Adding a GFCI to bathroom

[Leeboy20]

Im asking this question for a friend. She lives in a basement suite , and running wires is quite difficult. What she is wondering is.....Her bathroom doesnt have a GFCI outet and wants to know if she can tap into the bathroom light for the GFCI outlet. Meaning, when she turns the light switch on, the GFCI outlet will go live, and when she turns the light out, the outlet turns off. Thumbs up...or thumbs down on this?

 

[madosta]

What about putting the GFCI closer to the light switch and feeding from it?

 

[pattenp]

There is no problem in itself to have the outlet powered up and down by the light switch. Just beware of existing loads on the light circuit because plugging in a hair dryer to the new outlet may trip the circuit breaker.

 

[Leeboy20]

What about putting the GFCI closer to the light switch and feeding from it?

Hi, havent got that far to see how the light switch is wired. ( if it has hot and neutral) Will be checking it out today , thanks

 

[Leeboy20]

There is no problem in itself to have the outlet powered up and down by the light switch. Just beware of existing loads on the light circuit because plugging in a hair dryer to the new outlet may trip the circuit breaker.

Were going to flip the breaker today and go through the house and see what is on that circuit before we go any further, good to know this is possible. If she's lucky, maybe the bathroom light is on its own, also, she doesnt have a fan either....If the bathroom light has its own circuit, could a fan be put on this circuit as well? Or is that too much....

 

[pattenp]

Were going to flip the breaker today and go through the house and see what is on that circuit before we go any further, good to know this is possible. If she's lucky, maybe the bathroom light is on its own, also, she doesnt have a fan either....If the bathroom light has its own circuit, could a fan be put on this circuit as well? Or is that too much....

You need to figure out what the total potential load will be. If it's a 15A circuit you want to keep the continuous load to 12A max. So what is most likely to be on at the same time... couple of lights, exhaust fan and hair drier? Some hair driers alone pull 15A.

 

[Leeboy20]

Ok, i will look into feeding a new wire from the panel for my first option. 2nd option, no fan i guess and give it a go with my original plan.

 

[tfi racing]

Back in the way past when razor plugs were used it was common to switch the outlet with the light,inconvenient sometimes but no big deal,should be no problem adding a GFCI and a fan to the existing circuit.The fan uses slightly more than nothing,if she uses a curling iron and dryer at the same time the breaker may trip,but havely hardly ever heard any complaints over the years.

 

[mrjaw14]

I believe that according to codes, outlets cannot be fed from lighting circuits. many times there's just 2-4 lighting circuits for the whole house, so you'd be adding an unsafe load to those circuits.

What I've done in cases like this if the house wiring is top fed from the atic area is find the wall top cap, use a 1/2" or 3/4' spade bit to drill through, drop new wire, then use an old work box to give a proper box. then ideally you'd go back to the panel, or tap into another outlet circuit.

If the house is ever sold and a home inspector goes through it and finds the gfci turns off with the light they'll want a licensed electrician to fix it before the sale can proceed. Which will cost more than just doing it right yourself now.

Since running wires might be tough, the best thing might be to put the GFCI before the light and feed the light from the GFCI. Not ideal, but better. Be aware though, if it's a shared light circuit you risk overloading it.

 

[Leeboy20]

Thanks guys, i am passing this info on as i get it.

 

[BIMMERBOYZ]

MrJaw what code section states "outlets can not be fed from lighting circuits"

If her bathroom does not have a GFCI that alone is against code.

Even if it doesn't have an outlet, code wants to eliminate an individual from running an electrical device near water without it being protected by a GFCI. To prevent a person from plugging in an extension cord from the hall and running it into the bathroom, a GFCI located in the bathroom would stop this.

 

[mrjaw14]

Yes not having a gfci is against code. So is tapping into a lighting circuit to satisfy the code:

2008 NEC - 210.11(C)(3) requires a 20 Amp branch circuit in the bathroom to supply only receptacles. The exception says: where the 20 Amp circuit supplies a single bathroom, outlets for other equipment within the same bathroom shall be permitted in accordance with 210.23(A)(1) and (A)(2)


210.23(A) says a 15 Amp or 20 Amp branch circuit shall be permitted to supply lighting units or other utilization equip, or a combination of both, and shall comply with 210.23(A)(1) and (A)(2) The exception says: ...bathroom branch circuits required in a dwelling unit shall supply only the receptacle outlets.


So as I said....IF you have a dedicated circuit that feeds outlets in a bathroom, you can often get away with adding lights AFTER the gfci. You cannot just tap into a lighting circuit to add a GFCI to a bathroom.

Go ask a home inspector or electrical inspector if you doubt this. I had to fix a situation once where a home was being sold and the inspector failed it because a vanity light had a light/plug combo above it that wasn't GFCI protected. Added a GFCI before the vanity light and presto...inspection passed