ground wire preventing service panel niche … · and grounding if they sit in a metal niche....

www.poolspanews.com Pool & Spa News November 13, 2015 77

O ne issue should be put to rest immediately, lest it cause dis-traction: It was not a high-voltage light that caused the

death of Chris Sloan’s son. Nor does the father make that claim.

On April 13, 2014, 7-year-old Calder Sloan, a deft swimmer and intense liver of life, was in his Miami backyard pool when stray current entered and caused his electrocution. The tragedy made interna-tional headlines, even garnering a viral social-media campaign in which people — including some celebrities — posed with a self-portrait Calder had drawn, la-beled with his nickname, “Mr. Awesome.” A massive version of the portrait was even beamed on the Times Square JumboTron and the Miami Heat’s American Airlines Arena.

His passing left his parents with a new aim: to advocate for electrically safe pools and spas to spare others the same tragedy. “Because my son involuntarily went away, I’m motivated,” Sloan says. “This is my mission for the rest of my life. It chose us; we didn’t choose it.”

In their advocacy of electrical safety, the Sloans achieved quick success when their own Miami/Dade County and neigh-boring Broward banned the installation of lights other than those classified as low-voltage according to the National Electri-cal Code. But with these victories and the

A recent pool electrocution began a discussion about the safety of traditional pool lights. Now people are talking about electrical safety in a broader sense. By Rebecca Robledo

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media coverage surrounding it, Chris Sloan became pigeonholed as an advocate of low-voltage lighting in pools and spas. Media misinterpretation and even an interview misstep by one of his own allies portrayed him as claiming that Calder would be alive if his pool had had a low-voltage light. Various stories behind the incident’s cause have circulated around the Sunshine State, so when discussing the possibility of high-voltage-light bans, many first want to know if the more traditional technology led to the incident. If not, they figure, why is the father trying to impose this change on everybody?

In fact, the pool had low-voltage light-ing — which did not produce the fatal cur-rent. “All I can say is there was an electrical short in our house, on our property,” says Sloan, who must choose his words carefully due to pending litigation. “And ... the fail-safes and protections failed.” The lawsuit alleges fault in the bonding, grounding and lighting design.

Since lights and pumps were first in-troduced to pools, electrocution has been an issue. Some claim it is the second-high-est cause of death in pools and spas, after drowning. But as with so many things, reliable statistics are not available. The Consumer Product Safety Commission re-ports 14 such fatalities between 2002 and 2009. However, the accounts of some inci-dents are somewhat unspecific or based on

PREVENTING SHOCK

Safety schematic: This drawing represents an example of typical pool and spa bonding and grounding. While recent discussions of pool and spa electrical safety has largely surrounded the lights, proper bonding and grounding are the most important measures that can be taken to ensure safety.

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78 Pool & Spa News November 13, 2015 www.poolspanews.com

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hearsay. A portion of the fatalities resulted from wires or energized electrical devices falling or being dropped in the vessel. This leads some to believe that the true inci-dence of deaths caused by faulty electrical systems is likely lower. On the other hand, some suspect these occurrences go under-reported: As with suction-entrapment fatalities, death certificates often list the cause as drowning without specifying elec-trocution, and incident reports often are incomplete.

But, especially for those such as Sloan who have suffered a loss due to pool and spa electrocution, the point is that these deaths seem avoidable.

In their argument against high-voltage light bans, industry advocates have said the issue expands past high- vs. low-voltage. A true examination of electrical safety merits a holistic approach, they say, one that ac-counts not only for safeguards surrounding the vessel, but those around the home as well, because current can travel to the pool from outside its immediate area.

On this, Sloan and the industry see eye to eye.

In this article, industry and electrical professionals discuss whether high-voltage illumination should be banned from pools and spas, where problems exist, and what can be done to further safeguard installa-tions.

Question of illuminationPool and spa lights make an easy culprit because they are immersed in the water.

Though the National Electrical Code has instituted numerous safeguards to pre-vent 120-volt incandescents from emit-ting current into water, low-voltage lights have long been considered another safety measure. For this technology, 120 volts flow from the main power source to a low-voltage transformer, where the power is “stepped down” to the lower levels.

