Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 6, September 18, 2024
All materials, including equipment, conductors, controls and
signaling devices, shall be installed to provide a complete electrical system
with the necessary characteristics and capacity necessary to supply the
electrical needs shown in the specifications or indicated on the plans. All
materials shall be listed by Underwriters' Laboratories, Inc., or other
similarly recognized laboratories. (Ill)
(1) Electrical systems and equipment shall
meet the minimum requirements of the "National Electrical Code, 1990 edition."
(Ill)
(2) Drop cords, extension
cords or any type of flexible cord shall not be used as a substitute for fixed
or hard wiring. Surge protectors may be used for computers and related devices,
facsimile, photocopying and scanning machines, and other consumer electronic
devices in a resident's room and other locations in a facility provided the
surge protector is of metal construction and approved by Underwriters
Laboratories, Inc., or other similarly recognized laboratories. Only fixed
supplementary electric heating shall be installed. (Ill)
(3) Electrical metallic tubing or rigid heavy
wall conduit shall be used throughout the interior of the facility. In areas
used for patient care, the grounding terminals of all receptacles and all
non-current-carrying conductive surfaces of fixed electrical equipment likely
to become energized that are subject to personal contact shall be grounded by a
green insulated copper conductor The grounding conductor shall be sized in
accordance with the requirements of the "National Electrical Code" and
installed in electrical metallic tubing with the branch-circuit conductors
supplying these receptacles or fixed equipment. (Ill) (Exception 3)
(4) Electrical wiring systems shall not be
surface mounted in resident-occupied areas. (II, III) (Exception 4)
(5) An exit door alarm system shall be
installed on all designated fire exit doors. (I, II, III)
(6) Panel boards which serve lighting and
appliance circuits shall be located on the same floor as the circuits they
serve. All circuits shall be identified on the panel door (III) This
requirement does not apply to emergency system circuits which can be centrally
located.
(7) All spaces occupied by
people, machinery, or equipment within buildings, parking lots, and approaches
to buildings shall have electric lighting. (Ill)
a. All rooms in resident-occupied areas shall
have general lighting. Switches for general lighting shall be at the entrance
to the room. (Ill)
b. Light shall
be provided in the areas of the building as required in Table 4. Light in the
resident care area, reading area, activities task area and dining area may be
reduced to 30 foot-candles measured at the floor surface when tasks are not
being performed in that area. (II, III) (Exception 4)
Table 4
|
Area |
Measured Site |
Required Foot-candles |
|
|
Resident Rooms: |
|
|
|
|
General |
floor |
30 |
|
|
Resident care area |
bed surface |
50 |
|
|
Task lighting |
task surface |
100 |
|
|
Night light |
floor below fixture |
5 |
|
|
Staff Areas: |
|
|
|
|
Nursing station |
task surface |
100 |
|
|
Medication room |
task surface |
100 |
|
|
Activities task area |
task surface |
75 |
|
|
Dining area |
task surface |
50 |
|
|
Corridor, stairway and hazardous area: |
|
|
|
|
General |
floor |
30 |
|
|
Night light |
floor below fixture |
10 |
|
c.
Light fixtures shall be equipped to prevent glare and hazards. (Ill)
d. There shall be at least one recessed light
fixture for night lighting installed no higher than 18 inches above the floor
in each resident room which shall have a switch at the entrance. (Ill)
(Exception 3)
e. Night lights shall
be provided in corridors, at stairways, attendant's stations and hazardous
areas. They shall be recessed if the bottom of the fixture is less than 6 feet
8 inches above the floor (III)
f.
