Code Change Summary: New code section addresses ceiling fans installed near bathtubs and showers.

For years, NEC^® Article 410 has prohibited ceiling suspended paddle fans within a zone measured 3 feet horizontally and 8 feet vertically from the top of the bathtub rim or shower stall threshold. The problem is that NEC^® Article 410 is supposed to provide requirements for luminaires, not ceiling fans. A ceiling suspended paddle fan is an appliance which is covered in NEC^® Article 422.

When a light kit is added to a ceiling fan, the fan is still an appliance, but it is equipped with a luminaire that is addressed in Article 410.

In the 2023 NEC^®, new Section 422.18(B) was added to address ceiling fans in bathrooms and shower spaces regardless of whether a light kit is installed on the appliance. This new code section provides requirements similar to the language in section 410.10(D)(1) for luminaires and also specifies the same 3 foot by 8 foot zone over the bathtub or shower stall where metal parts of ceiling fans are prohibited.

New NEC^® Section 422.18(B) states that metal parts of ceiling-suspended (paddle) fans in bathrooms and shower spaces shall not be located within a zone measured 3 feet horizontally and 8 feet vertically from the top of the bathtub rim or shower stall threshold. This zone is all-encompassing and includes the space directly over the tub or shower stall.

Below is a preview of the NEC^®. See the actual NEC^® text at NFPA.ORG for the complete code section. Once there, click on their link to free access to the 2023 NEC^® edition of NFPA 70.