Because these lights operate at a very low voltage, they are less inherently dan-gerous when taken on their own. Some be-lieve the 120 volts generated by an incan-descent light can introduce a fatal charge, whereas the power from low-voltage lights, generally 12 volts, can injure but not kill. (However, what constitutes a fatal voltage

is largely up for question because it depends on many factors, such as body mass and distance from the source. In addition, the phenomenon of electroshock drowning doesn’t require electrocution, but simply immobilization.)

As another benefit, low-voltage lights do not rely on a ground fault circuit inter-rupter for safety.

“A 12-volt light if installed properly. ... Is it safer than a 120-volt light? I’d be a fool if I didn’t say yes, it’s safer,” says Alan Brotz, owner/president of Swim Systems Inc. in Oviedo, Fla., and an electrician who specializes in pools and spas. “That’s not to say that a 120-volt light installed properly with a routinely tested GFCI is not safe — it still has been proven to be safe.”

But low-voltage lights don’t come with a guarantee of safety or operate in a vacuum. They are not foolproof. Like any electrical component, they require correct installation, with the appropriate trans-former and wiring, as well as bonding and grounding if they sit in a metal niche. Without this care, more than the 12 volts

Light mishaps: The niche at top left went unbonded — a No. 8 green wire is there, but not attached to the bonding lug. The bottom left niche is properly bonded, with the wire attached and the connection protected and sealed with a waterproof epoxy potting compound. Below, a light cord is spliced against code. The individual No. 12 conductors are spliced through the cord, wrapped in tape and pulled into the conduit. Cords below water level are not to be spliced but must run continuously from the light to the junction box, which must sit at least 8 inches above the pool’s maximum water level.

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can get through the system and, should a short occur, into the water.

Just as important, an improperly wired low-voltage system still can function as a path for stray current generated from an-other source: As it seeks to complete the circuit, the current could travel through the grounding wire, for instance, to water.

“Even in recent history, in some cases the light’s been blamed, and really didn’t have anything to do with it,” says Bill Ham-ilton, Ph.D., president of Austin-based en-gineering and architectural firm Hamilton and Associates, and the Association of Pool & Spa Professionals’ principal repre-sentative on the committee that writes the NEC’s pool and spa section. “The ground wire just happened to be the route for elec-tric current that was being produced by a short circuit somewhere else.”

By the same token, many industry pro-fessionals reiterate Brotz’s statement that 120-volt lights are safe if installed cor-rectly, with the appropriate components, bonding and grounding. For this reason, they believe code should not ban high-voltage lights.

So far, the committee that writes the

National Electrical Code has agreed. “This technical committee feels that with the voltage limitation 150 volts, and with all the other requirements such as ground fault circuit interrupters, third-party test-ing and listing [of certain components], that these result in safe installations,” says Gil Moniz, a senior electrical specialist with the National Fire Protection Associa-tion, the organization that writes the NEC.

Those in favor of banning high-volt-age lights are uncomfortable relying on the installer’s acumen and safeguards such as ground fault circuit interrupters. “GFI circuit breakers can fail,” says Irv Chazen, Builder’s Committee chairman and gov-ernment liaison for the Associated Swim-ming Pool Industries of Florida.

But some observers believe the ques-tion supersedes data. If low-voltage light-ing will reduce the chances of electrocu-tion, they ask, then why not require it?

“I don’t want to see anybody get elec-trocuted or shocked,” Chazen says. “It’s totally unnecessary, so I don’t see why the world shouldn’t go to 12-volt lights.”

Others see the issue as a matter of per-sonal responsibility — and calculated risk

Addressing older pools

Older pools present challenges that can detract from electrical safety, such as outdated equipment and cor-rosion, which can prevent wires and other components, including ground-ing and bonding systems, to contain current within intended channels.

But professionals and even home-owners can take certain steps to help safeguard pools. “I think maintenance on the electrical system is somewhat ignored,” says Gil Moniz, a senior electrical specialist with the National Fire Protection Association, the orga-nization that writes the NEC.

A process required by the state of New Jersey on its commercial pools can be used: Periodically inspect the electrical system and test the bond-ing system. With this continuity test, current is injected and checked to make sure it flows through the pool’s structural steel or perimeter bond-ing ring, in the case of non-concrete pools. It should be performed at least once a year, more often if the pool is used more frequently.