Reading lights or lamps shall be provided for each resident in the resident's
room. (Ill)
g. Wall-mounted lights
with flexible or extension arms shall not be used. (Exception 4)
(8) Each resident room shall have
duplex grounding type receptacles as follows: one located on each side of the
head of each bed; one for television, where used; and one on another wall. For
parallel adjacent beds, only one receptacle is required between the beds. Each
resident room or resident toilet room shall have one duplex ground fault
interrupter outlet beside a lavatory and mirror (III) (Exception 4) (III)
(Exception 3)
a. Duplex receptacles for
general and emergency use shall be installed a maximum of 5 0 feet apart in all
corridors and within 25 feet of ends of corridors. (Ill) (Exception
2)
b. All receptacles within 6 feet
of sinks, tubs, or showers and those installed outside the building shall be
protected by a local ground fault circuit interrupter (III) (Exception
4)
(9) In general
resident areas, each room shall be served by at least one calling station. Each
bed shall be provided with a call device. Two call devices serving adjacent
beds may be served by one calling station. (II, III) (Exception 4)
a. After November 21, 1990, pull string call
devices will not be acceptable. The call device shall be electrically operable
from the bed or chair (II, III) (Exception 4)
b. All calls shall activate an audible and
visible signal in each area. There shall be a visible signal in the public area
at the resident's door (II, III) (Exception 4)
c. In multicorridor units, additional visible
signals shall be installed at corridor intersections. (II, III)
d. Nurses' calling systems which provide
two-way voice communication shall be equipped with a light at each calling
station which lights and remains lighted as long as the voice circuit is
operating. (II, III)
e. A nurses'
call emergency device shall be provided at each resident's toilet, bath, and
shower room. (II, III)
f.The
emergency call device in the resident's toilet, bath and shower room shall have
a distinguishable audible signal at the nurses' station. (II, III) (Exception
4)
g. As an alternative to a
hardwired nurse calling station with a visible signal in the corridor at a
resident's room, a wireless calling system that provides an acceptable means of
identifying the origin or location of a call is acceptable.
h. A wireless calling system shall be
connected to an emergency power source to ensure operation during a power
outage.
i. Pagers used as part of a
wireless calling system shall have a self-diagnostic system to alert the user
of a low battery.
j. For wireless
calling systems utilizing two-way communication devices, a visible indicator
shall be placed in a resident's room to indicate when the system is operable
and conversations may be heard.
(10) Emergency electric service shall provide
electricity during an interruption of the normal electric supply which could
affect the resident care or the safety of the occupants. Facilities of 19 or
fewer beds are exempt from this requirement. (Ill) (Exception 3)
a. The source of the emergency electric
service shall be from an emergency generating set. (Ill)
b. The required emergency generating set,
including the prime mover, shall not be powered solely by natural gas or cooled
solely by domestic water (III) (Exception 4)
c. The emergency generator set shall supply
all lighting and power load demands of the emergency system and shall be
located on the premises. (Ill)
d.
Emergency electric service shall be provided to the distribution system for
light as follows:
(1) Exits and all necessary
ways of approach to exits, including exit signs and exit direction signs,
exterior of exits, exit doorways, stairways, and corridors; (II, III)
(2) Egress as required in NFPA Standard 101;
(II, III)
(3) Dining and recreation
rooms; (III)
(4) Nurses' work area;
(III)
(5) Generator set location;
(III)
(6) Switch-gear location;
(III)
(7) Boiler room; (III)
and
(8) Elevator (III)
e. Emergency electric service
shall be provided to the distribution system for equipment essential to life
safety and to protect vital equipment or materials as follows:
(1) Call board; (III)
(2) Alarm systems, including fire alarm
activated at manual stations; water flow alarm devices or sprinkler systems,
where electrically operated; fire detection and smoke detection systems; paging
or speaker systems intended for issuing instructions during emergency
conditions; and alarms required for nonflammable medical gas systems, where
installed; (III)
(3) Sewage and
sump lift pump, where installed; (III)
(4) All required duplex receptacles in
resident areas; (III)
(5) One
elevator, if required for emergency service; (III)
(6) Burners and pumps necessary for operation
of one or more boilers and their necessary auxiliaries and controls required
for heating; (III) and
(7)
Equipment necessary for maintaining telephone service. (Ill)
f. Emergency electric service
shall be provided to the distribution system for heating as follows:
(1) Where electricity is the only source of
power normally used for space heating, the emergency service shall provide
heating for resident rooms or an area approximately 30 square feet per bed
within the facility to accommodate all of the residents for the duration of the
emergency; (III)
(2) Emergency
heating shall not be required if the facility is supplied by at least two
service feeders. Each shall be supplied by separate sources from an integrated
transmission distribution system. Each shall be capable of supplying required
service, and each so routed, connected and protected that a fault any place
between the utility energy source and the facility will not cause an
interruption of more than one of the electric service feeders. (Ill)
g. The emergency electrical system
shall be brought to full voltage and frequency and be connected within ten
seconds through one or more primary automatic transfer switches. Power to pumps
and burners may be brought to full power through the use of manual switches.
(Ill)
h. Receptacles connected to
the emergency system shall be distinctively marked for identification.
(Ill)
i. Storage-battery-powered
lights, provided to augment emergency light or for continuity of light during
the interim of transfer switches, shall not be used as a substitute for the
requirements of a generator (III)
