Safe Set-up Guide
We always like to help you get the most out of your Hydropool Cheltenham purchase and this includes giving you all the information you need to make sure your set-up is safe before your hot tub installation begins! In January 2005 the Government introduced a law which requires that a ‘competent person’ must carry most electrical work in UK households. For Hot Tub installations, this means the electrical works must adhere to section 702 in the 17th Edition IEE (Institute of Electrical Engineers) Regulations because they are categorised as swimming pools. The electrical safety requirements relevant to your hot tub are now included in Part P of the Building Regulations.
Read on and we’ll guide you through everything you need to know to set up a suitable electrical connection for your hot tub or swimspa including details on Part P and how to find a qualified electrician.
WHAT IS PART P AND WHO IS RESPONSIBLE TO MEET THE REQUIREMENTS?
Part P was introduced to reduce damages to homes and personal injury due to unsafe workmanship. It is a section of the Building Regulations that covers England and Wales and applies to anyone carrying out fixed electrical installations.
Part P states:
“Reasonable provision shall be made in the design and installation of electrical installations in order to protect persons operating, maintaining or altering the installations from fire or injury”
It is the homeowner’s responsibility to prove that any electrical work carried out meets Part P requirements meaning that all electrical work follows the rules set out in BS 7671. It is a criminal offence if it does not.
HOW TO MEET THE REQUIREMENTS OF PART P
When you are contracting an electrician for your hot tub installation, you can choose from 3 options:
- Use one of the following schemes to contract a Part P qualified and registered electrician: NICEIC – www.niceic.com NAPIT – www.napit.org.uk ELECSA – www.elecsa.co.uk
- Use a fully qualified but unregistered electrician who will either inspect their own work or employ a qualified electrician to carry out the inspection
- Use an electrician that will employ a qualified and registered electrician to inspect their work, this way you will not need a local authority inspection
Whichever option you choose, after the hot tub electrical supply work is complete, you’ll receive a Part P certificate. Your certificate will need to be kept safe and presented as part of the Home Seller’s Pack, if you sell your house.
ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION AND AMPERAGE INFORMATION
*ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION
As mentioned the electrical installation for your hot tub must comply with BS:7671 “Requirements for Electrical Installations IET Wiring Regulations”, specifically:
- The hot tub must not be sharing a supply with any other appliances and so be hard wired on its own fused spur back to your household consumer unit.
- Hot tubs should be protected by a sufficient MCB (mains circuit breaker) which covers 25% more than the maximum amperage pull of the Spa to allow for brake torque (when the pumps are first switch on there will be an extra rush of current). For example, a 20 AMP hot tub should be fitted with a 25AMP MCB
- The hot tub should be fitted with a trip switch (RCD) which prevents the possibility of electric shocks from damaged/waterlogged cables and connections by protecting against earth faults. A suitable rated 30mA RCD is recommended.
- Protective ducting (pc pipe) should be laid below ground or Steel Wired Armoured (SWA) cable should be used to protect the outdoor cabling from damage. The size of cable required can be calculated depending on the loading and the distance from the mains supply, your electrician will calculate this.
- When your electrical supply is installed and your hot tub is filled with water, we will commission it and check everything is in order and fully operational then we’ll hand it over to you with a chemical guide and hot tub handbook.
*AMPERAGE
We are happy to communicate with your electrician regarding the exact AMP specifications required for your hot tub or you can look for the specifications on the hot tub or swimspa pages of our website. However, most hot tubs require at least a 13AMP supply with larger hot tubs requiring a 32AMP supply.
13AMP electrical requirements
This is a normal domestic supply so all you will need is an outdoor, waterproof plug socket including RCD protection. 5 metres of cable and a plug for the socket will be included in our installation package.
32&40AMP electrical requirements
Hot tubs or swimspas requiring higher AMP supply will need 6mm² 3-core SWA cable (32AMP) or a 10mm² 3-core SWA cable (40AMP). Additionally, an IP65 45AMP Rotary Isolator Switch is recommended for the hot tub be isolated outdoors for service work to be carried out or in an emergency situation. This is simply a rotary on/off switch which bathers should not be able to reach whilst in the water so should be sited at least 2 metres away from the hot tub.
IP65 45amp Rotary Switch
One of the things your electrician should do is fit a suitable weather proof block connector to the end of the tail from the isolator, this means the hot tub supply can be hard wired directly inside the hot tub into the weatherproof block connector. Furthermore, to prevent the entrance of water to all the electrical components, waterproof gland packs should be used. Finally, all earth cables must be clearly colour coded with an earth sleeve or green/yellow insulating tape.
ANOTHER IMPORTANT NOTE: Our hot tub installation experts are able to connect your cable to the inside of the Hot tub however, your electrician should ensure enough spare cable is left to reach to the side of the hot tub farthest from the mains supply.
If you need any further advice or have any doubts about the guidelines provided please seek out a fully qualified electrician.
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