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We are buying a newly built house. It has 2 laundry areas. In both cases the water hookup for the washer is directly above the 240 V electrical hookup for the dryer. Is this safe? The Builder refuses to move them apart.

martha rhoades
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    @Ruskes [Leek](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leek). [Leak](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leak). The former belongs on [cooking.se], while the latter belongs here at [diy.se]. ;) – FreeMan Aug 12 '22 at 12:40
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    This is location dependent, in the USA, the house is compliant with NEC code, so please specify location. – BurnsBA Aug 12 '22 at 15:16
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    Once again, and it's all too frequently missed out, geographical location is important to add into the question. However, it's a pretty stupid arrangement to put a potential water source above an electricity outlet. Common sense seems lacking here! – Tim Aug 12 '22 at 15:57
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    @Tim seconded. An extra field when asking a question here that asks what city/region/country applies would be very helpful in answering questions. – MiG Aug 12 '22 at 17:08
  • Geographic location doesn't affect safety. It affects code compliance, which is a different question. – Pete Becker Aug 13 '22 at 13:39
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    We are referring to code compliance, see comments and answers. If nothing is specified on this, the part where the builder refuses to move these apart will not be enforceable. – MiG Aug 13 '22 at 22:27
  • In response to the question you asked in the "Answer" box, call the County Commissioner's office and ask. A call in to the Billings building department would also get you headed in the right direction, even if you're outside city limits. They may actually be the ones responsible for inspections, even outside of town, especially if you happen to have a Billings postal address. – FreeMan Aug 16 '22 at 15:59
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    Also, it appears that you've now created two accounts and that's why you couldn't comment on/edit your original question. Please follow the [instructions here](https://diy.stackexchange.com/help/merging-accounts) to get the accounts merged. – FreeMan Aug 16 '22 at 15:59

4 Answers4

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No, and most jurisdictions specify a minimum distance between electrical and water outlets.

Move one and remember water falls due to gravity and sprays due to supply pressure.

Solar Mike
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    So OP just needs to find the local codes or local inspector to make the builder move one or the other, since OP says the builder won't move them. – crip659 Aug 12 '22 at 12:53
  • [this answer](https://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/126476/code-requirements-for-the-proximity-of-power-outlets-to-wash-machine-water-outle) from five years ago says there is no minimum distance. Is that answer wrong now? – BurnsBA Aug 12 '22 at 15:07
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    @BurnsBA there are other places than USA... – Solar Mike Aug 12 '22 at 15:11
  • ah yes of course, then OP needs to clarify – BurnsBA Aug 12 '22 at 15:14
  • It's not only minimum distance, it's one above the other. This site seems to attract questioners who don't appreciate that their location is an important factor! – Tim Aug 12 '22 at 16:00
  • @Tim "water falls due to gravity" I thought I covered "one above the other"? – Solar Mike Aug 12 '22 at 16:02
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    This site seems to attract both questioners and answerers who assume that the USA is the only place that matters. Having said that, the explicit mention of "240V" for the drier implies to me that the questioner is from a place that uses north-american style 120V/240V power. – Peter Green Aug 12 '22 at 16:04
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    @Tim To be fair, it makes no difference whether the location is USA or elsewhere as to whether it is SAFE or not, only to whether it meets regulations. – MikeB Aug 12 '22 at 16:15
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I'd argue that this is not a particularly safe setup, but legal in the USA, as there are no minimum safe distance or positioning requirements that I've seen for laundry outlets, which are often specifically excluded from other rules about this. It may be different in different countries.

However, it's not necessarily a deal breaker - I'd check that the electrics to the socket are up to code, and include a relatively sensitive breaker. This is unlikely to be a socket you go near frequently, and the breaker will trip if water starts leaking into it. It should be on its own circuit, I think, for US safety standards

I'd also suggest prehaps, if it is going to be hidden behind the dryer, then one of those waterproof outdoor sockets might work really well, and might be a cheap thing for the builder to fit, that would be a reasonable compromise.

lupe
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    I would suggest that a piece of flexible plastic sheeting be used to form a shield over the outlet. – Hot Licks Aug 12 '22 at 18:28
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    I think the waterproof outdoor socket would be a much better solution than a "piece of flexible plastic sheeting"; an outlet box is specifically designed to prevent ingress from even torrential rain (or a wildly spraying hose connection), a plastic sheet, especially if it gets bent/tweaked/moved/cracked/etc could actually end up channeling water TO the outlet. – Doktor J Aug 12 '22 at 19:39
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    FWIW you can get a 2-gang weatherproof cover on [Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0756K2CYN/) for $20 or less if you're in the US. If that item's no longer available at some point (or you're international), the listing should at least give you an idea what you're looking for. "2-gang" only applies to normal-width outlets, and would be needed for the larger dryer receptacle. – Doktor J Aug 12 '22 at 19:41
  • was going to add that a gfci breaker would be a nice addition – lupe Aug 14 '22 at 21:57
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While I wouldn’t personally arrange the water supply line and dryer hookup this way, I think there is a slim chance of anything unsafe happening in this scenario.

A dryer hookup is not a high use plug that has a lot of human interaction. For the most part, you plug it in and forget about it—-maybe unplugging once every few months if needed to clean out the dryer vent (personally, my dryer stays plugged in and I just move it for this activity since the cord is long enough). If the outlet gets wet, it is highly unlikely to find a dangerous ground path through a person. Electrocution (death and/or burns) are only a risk if your body has a chance of conducting electricity through it, particularly across your chest (which is unlikely to be part of the ground path if you rarely touch the plug). Also, for those commenting on puddles on the floor, common wall materials when wet aren’t very conductive (apart from metal studs, but those should be properly ground bonded anyway), and they would need to be in order to maintain electrical conductivity with a puddle of water on the floor to present a hazard. Electricity prefers paths with the least resistance to reach ground potential and it is more likely that it would short to ground or neutral and trip a breaker in a worst case.

In my opinion, you are more likely to experience water damage to your home (like any water leak) than a serious electrical hazard if you have an issue with the water supply leaking in this setup.

statueuphemism
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  • I generally agree with this, we had a similar discussion on a UK DIY forum and the conclusion we came to is that most of the actual cases of accessories full of water that people had encountered were a result of water getting into celing/floor voids and from there getting into light fittings. – Peter Green Sep 21 '22 at 15:37
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Hell no!!! Code or not to code. Do not stand where water seeps under at your feet. Its hidden so you don't know its leaking till you step in it. Hopefully its not crossing the outlet, but 220? You'll probably never know, your family will know though.

Darttoyou1
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  • Welcome to [diy.se]. If you'll take the [tour], you'll note that this is a Question & Answer board, not a general discussion forum. As such, we expect _answers_ to the question to be posted in the box labeled "Answer". Since this doesn't seem to answer the question (though it's not bad advice), would you please [edit] it into an answer? If you'll stick around, you'll quickly earn enough rep to make a comment on someone else's Q or A, which is what this is as it stands. – FreeMan Aug 16 '22 at 15:56