LOL
"I have never heard of running a dedicated circuit to heat section of fan. Can you direct me to that code? So I can educate myself."
Sorry that you haven't!
2008 NEC: Bathrooms are required to have 20A circuits.
The specific code is probably not as important, but more the principal involved, so pull up a seat
This particular heat element for the
PANASONIC FV-11VHL2 draws 1425Watts. A 15A circuit has a total capacity of 1800watts but the safe capacity is 1440watts. A 20A circuit has a total capacity of 2400watts with a safe capacity of 1920watts. The manufacturer recommends 20A circuits.
So, now a days, it makes more electrical sense to put high wattage devices on their own dedicated circuits: microwaves, dishwashers, particle accelerators, stoves, radiant floor heat, bathroom heat because in many cases, the appliance approaches the safe capacity of the device.
Besides, this product has HEAT, LIGHT, NIGHT LIGHT AND the FAN in the same unit and it just draws too much juice for one circuit-one 20A circuit; but more importantly, and i knew this, the inspectors at City Hall made this a requirement on my plans, before they approved them and I began the work.
Also, the branch circuit that supplies the fan and light, also supplies the GFCI outlet over the sink and the vanity light. If EVERYTHING were on a 20A circuit, including the HEAT and someone plugs in a hair dryer-THE LIGHTS AND EVERYTHING are going OUT !!! lol
"And by the way, with two seperate circuits landing in the same switch, I think you need to put both those circuits on the same breaker. This requires a two pull breaker, (240v) wich means you can tie your two breakers together, or trade out for a two pull."
Absolutely NOT! For one thing, in my simple residential bathroom project, the separate circuits are exactly that-
SEPARATE; Separate romex, Separate Breakers and Separate Switches! 20A separate switches-as a matter of fact!
I used the
Pass & Seymour PS81120I 20A combination switch which has this nifty (re-usable) tab to split the circuit; I used the BIG switch for the heat and the 2 top switches for the light and night lite. I have them installed with the big switch on the bottom
It is detailed in my wiring diagram in a previous post
The fan (29watts) is controlled by a
Lutron MA-t51-IV timer. The 2 decora styled controllers fit nicely in a 2 gang box. The 3 switch in the one gang was a life saver otherwise I'd have to put in a 3-gang monstrosity to house a fan timer, light and night light and a separate switch for a separate circuit; most triple switches that i found at Home depot or Lowes were all on the same circuit.
Dude, The Code Enforcement Division of any municipality would never just "PASS ya OFF" on an electrical matter where the main purpose of an electrical inspection is to save lives through fire protection. These guys know their ****, unlike me
If you are interested in Online Access to NFPA 70®: National Electrical Code® (NEC®) Softbound, 2008 Edition you can visit the
NFPA website, create a free account and pour through the 2008 NEC for the specific code.
Another excellent reference is
wiring simplified, 42nd edition.
and lastly, this is so very helpful for me...
Black and Decker: Complete Guide to home wiring
Thanks for being interested ! This is a great forum!
Cheers