Pool owners also can perform GFCI retrofits on older lights. If an older 120-volt light does not have a GFCI on it, then the safeguard could be retrofitted to the lighting circuit. This will safeguard against faults in the light or light cord itself, but doesn’t guarantee that current can’t intrude through a ground wire.

Homeowners and service techni-cians can do one simple thing to help ensure that their pools and spas run safely over time: monthly GFCI test-ing. Without this, the user has no in-dication that the GFCI has failed.

Finally, techs and homeown-ers should visually inspect connec-tions that can be accessed, to check for corrosion. “It’s a good practice, I think, to know where your connec-tions are and to just visually look at those,” Moniz says. “As you do the GFCI, check and make it part of the routine.”

Bonding grid: A No. 8 wire connects metallic elements and attaches to the pool steel in at least four locations, to a perimeter bonding ring or reinforcing steel under the deck, and to all permanently attached metallic objects within 5 feet of the pool’s edge. The green wires coming out of the junction boxes serve both as a permanent bond and, in certain situations, a path for short-circuit ground current.

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Mike Holt, a nationally known consul-tant and instructor on electrical systems, is building a pool in his own Florida back-yard. When he saw the contractors creat-ing niches in the shell, he immediately informed them there would be no under-water lighting.

“I am the kind of person who measures risk,” he says. “And there is no justification in my mind to risk putting electricity in-side the water of a swimming pool. I under-stand the risk is almost insignificant, but it’s not worth it.”

But, of course, underwater lighting ad-dresses other safety issues, such as the abil-ity to distinguish plane changes in the shell or detect someone in distress. To address those concerns, Holt considers low-voltage lighting the best option.

It’s a matter of personal choice for him. “If I were going to do lighting, it would be 12-volt, but it doesn’t have to be [in the] code,” he says.

Truth be told, this debate may time out within a decade or less, in part because of the energy-efficiency movement. LED lights powered through solid-state technol-ogy usually operate more efficiently than incandescents, plus they incorporate fun features such as programmed color chang-ing, so they may dominate the market in the next decade, Hamilton predicts.

Additionally, some products entering the market — high and low voltage — incorporate new barriers to stray current, such as all-plastic niches or hermetically sealed single assemblies. Some of the low-voltage versions don’t require a grounding wire, eliminating another avenue for cur-rent to travel into the water.

Outside the lightIndividuals on both sides of the lighting argument agree that increasing electrical safety in pools and spas extends past the niche.

“There are lots of different places where line voltage could get into the water, and just focusing on the light is not going to solve all those other issues,” Brotz says.

There is only so much that can be ac-complished through code. Like most, the NEC only governs new installation, not maintenance.

In Hamilton’s observations inspecting pool and spa electrical systems, the light itself was rarely the problem. Instead, he’s found incidents related to inadequate, damaged or absent bonding in concrete pools, as well as concurrent sources of stray current related to the wiring in other premises. “It’s generally a problem some-where else that creates the current on the ground wire, and a nonexistent or deficient bonding system that lets it get into the pool water,” he says.

Bonding and grounding are the most important safeguards against electrocution in pools and spas. But some professionals don’t know the difference between these processes. Contractors who believe they are the same thing may only install one.

Grounding protects people against a possible fault in the system by electrical-ly attaching equipment to earth ground, which is at the lowest “electrical poten-tial,” referred to as 0 Volt potential. If there’s a fault, or short, the circuit breaker should trip and turn off the equipment.

To ground a piece of equipment, in-stallers run a properly sized wire from the equipment, through the same conduit as the current-carrying conductors and to the

circuit breaker panel. Finally, the wire at-taches to the ground bus bar in the circuit breaker panel, which itself is connected to earth ground through a combination of ground rods, cold water pipes, building foundation steel, etc.

To bond a component means to elec-trically tie it with all specified elements, such as the pump, motor, ladder and even the water, to create a “bonding grid,” and minimize the difference in voltage from component to component. (Voltage also is referred to as potential.) If one piece of equipment becomes energized from a fault in the system, then there is a difference in potential from one element to the other, causing current from the more energized component to seek a path to the less en-ergized component, in order to equalize. If a person steps in the way, he or she could become that path, or conductor.

