I have a sad story to tell you, It may hurt your feelings a bit, Bathroom Receptacles-
“I have a sad story to tell you, It may hurt your feelings a bit
Last night when I walked into my bathroom, I stepped in a pile of …
Shaving cream, be nice and clean.
Shave everyday and you'll always look keen.”
Now seriously when it comes to bathroom receptacles we have certain rules in play. But for many you may not know that some of those rules are much newer than you thought.
Current standards are that you must have one wall receptacle must be installed adjacent to the sink (basin) in each bathroom (GFCI protected), they can not be more than 3 feet away. You can also have them on the cabinets as long as it is not more than 12 inches below the sink (basin) countertop. If there is more than one sink, a receptacle is required adjacent to each sink location. If the sinks are close together one receptacle may supply both sinks as long as you meet the 3 foot rule.
The required receptacle(s) cannot be a part of any lighting fixture (luminaire) or medicine cabinet. So these specific receptacles will be in addition to the required receptacle.
So here is what the code currently states-
2014 NEC 210.52 Dwelling Unit Receptacle Outlets
(D) Bathrooms.
In dwelling units, at least one receptacle outlet shall be installed in bathrooms within 900 mm (3 ft) of the outside edge of each basin. The receptacle outlet shall be located on a wall or partition that is adjacent to the basin or basin countertop, located on the countertop, or installed on the side or face of the basin cabinet. In no case shall the receptacle be located more than 300 mm (12 in.) below the top of the basin. Receptacle outlet assemblies listed for the application shall be permitted to be installed in the countertop.
Now for a little history on the requirements for bathroom receptacles. The bathroom receptacle first shows up in 1971 in NEC section 210.22 (b) in the required receptacles for dwelling units section,
210.22 (b) “At Least one wall receptacle outlet shall be installed in bathroom adjacent to the basin location”
I would bet that most thought this requirement would actually show up much earlier in the codes since it was common in homes to have receptacle in the bathroom that predate the actual requirement. But this was just a good practice and not a requirement.
Then in 1975 the code section changes to NEC 210.25 Receptacle Outlets Required.
Then in 1981 the requirement changes to code section 210.52( c ) and in NEC 1999, 210.52 (d) we get our first 3 ft requirement.
So there we have it a little walk in history and I will leave you with this-
“And now folks my story is ended, I think it is time I should quit
And if anyone of you feel offended, Push your head in a bucket of...
Shaving cream, be nice and clean Shave every day and you'll always look keen”
“Everything is funny, as long as it's happening to somebody else.”
Will Rogers
NCW Home Inspections, LLC is a Licensed Washington State Home Inspection service located in Wenatchee Washington serving Chelan County, Douglas County, Kittitas County, Okanogan County and Grant County Washington and the cities of Wenatchee, Leavenworth, Cashmere, Oroville, Cle Elum, East Wenatchee, Quincy and many more…
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