the pool.
3. The placement of the receptacle outlet supplying the pool is violating 680.34

Just looking at the pool. What else am I missing?

Thanks Kevin

 

[bill addiss]

Re: Swimming pool issues

Kevin,

I don't know what is required in your area, but where I am a "Certificate of Compliance" is needed for a Pool installation. This means that it must be inspected by an Electrical Inspector and the local Building Dept.

If this is the same in your area it could expose many more violations than you have mentioned and they would have to be fixed (or removed) before the sale of the House could go through.

Bill

 

[jwelectric]

Re: Swimming pool issues

Originally posted by kevinware:
Hey everyone,
I told him I appreciated the trust he had in me but that he might want to get a home inspection done and go from there, I am just an apprentice and I may miss something important.

Thanks Kevin

This is the beat advice that you could give your friend.

 

[romeo]

Re: Swimming pool issues

I agree with jwelectric, But want to add that you may do the home owner a favor if you advised him to have a qualified electrician rewire the pool and to be sure that all permits are obtained
and the wiring is inspected by the AHJ. Also if your friend hires a home inspector advise him to be sure that the home inspector is a qualified electrician. I have seen home inspectors that were not qualified scared the hell out of people because they gave them bad information regarding wiring.

I once had a home inspector tell a home owner
that I missed a code violation on an inspection, because he saw a bond for the water piping and thought it was the service grounding electrode. He told the home ouner that the service was not grounded because the water pipe was connected to a plastic water feed. He never bothered to look outside for the grounding electrode system.

 

[suemarkp]

Re: Swimming pool issues

I think most of the things you found aren't really violations or are borderline.

1. A pump motor circuit could have a larger than normal breaker installed on a #12 wire to allow for motor startup. Although this is probably not required for this particular pump motor, you are allowed to violate 240.4(D) in this case. I'd also like to see the motor hard wired if using a 30A breaker, but I don't think that is a requirement (except perhaps by 210.21(B)(3)).

2. 680.10 says you can violate the 5' distance if you are feeding pool equipment.

3. What is 680.34 -- 2005 code perhaps?

A storable pool has few rules. If a hot tub or permanent pool, you could probably find a long list of violations.