A bonding system includes a No. 8 wire that runs from one element to the next, connecting to each on an often man-ufacturer-provided bonding lug. The wire also should attach to the pool steel in at least 4 locations and to a perimeter bond-ing ring under the deck, or to reinforcing steel in the deck, and to all permanently

Grounding: Wires run through the same conduit as the current-carrying conductors and to the circuit-breaker panel, then attach to the ground bus bar in the circuit-breaker panel, which itself is connected to earth ground through a combination of ground rods, cold water pipes, building foundation steel, etc. The wire coming out of the service panel, with the arrow pointing down, goes to earth ground.

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attached metallic objects within 5 feet of the pool’s edge. The wire runs through the earth, not always inside a conduit.

Installing these systems requires the use of proper components, from wires to connectors, and the ability to adapt to dif-ferent settings and equipment brands. Ob-servers such as Brotz believe these skills are in all too short supply in the pool and spa field.

If the solution rests with government mandates, it’s in ensuring the qualifications of those who work on pool and spa electri-cal systems, he says. In states such as his (Florida), code requires that licensed elec-tricians perform the initial installation of a pool or spa’s electrical system. However, those who perform repairs and replace-ments go unaddressed.

Brotz sees mis-installed lights, but has witnessed hundreds, or even thousands, of cases where pumps, heat pumps, wires and other components were installed in-correctly. The opportunity for error comes with the installation and the repair/re-placement of lights and equipment.

“I have come to the point where I strongly believe there needs to be an elec-trical certification class for pool people who touch electrical work,” he says.

A task such as changing a motor may seem simple; however, grounding and bonding wires must be installed correctly, with the right connectors.

“I have seen hundreds of motors that have been replaced by pool professionals with the ground wires or bond wires miss-ing,” Brotz says. “The dangerous part of that scenario is when the homeowner turns on the pump, it runs, and they don’t know whether it’s installed safely or not. It just works, and that’s all they know.”

Errors in the fieldMistakes that electrical professionals see in the field range from the clearly wrong to the more off-base. But even seemingly small misses can create an opening for cur-rent to escape its assigned channels.

Properly installing these systems re-quires an in-depth knowledge of wire types and sizes, connectors, transformers and junction boxes. The water and mostly out-door locations create their own challenges, which often must be met by special com-ponents.

Some of the obvious errors could have been performed by homeowners, their friends or handymen, or inexperienced professionals. A prime example of this can

NEC through the years

Most regions adopt the National Electrical Code, written by the Na-tional Fire Protection Association. Article 680, pertaining to the installa-tion of pools and spas, has seen many changes. Noting when more signifi-cant upgrades took place can help determine at what age pools require extra attention. Highlights include:

1962: Article 680 was added to the NEC and established grounding re-quirements.

1965: Bonding requirements were added, and open electrical connec-tions in lights were prohibited.

1975: Ground fault circuit interrupt-ers were mandated.

1993: Rebar ties were required to be made tight. Non-metallic wet niche light fixtures and non-metallic wet niches were allowed.

1999: Bonding clamps were required to be listed for that purpose; epoxy-coated rebar is allowed.

2008: Bonding requirements were tightened so a portion of the deck and even the water must be included in the grid. Pool pumps now needed two-pole GFCI circuits.

2011: Low-voltage lighting is rede-fined to replace the 15-volt limit, with a “low-voltage contact limit” deter-mined by the nature of the current.

2014: All 120- to 240-volt pumps must be GFCI-protected. GFCI-pro-tected, general-purpose receptacle outlets are required on pools.

2017: Language is being proposed to address electrically powered pool and spa lifts, as well as ways to miti-gate the issue of corrosion on wires, connections and equipment.

Custom part: A homemade aluminum plate is set above the skimmer throat to support the stone decking above it. However, it isn’t bonded.

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be found in the alteration of lights.Hamilton relates the story of a Cali-

fornia inspector who found two installa-tions where the insides of the light were removed and replaced with ballast trans-formers and mercury vapor lamps. “When you put a ballast in a mercury vapor light, you’re looking at well in excess of 120 volts or even 150 volts,” he says.

It seems the goal was increased bright-ness; however, the alteration flew in the face of the NEC, not only because the volt-age exceeded the 150-volt limit, but also because it involved components not listed for use with the lights.

