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If your pre-run wire is not accessable for inspection, the local inspector could give you some grief. Also, it needs to be 6-3 with ground (6 gauge wire) and direct sunlight exposure (UF ) or in conduit, for 50 amp service. The cheapest 50 amp GFI with outside weather box, that I have found is about $85. 75 feed of 6-3 wire with ground costs about $370. Add in several hours of labor and you'r approaching $1K.
6/3 with ground is generally a violation of electrical code to use on a spa. The ground wire is typically one size smaller, and uninsulated...both of which are code violations.
Quote from: Waterbug on July 13, 2011, 10:03:21 pm If your pre-run wire is not accessable for inspection, the local inspector could give you some grief. Also, it needs to be 6-3 with ground (6 gauge wire) and direct sunlight exposure (UF ) or in conduit, for 50 amp service. The cheapest 50 amp GFI with outside weather box, that I have found is about $85. 75 feed of 6-3 wire with ground costs about $370. Add in several hours of labor and you'r approaching $1K.I live in PA - Pittsburgh and was able to buy 75 feet of 6/3 with ground at homedepot.com online for $126 +12 shipping. Apparently it was lots cheaper ordering it online than goign to store
So, if you're running straight from your main panel, the 8' whip (flexible conduit/cable) seems too short, unless your main panel is that close to the spa. That would mean your spa will be next to your electrical meter and I doubt any inspector will allow that. So let's assume you set your spa right outside the house and that the main panel is about 20' away. I would think the average electrician could complete that job in 4 hours or less. So you'd have about $150 in labor and, after contractor markup on the materials, your total cost would be about $400-$500. It could be a little less and it could be a lot more. Without knowing the exact footages and other labor related factors, that's about the best guess I can give. BTW, if you need credentials, in my 37 years in the trades, I was a project manager/estimator for 10 years, job foreman for 18 years and electrical CAD designer for 7. (if you're wondering about when I had time to serve my apprenticeship, there was some overlapping in there)
Quote from: robmet1015 on August 11, 2011, 10:43:36 amQuote from: Waterbug on July 13, 2011, 10:03:21 pm If your pre-run wire is not accessable for inspection, the local inspector could give you some grief. Also, it needs to be 6-3 with ground (6 gauge wire) and direct sunlight exposure (UF ) or in conduit, for 50 amp service. The cheapest 50 amp GFI with outside weather box, that I have found is about $85. 75 feed of 6-3 wire with ground costs about $370. Add in several hours of labor and you'r approaching $1K.I live in PA - Pittsburgh and was able to buy 75 feet of 6/3 with ground at homedepot.com online for $126 +12 shipping. Apparently it was lots cheaper ordering it online than goign to storeThe closest I found at HD on-line was this:http://www.homedepot.com/Electrical/h_d1/N-5yc1vZarcd/R-202304786/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053It would make 75 feet closer to $250. A smaller spool would cost more per foot.