Walter Posted December 19, 2006 Report Share Posted December 19, 2006 Hello. I went ahead and purchased that Caldera I mentioned a while ago. Now I have a follow up question. I am going to get a contractor to pour a concrete slab and run the electrical. The contractor wanted to know the details of what is needed and I am at a loss. All I know is I need to runa 220V 50 amp from the side of my house. Can anyone explain what else I need. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pg_rider Posted December 20, 2006 Report Share Posted December 20, 2006 You'll also need a GFCI breaker, either in your main panel or at an outside disconnect box. Speaking of, you'll need a disconnect installed somewhere between 5 and 10 feet from your tub. As I mentioned, you can put the GFCI breaker either in your main panel or as part of the disconnect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfish Posted December 20, 2006 Report Share Posted December 20, 2006 You'll also need a GFCI breaker, either in your main panel or at an outside disconnect box. Speaking of, you'll need a disconnect installed somewhere between 5 and 10 feet from your tub. As I mentioned, you can put the GFCI breaker either in your main panel or as part of the disconnect. Check with your dealer but I think he needs to run 50 amps to the disconnect, after that it splits to a 30 and a 20 amp circuit to the tub. I ran 1" conduit to the disconnect then 3/4" from the disconnect to the tub. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davidny Posted December 20, 2006 Report Share Posted December 20, 2006 I read that the disconnect has to be line-of-sight from the tub as well as being 5-10 feet away. Is this the case? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jfish Posted December 20, 2006 Report Share Posted December 20, 2006 I read that the disconnect has to be line-of-sight from the tub as well as being 5-10 feet away. Is this the case? Yes the disconnect has to be within sight of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chas Posted December 21, 2006 Report Share Posted December 21, 2006 Yes the disconnect has to be within sight of. I have installed several spas recently where the subpanel was NOT within line of sight of the tub. Instead, we simply put a small padlock on the main panel. That way, if the tub is turned off and a service man is working on it, somebody would have to go get a key and open the lock before they can turn the power back on and fry the poor guy. Theoretcally, the repair man would have the key anyway. This is new - for the past twenty years I have put the subpanel in the general area of the tub, line of sight. Not closer than 5 feet to the water, but usually not more than about 35 feet. I like this much better - my electrician stumbled upon this while working on one of our installs where the owner absolutely DID NOT want to have to see the subpanel in the spa area, and we have done it and will be doing it that way whenever we can. The subpanel can also go right next to or below the main panel if the breakers will not fit - you then put the padlock on the subpanel. As an addition bonus, the wire should be a little less expensive because you are running smaller wires from the subpanel to the spa - it depends upon the length of the run, YMMV. Also - in case I didn't make it clear, your Caldera will come with a Subpanel. You should get that at the time of purchase and have it installed in advance, if you want to fill and fire up the tub the day it is delivered. You can install it later, of course, but where's the fun in that? This is a subpanel - in it are two GFI breakers. It is not a 'spa disconnect.' It works as both a GFI protection, and a shutoff, as well as basic overcurrent protection of course. The two breakers feed two seperate circuits in your Caldera spa - one 30amp and one 20amp. Your electrician needs to feed it with a 50amp NON GFI breaker in the main panel, or transfer the breakers into your main panel if they will fit. That is the easiest, BTW. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peterbike Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Yes the disconnect has to be within sight of. I have installed several spas recently where the subpanel was NOT within line of sight of the tub. Instead, we simply put a small padlock on the main panel. That way, if the tub is turned off and a service man is working on it, somebody would have to go get a key and open the lock before they can turn the power back on and fry the poor guy. Theoretcally, the repair man would have the key anyway. This is new - for the past twenty years I have put the subpanel in the general area of the tub, line of sight. Not closer than 5 feet to the water, but usually not more than about 35 feet. I like this much better - my electrician stumbled upon this while working on one of our installs where the owner absolutely DID NOT want to have to see the subpanel in the spa area, and we have done it and will be doing it that way whenever we can. The subpanel can also go right next to or below the main panel if the breakers will not fit - you then put the padlock on the subpanel. As an addition bonus, the wire should be a little less expensive because you are running smaller wires from the subpanel to the spa - it depends upon the length of the run, YMMV. Also - in case I didn't make it clear, your Caldera will come with a Subpanel. You should get that at the time of purchase and have it installed in advance, if you want to fill and fire up the tub the day it is delivered. You can install it later, of course, but where's the fun in that? This is a subpanel - in it are two GFI breakers. It is not a 'spa disconnect.' It works as both a GFI protection, and a shutoff, as well as basic overcurrent protection of course. The two breakers feed two seperate circuits in your Caldera spa - one 30amp and one 20amp. Your electrician needs to feed it with a 50amp NON GFI breaker in the main panel, or transfer the breakers into your main panel if they will fit. That is the easiest, BTW. Do you need to have a sub panel mounted for hot tub with on/off switch for pump and heater? Can't you run it Straight off the Main Panel? What is the reason for Sub Panel? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wireman Posted February 9, 2008 Report Share Posted February 9, 2008 Sounds like your "contractor" isn't a electrical contractor. Are you really going to let joe shovel and concrete guy run new wires in your house to your service panel? I'd rather see you do it yourself than let a non-electrician do it. Any electrical contractor will only want one thing. A cut sheet of the electrical requirements for that spa. After that they should be able to tell you what they can do to meet the NEC and your local codes or what they can't do because of location. Say no place for a disconnect over 5' away. If you want more help on the electrical please feel free to post up. I'll need the required amperage, number of circuits and any manufacture requirements for your tub along with what is included. Someone mentioned your tub comes with a disconnect? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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