Other alterations may come in the form of inappropriate splicing. The NEC prohibits splicing of underwater wire con-nections, so pool and spa lights must be powered by a continuous cord, generally the 50-, 100- or 150-foot one supplied by the manufacturer and sealed to the back of the fixture. To replace a light, there-fore, the technician must remove the en-tire cord and pull the new one in place, a process that can become frustrating when the line gets stuck. To work around this, some installers drain the pool below the light niche, cut the existing cord and strip wires back so they can splice in wires from the new light. They’ll then wrap the wires with tape or dip them in epoxy, believing they’ve provided a watertight connection.

“They’ve created an immense hazard for the homeowner,” Brotz says.

More common mistakes involve the choice of components. For instance, con-nectors, transformers and other parts of a pool or spa electrical system must be cor-rosion-resistant to withstand the chemicals and other pool- and spa-related substances that can leach into the soil or hover in the air around pumps, chlorinators and other equipment.

“A pool environment can be a lot more corrosive than just an environment out in the dirt somewhere,” Hamilton says. “You can have connecting devices that are listed for use underground that won’t last a month in a pool environment.”

Because of this pervasive problem, the upcoming 2017 NEC Article 680, cur-rently undergoing an update, likely will re-quire that appropriate connectors be listed

for use in corrosive environments and that manufacturers disclose the materials from which they are made.

Higher-quality GFCIs also should be used to withstand the more aggressive en-vironment. “When you start putting cheap ground fault circuit outlets as part of the system and they’re sitting in the elements, eventually they’re going to fail,” says David

Peterson, president of San Diego-based Wa-tershape Consulting. “And if nobody’s test-ing them, then you’ve got a problem.”

To help mitigate the most common homeowner error — failing to perform GFCI tests once a month — new, self-testing GFCI receptacles are entering the market. If they pass, they will automati-cally reset.

Misunderstandings also occur regard-ing the selection of transformers and junc-tion boxes. While the NEC specifies junc-tion boxes should be listed for pool or spa use by a third-party testing agency, some local jurisdictions don’t. It’s generally safer to follow the NEC here, Hamilton says.

In addition, low-voltage lights require a transformer or power supply listed for that application. These must have a grounded isolation barrier for the high-voltage wind-ing or must be double-insulated. An incor-rect transformer for low-voltage lighting increases the hazard of sending 120 volts to the pool light in the case of a failure.

The same holds true for pool and spa controllers.

“That transformer is supposed to be approved to the same UL standard so that it doesn’t short out and send line voltage [out to] the circuit board,” Peterson says. “If it did, that line voltage could go back

Vital junction: This junction box (top right) is not

approved for use in pool lighting, or even outdoors.

The bonding and grounding connections

are done with wire nuts, rather than terminating

on a grounding bar to keep them secure. A low-voltage data cable passes

through the box, when only GFCI-protected wires and grounding conductors should be present. Bottom

left: a properly wired J-box. Below: Another correct J-Box, this one

field-fabricated, contains the grounding bar in back

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through the wire and go right into the water.”

Missing a stepIn some cases, seemingly minor steps are overlooked during the installation or re-placement of constituents in an electrical system.

One of the most common examples of this occurs during the replacement of pumps and other equipment, when techni-cians sometimes fail to connect bonding or grounding wires that are already present and attached to the original equipment. If the item doesn’t come with a bonding lug, for instance, or if the new bonding lug looks different than the one on the original equipment, the technician may assume it isn’t necessary and not attach it.

In other cases, multiple bonding wires are present, with only one bonding lug on the equipment. Some installers then attach just one wire and leave the others loose, figuring that a pump, for example, only needs one bonding wire. However, these extra wires connect to something on the other side, likely another piece of equipment in the bonding grid, and are in-tended to attach to the component being replaced to ensure all appropriate compo-nents are included in the grid.

Liquid-tight conduit and connectors

Where we stand in Florida

There still is a movement afoot in Florida to put the spotlight on electrical safety in pools and spas, perhaps through government mandates.

After Miami-Dade and Broward Counties outlawed high-voltage pool and spa lights, Chris Sloan set his sights on a state law. Last year, a bill was introduced to prohibit the installation of lights over 15 volts, require periodic light inspections, and compel those selling homes with pools to provide a disclosure statement to prospects about the potential hazards of high-voltage pool lights. After pool-industry objections, the bill failed to pass.

