what gauge wire should i use for a 60 amp hot tub (outdoor placement)?

outdoor hot tub wiring image

WhizKid

the run of wiring is 95% indoor (about 30 ft), and only a short distance will be run outdoor to the tub (the outdoor portion will be placed in a conduit)

Answer
#6 AWG copper is rated for 65 amps or #4 AWG aluminum.

Hot tubs are very tricky. Be sure you use a GFCI breaker. There needs to be a disconnect outside near the hot tub (not less than 5 feet away). There are many other issues regarding lighting fixtures and receptacles near the hot tub. If you are unsure of the requirements, check with your local building inspector. I highly recommend an inspection by either the electrical inspector or a local licensed electrical contractor before using the hot tub.

Water and electricity do not mix. Be sure to turn off the power before working on any circuits and verify that the power is off with a voltmeter.

One prong on a three-prong plug overheated and the outlet is ruined. What could cause this?

Houyhnhnm

Outdoor outlet, 110 volts, 20 amps. The circuit is dedicated to a small hot tub. It draws 1500 watts intermittently for the heater and a few watts continually for the circulating pump. Outlet is regular outdoor type with a plastic cover, and GFI plug. One night I noticed power was off. One prong was charred, with plastic melted around it, and melted plastic in the outlet. Breaker on panel wasn't tripped. No evidence of a power surge anywhere else. Any ideas on what's going on and what I should do to correct would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Houyhnhnm
Thanks to all for your info. I have replaced the outlet and the plug/cord, and it's working fine now.

Vincent mentioned problems with P&S. Both the old and new outlets are Leviton.

All the answers were good and I don't know which to pick, so I'm putting it to the voters.

Thanks again,
Houyhnhnm

Answer
Make sure you have COPPER wire, and that all the connections are nice and tight. Replace the plug all the way to the hot tub, as well as the GFI

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What outdoor recreational equipment is best to buy for kids/teens?

outdoor hot tub wiring image

Giovanni

We live in a very rural area where city parks or playgrounds, skating rinks or public pools are really at a minimum, and have an older young-adult son who as a teenager got into some trouble here, but the new family plan to prevent this with the current teenager is this: if we have "cool stuff" for our son and his friends to do HERE, and this is the "hang out", we'll know where our kid is, who he is with and what he is doing AND we'll provide him with fun things to do so he isn't bored and likely to get into trouble. We've considered a small pool as we all love swimming, he wants to save his own money and buy a hot tub (as well as the wiring to power it - thoughtful young man!), I thought maybe a trampoline and he isn't especially fond of basketball, but I thought a basketball hoop would be good and fairly inexpensive. Any other ideas? I also want to be able to include younger children, for siblings with tag-alongs. Swingset? Playhouse/fort? Other ideas?

Answer
A pool would be very expensive. If you want something you can set up straight away you could go for a Basketball hoop. A fort is probably a bit childish, but you could get him involved in building one for the younger children. If he likes to make things, perhaps he could have his own workshop. If you have alot of land aven something like a small beach volley ball court or soccer goal at one end of the back yard. Cricket pitch is another idea.

what gauge wire should i use for a 60 amp hot tub (outdoor placement)?

WhizKid

the run of wiring is 95% indoor (about 30 ft), and only a short distance will be run outdoor to the tub (the outdoor portion will be placed in a conduit)

Answer
#6 AWG copper is rated for 65 amps or #4 AWG aluminum.

Hot tubs are very tricky. Be sure you use a GFCI breaker. There needs to be a disconnect outside near the hot tub (not less than 5 feet away). There are many other issues regarding lighting fixtures and receptacles near the hot tub. If you are unsure of the requirements, check with your local building inspector. I highly recommend an inspection by either the electrical inspector or a local licensed electrical contractor before using the hot tub.

Water and electricity do not mix. Be sure to turn off the power before working on any circuits and verify that the power is off with a voltmeter.

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