Browse Forums Bathrooms and Laundry 1 Aug 28, 2010 8:01 am When we were having our house built, we requested the light switches be placed inside the bathroom - however, we were told the location we wanted (right next to the door) was not legal because it was too close to the shower. We then decided we'd have them on the outside of the bathroom but in terms of location, there's really only the thickness of the wall between where they are now and where we originally wanted them. If they were placed on the inside of the bathroom, they'd be located only a few centimeters from the wall tiles surrounding the shower, but they'd still be a good 60+ cm away from any plumbing. Are there any rules/regulations governing how close to a wet area/plumbing that electrical cables can be? Would there be a problem if we relocated the light switches from one side of the wall (the outside) to the other side (the inside)? Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 2Aug 28, 2010 8:16 am If the light switch is only 60 cm from the shower head and there is no screen in between,I would have thought that this would be too close. I imagine water would splash onto the light switch. The way I see it, there are three choices: 1) Put a barrier, such as a glass plate between the shower and the light switch 2) Move the light switch to a safe distance. This would be in Australian Standard AS3000, but I don't have a copy handy. 3) Use a waterproof/splashproof light switch. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 3Aug 28, 2010 8:32 am Sorry, I should have mentioned that there is a shower screen...the light switches would be at least 1m away from the shower head, about 60cm away for the taps and then outside of the screen.
Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 4Aug 28, 2010 9:01 am There are regulations - I don't know what the minimum distances are, but there are other threads here somewhere that have some info. When we renovated our old bathroom, our power point had to be placed higher than I wanted on the wall because it was quite close (laterally) to the basin. The exhaust fan also couldn't be located directly above the shower, because our ceiling height didn't allow the minimum distance from the shower head. Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 5Aug 28, 2010 1:01 pm Our current house (PIL built) has switches outside one of the bathrooms due to regulations, internally the shower would be approximately 70cm from where they had wanted to switch but it couldnt be done Custom European Cabinets - Melbourne Kitchen Specialist PM for business details as website currently being updated! Our Crazy Owner Builder Journey! Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 6Aug 28, 2010 4:06 pm C&C Sorry, I should have mentioned that there is a shower screen...the light switches would be at least 1m away from the shower head, about 60cm away for the taps and then outside of the screen. If there is a shower screen between the shower head and the light switch I'll bet there is nothing wrong with the placement of the light switch. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 7Aug 28, 2010 4:31 pm Current house had to place the light switch on the outside of the ensuite as even with a shower screen in place it was too close. My house and my rants.... - viewtopic.php?f=31&t=26937 We are in!!!...and still unpacking. Thankfully there are always Tim Tams Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 8Aug 28, 2010 5:02 pm mpcj Current house had to place the light switch on the outside of the ensuite as even with a shower screen in place it was too close. Measuring from the shower outlet to the light switch and ignoring the shower screen is not the intent of the Australian Standard. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 9Aug 28, 2010 6:40 pm Yep we were told by eleco and builder when we renovated our bathroom in one of our rentals that we had to have the light switch outside the actual bathroom as it was too close to the shower. Basically when you entered the bathroom the shower was immediately on your left - which meant the only place for the light switch was on the door architrave. Something which apparently was a big no no - my father is a retired Electrical Installation Inspector and he told me that it was regulations (basically all I heard was blah blah blah can't be done Kylie, this is the way it has to be blah blah blah LOL) Some things are worth waiting for. Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 10Sep 11, 2010 7:08 am Don't quote me on this, but I seem to recall 1.2m from the shower head was the min if the switch was in the room, and if the shower head was attached to a flex pipe, it was from the extended flex pipe Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 11Sep 11, 2010 7:42 am Would a ceiling mounted pull cord light switch comply? Very safe... Ed "ECOECO" At 'EcoEco', we design windows, we design the best windows, we do it for you, so that when you’re happy we are happy. Tel. 1800 326 326 Re: Light switches near the shower - is it ok? 12Sep 11, 2010 8:11 am ed @ EcoClassic Would a ceiling mounted pull cord light switch comply? Very safe... Ed This would have to be one of the most common options that is overlooked for a light or fan switch in a damp area. Its easy to hook up (no wires down the wall cavity) and the 5 or so feet of string is a good insulator from the electrical components. Clipsal and HPM still make them to this very day so supply shouldn't be a problem. Shelly switches require a paid subscription for full access to all features which is ridiulous given the lifespan of a home and if you were to sell it or buy a home with… 2 4510 Our standard double-glazed window is tested to achieve, Rw 34, and can be glazed to suit Rw 39. The price is good too... 3 9472 Hi - thanks for your reply. Yes I think 'Ill go for whitish with very speckly bits rather than pure white something like this. PS was actually 2008 I built the… 2 11694 |