To keep the electrical safety issue alive, a senator introduced an amendment to an annual bill in which the state building code is updated. The clause proposed formation of the Calder Sloan Swimming Pool Electrical-Safety Task Force to ex-plore what kinds of safety measures should be instituted. This solution went un-opposed by the industry and was primed to pass when internal drama spurred the legislature to end its session prematurely, indirectly killing scores of bills.

Now it’s time for Round Two, as it were.A new bill was introduced in the Florida House to pick up where last ses-

sion left off and institute the Calder Sloan Swimming Pool 2 Electrical-Safety Task Force. As that bill goes through its paces, the Florida Building Commission has picked up the issue. In October, two of its committees — one covering electri-cal, one pools and spas — met to discuss several electrical safety measures that could be instituted statewide, including a possible building code requirement that underwater lights be low voltage.

So far, only two proposals have received enough support to move forward. In the first, the state would initiate some kind of education for consumers regarding pool and spa electrical safety. This received unanimous support. The group also voted to explore a requirement that GFCIs be added to all circuits feeding equip-ment that could energize a new residential or commercial pool.

One thing is for sure, say observers of all stripes: This issue is not going away in the Sunshine State.

Motor bonding: In the photo to the left, the motor has too small a bonding wire – a No. 12, rather than No. 8. Additionally, the installer connected the wire by twisting it onto the other bond wire rather than using a split bolt. After it was repaired, right, the No. 8 wire sits secure in its bonding lug. The copper split bolt connecting the wire to the bonding grid can be seen in the top left of the image, near the white plumbing elbow.A

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also may seem like minor parts and often are missing or not connected correctly. These tube-like jackets and their connec-tors serve as a barrier from surrounding moisture and protect wires from rubbing against edges on equipment, transform-ers, junction boxes and other components with corners.

When wires enter a transformer, for instance, they should not simply be strung through the opening. Instead, they should be placed in liquid-tight connectors so the edges of the opening can’t rub against the wire and wear away the insulation. If these wires became exposed, they could elec-trify items that contact it, including metal doors of the housings.

Pumps are supposed to have a liquid-tight connector screwed into the back of the motor, with a liquid-tight conduit con-necting to it. Often, when pumps and mo-tors are replaced, these items go missing, perhaps when the original is damaged and the technician doesn’t have a replacement on hand.

“So there are two hot [120-volt] con-ductors coming into the motor without protection around the conductors,” Brotz says. “If those conductors touch the side

of the metal opening that they go into to get into the motor, now the motor casing becomes energized and you have a serious shock or electrocution hazard.”

If the pump is bonded and grounded properly, that minimizes the hazard be-cause the breaker will trip; however, this safeguard should be done observed.

Serious mis-wireCertain components, such as low-voltage

transformers and electrical panels for control systems, combine low- and high-voltage wiring, which are meant to remain separate from each other.

That is why these housings contain individual compartments. But some pro-fessionals cross wires or even run them in the same conduit or enclosure, creating a serious hazard: If a high-voltage conductor were to become hot enough to melt the insulation of a low-voltage wire, then the bare wires could touch, causing high volt-age to transfer into wires intended to send low voltage. High voltage then could be sent to the low-voltage light.

Twelve-volt wiring and 120-volt wir-ing should never occupy the same space, with one exception: inside the enclosure where the low voltage is created.

In a similar vein, while some lights may be low-voltage, their transformers hold high- and low-voltage wiring. Here again, they each have their place: Low-voltage wiring must reside on the low-voltage side of the transformer and vice versa. To get this backward is to send potentially hun-dreds of volts to the lights.

“It takes 120 volts and turns it into 1,200,” Brotz says. “Instead of knocking it down by a factor of 10, the transformer is now a step-up transformer.”

Oftentimes, this mishap will damage the transformer due to a blown thermal fuse, so the high voltage never reaches the light; however, caution would dictate that it be done correctly.

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Bonding check: Here, a bonding system undergoes a continuity test among items required to be bonded by the National Electrical Code. It should be performed so the current being injected flows through the pool structural steel in concrete pools and the perimeter bonding ring in non-conducting pools.

On the grid: This shows a connection of the bonding ring to the pool’s structural steel. Buried connectors must be listed as suitable for the application, and attachment screws must be made of stainless steel or another corrosion-resistant material, even if a listed device comes with plated-steel screws.

ground wire preventing service panel niche … · and grounding if they sit in a metal niche....

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