Hi All

I am hoping an Electrician can advise me on the wiring of my outside Spa, I live in Perth if that makes a difference.

I have had a quote off an Electrician for wiring up my outside spa, the Electrician has told me he is going to install a 15 amp socket, to do this he is going to also install a new RCD feeding a 16Amp MCB then feeding my new 15Amp Socket with 2.5mm cable.

Now I have two RCD's already installed in my Electric box, would one of these RCD's be able to be used or does you require a separate circuit for the SPA inc the RCD, MCB etc?

I am asking this because I got totally ripped off last time I had work done and even though I want everything done safely and correct I dont want to be ripped off.

Thanks Don

hi mate, check your fuse board....2rcds? what ratings...didnt thint they did split boards in oz?...do they?..if u have 2rcds at present where the hell is he going to put the third?

Hi

There are 2 RCD's, its not very well marked so I cant tell you much more there sorry.

He was saying about the RCD feeding the Spa?

That sounds right to me, the spa will probably pull a fair amount of current due to the heaters.

Its a good idea to keep things like that separate, it could be wired into your existing sockets circuit but you may start getting nuisance trips etc.

How much is the quote?

Yes I can understand the circuit being seperate but I was just wondering why the extra RCD, I just wanted some more advice, picking peoples brains

If you have 2 RCD's in the same fuse board, one as the main switch which may be 100 m\a trip current the other 30 m\a trip, which is normally stamped on the front. You will have this if you have a TT system, Where you have a earth rod, so your main earth comming into your house is not supplied by your electric supplier. Steve 'o' on the electrical forum would know as he is over Oz and he knows everything . give him a shout.

not everything

ususally the main rcd ( safety switch over here is rated at 30ma )
so if it has a main safety switch rated at 30ma its a pointless exercise fitting another

check your fuse board and read what it says on the rcds look for mA rating and A rating


regards steve

Hi

Thanks for all the help.

They both say 40amp and 30ma, does that tell you anything.

Thanks Don

slingshot69;
regards to your Spa the RCD must be installed i have a concern about the bloke fitting the 2.5mm cable, the cable size depends on the heater element size also the distance from the switchboard to the Spa,i dont think a 2.5mm cable is noway near enough. at the leat you would need a 4.00mm cable as i say depending on the distance there will be a volt drop, on my own Spa (electrical) my heater is 5 KW and the distance is some 30 meters from the switchboard so i had to install a 6.00mm cable via a RCD for safety requirements. you can get a 20amp 30m/a RCD or if the Spa is drawing more than 20amp you get a 40amp 30m/a RCD. if you done have any spare ways in the switchboard you can always have another board installed next to the existing one or maybe upgrade the existing board to a larger capacity, allowing for future expansion.

regards

arthur

yeah its sounds like they are subcircuits and not the main safety swithc so yes you wil need a rcd/mcb combination fitting, although like arthur i would be concerned at a 2.5mm cable being sufficeint to power a spa ( unless of course its gas fired or solar )

ca you tell us the power requirements for the spa
( the supplier should be able to give you either an ampage or wattage )

regards steve

Not sure if this will be useful but my spa plugs into a 15 amp socket but the plug itself contains a RCD type flick switch. Maybe they can be used as an alternative to fitting one on the fuse box?

Andrew

Hi Arthur

Thanks for running through that for me, I want to check a few things out with this guy to make sure the cable size etc. The spa is going to be at the furthest point from my switch board.

I also think there is only one spare way left and thats for an MCB.

Thanks again, Don

Hi Steve

Thanks for the advice, I am away on a job at the moment so I cant get you the info, I would of thought it would be on the Spa somewhere but I wont know until next week.

Thanks again, Don

Hi Andrew

That sounds interesting especially as I dont think an RCD will fit in my board, I would like to see what the others think of this idea.

Thanks Don