Electrical Code Basics
By mati. Filed in Monolithic Dome Planning Tips |Tags: Colorado electrical code, electrical code, electrical code basics, Monolithic Dome Planning Tips
Your monolithic dome’s electrical system has to be planned out accurately even before making the domeshell. The most important thing is to know the electrical code basics well. (If in doubt, call your inspector and ask before it is “set in stone.”)
According to the Colorado Electrical Code, you need to have an outside light above each of your entrance doors. You are also required to have two GFCI protected receptacles with waterproof covers on the outside walls, preferably one on each side of the house.
On the inside, you must have light switches by the doors. You must also have a receptacle every 12 feet (no further than 6 feet from any given point on the wall), starting no further than 2′ from any door. This is really a minimum requirement, so I usually put the receptacles a bit closer together than that.
All the bedrooms have to be protected by a special breaker called an ARC breaker. These are extremely sensitive to changes in the current, and they are also unbelievably expensive, unfortunately. The receptacles in the bathrooms have to be on separate circuits and be protected with GFCI. If you have a whirl tub, you need to run a separate circuit to the bath, too. Make sure you know which side the motor is on, before you put the wire in!
In the kitchen there are lots of circuits. If you have an electric stove, you need to run a 10 guage 3 wire on a separate 240 v circuit. Or, if you are going to use a gas stove, you just need a regular 110v 12 guage wire. The last time we built a house, the inspector also wanted a separate circuit for the fan above the stove. This is because some people like to put a microwave there instead, which does need a separate circuit.
In addition, you also need 2-3 small appliance circuits on your kitchen counters. You can put 2-3 receptacles on each circuit, and they have to be no more than 4′ apart (2′ from any given point on the wall). Small appliance circuits also need to be protected by GFCI. Don’t forget to run circuits to your dishwasher and garbage disposal as well.
The fridge also needs a separate circuit, but it should never be GFCI protected! This is because you don’t want the switch to flip off the electricity unnessesarily because that can cause all your food to go bad.
In the laundry room, you need one circuit for the washer and one for the drier.
In the boiler room, don’t forget to run a separate circuit to a box for the boiler switch.
If you have electricity in a garage or wet room (green house), the circuit needs GFCI protection.
If you have a kitchen table that is attached to the floor or wall, you need to have at least one receptacle close to that table.
This should give you at least a clue what you have to put on your dome plans.
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