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We are doing a bathroom remodel and have hired a licensed general contractor who subs out the electrical work.

We took out our standard tub and have installed a whirlpool spa. The general contractor and the electrician are in disagreement as to where the gfi switch for the tub should be.

The electrician put the switch in the bathroom closet because he said code states it must be located out of reach of anyone standing in the tub. The general contractor states it is against code to put the gfi switch in the closet. I am unable to find info as to who is right per code.

The only code for a switch for a hot tub is that it be mounted no closer than five feet from the inside walls of the tub, as per the 2002 edition of the National Electric Code, Sec 680.43(C).

Switches are allowed in a clothes closet, circuit breaker panelboards are not, perhaps this is what the GC is referring to.

Let the local inspector help with this. There may be state or local codes that I am unaware of.

Tell your GC to pipe down. The electrician will have to pass inspection from his electrical inspector. OK so maybe a bit more tact is in order. But the GC is just that, the Electrician is just that. Let the Electricain wire and the GC can schedule contractors and patch holes his clean up guy whacks in the wall with a broom handle.

The other thing is I obviously do not know what sort of tub you are having installed. But a faceless GFI would serve better than a switch in many cases. As indoor jacuzzi type tubs normally have an integral on off switch built into the unit.