| Nothing against electricians,
or otherwise knowledgeable do it yourselfer's, but the number one problem
with situations of this type is a mis-installation of the GFCI.
Even the most experienced
veterans of the electrical trade can make this mistake from time to time.
Please don't make the common
mistake of assuming that all is perfect with the installation since you
paid in excess of 300-1000 dollars to have it done, as you MUST visually
check it first before you can say "It's done RIGHT!".
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220 Volt Spa Installation
Most 220 Volt spas require
a GFCI that has Neutral protection capability. This type of GFCI
will have three power line outputs, and a white "pigtail" line that must
be connected to the neutral bus of the circuit breaker box.
Most common errors are:
-
Connecting the Neutral pigtail
to the Neutral Line going to the spa.
-
Connecting the Neutral Line
going to the spa to the Neutral bus, (along with the pigtail from the GFCI).
If this isn't the problem,
then here's a classic one:
-
Connecting the neutral line
coming from the GFCI to the ground at the outside power disconnect box,
or, possibly connecting it to the ground input at the spa. Remember,
the Neutral Line and the Ground Line MUST remain isolated from each other
all the way to the power input of the spa control system.
-
Reversing the Ground and Neutral
lines at the remote disconnect box.
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| 110 Volt Spa Installation
If you have a single pole
GFCI breaker providing power to the spa, then check the neutral line installation
(as in a 220 Volt spa above) first. If everything is correct, then
proceed below:
If you have terminated the
110 Volt line to a standard outlet at the spa, be sure that the hot (normally
black) line is connected to the hot line of the outlet - (gold tone screw);
Neutral is connected to the neutral side of the outlet - (silver tone screw);
and that the ground line is connected to the bottome ground screw, sometimes
green in color. Also ensure that the neutral line hasn't been reversed
with ground. |
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