Whirlpool bath ????

not for the UK but I can for the US

NEC requirements for spas

GFCI protection is required for both cord-and-plug and hard-wired spas containing single-phase equipment [680.42, 680.44]. GFCI protection isn't required for the outlet that supplies a spa that has integral GFCI protection [680.44(A)]

and of course proper bonding.

heres a sample pic.

I've just started reading this newsgroup, and my background is an electrician in UK. What does GFCI mean? What does a GFCI do?

My _guess_ is that it is another name for a RCD - a residual current device. This measures the difference in current between the live and neutral, and if it is over a specific value (30mA difference being the most common product) cuts the power. In the UK these are required where there is higher shock risk - for power tools in the garden for example.

Please someone in USA confirm

Regards,

Richard

not for the UK but I can for the US

NEC requirements for spas

GFCI protection is required for both cord-and-plug and hard-wired spas containing single-phase equipment [680.42, 680.44]. GFCI protection isn't required for the outlet that supplies a spa that has integral GFCI protection [680.44(A)]

and of course proper bonding.

heres a sample pic.

GFCI ground fault circuit interrupter, It's there to protect people from electrical shock

correct It is able to sense a mismatch as small as 4 or 5 milliamps, and it can react as quickly as one-thirtieth of a second. In the UK these are required where there is higher shock

same here also within six feet of a kitchen sink, in bathrooms, spas and temporay power at construction sites.