19.2 Elevators, Escalators & Platform Lifts (Article 620)
Key Takeaways
Each elevator must have a single means to disconnect all ungrounded main power supply conductors, lockable open, with no provision to open or close it from elsewhere in the premises except a sprinkler-related automatic opening (620.51).
A separate branch circuit is required for elevator car lights, receptacles, auxiliary lighting, and ventilation, with its own disconnecting means in the machine room or control room (620.22 and 620.53).
Each 125 V, single-phase, 15- and 20-ampere receptacle in elevator pits, hoistways, cars, machine rooms, and escalator wellways must be GFCI protected, except a single receptacle for a permanently installed sump pump (620.85).
Conductors in elevator wireways may fill up to 50% of the wireway's interior cross-sectional area (620.32).
The feeder demand factor for elevators is 1.00 for one elevator, 0.95 for two, 0.90 for three, and 0.85 for four (Table 620.14).
Why elevator rules matter to a journeyworker
Article 620 covers elevators, dumbwaiters, escalators, moving walks, platform lifts, and stairway chairlifts. In Minnesota, the elevator equipment itself is installed by licensed elevator constructors under the state elevator code, but electricians install the feeders, disconnects, branch circuits, lighting, and receptacles in machine rooms, pits, and hoistways. DLI lists several Article 620 knowledge areas for the journeyworker exam.
Live parts and working space
- Live parts enclosed (620.4): all live parts of electrical apparatus in hoistways, at landings, in or on cars, in escalator wellways, and in machine rooms must be enclosed to protect against accidental contact.
- Working clearances (620.5): working space must be provided around controllers, disconnecting means, and other electrical equipment as required by 110.26, with limited exceptions for flexible connections and equipment guarded or with limited voltages.
Conductors
| Rule | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Insulation (620.11) | Hoistway door interlock wiring must be flame retardant and suitable for at least 200°C; traveling cables must be of types listed in Table 400.4 or other approved types |
| Minimum size, traveling cables (620.12(A)) | Lighting circuits: 14 AWG copper, or 20 AWG copper or larger in parallel with an ampacity equivalent to 14 AWG; other circuits: 20 AWG copper |
| Minimum size, other wiring (620.12(B)) | 24 AWG copper for control and signaling circuits, and smaller where permitted for Class 2 circuits |
| Feeder and branch-circuit conductors (620.13) | Sized from the motor nameplate current and the duty rating using 430.22(E), or from the controller's input current for drives |
| Feeder demand factors (Table 620.14) | Multiply the sum of the motor ratings by: 1 elevator 1.00; 2 0.95; 3 0.90; 4 0.85; 5 0.82; 6 0.79; 7 0.77; 8 0.75; 9 0.73; 10 or more 0.72 |
Wiring methods in hoistways and machine rooms (620.21 to 620.37)
- Conductors and optical fibers in hoistways, escalator wellways, machine rooms, and control rooms must be installed in RMC, IMC, EMT, PVC, RTRC, wireways, or be Type MC, MI, or AC cable, unless otherwise permitted, such as flexible connections of limited length between risers and limit switches, interlocks, and similar devices.
- Wireway fill (620.32): the total cross-sectional area of conductors in a wireway may not exceed 50% of its interior area, which is more generous than the 20% allowed in general-purpose wireways.
- Raceways and cables in hoistways must be securely fastened to the hoistway construction or elevator structure.
- Traveling cables must be suspended at the car and hoistway ends so strain on individual conductors is minimized, and protected against damage from the hoistway construction.
- Only elevator wiring: only the electrical wiring, raceways, and cables used directly in connection with the elevator, including signal and communications wiring, may be installed inside the hoistway, machine room, or control room.
Branch circuits for auxiliary systems
| Location | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Car lighting, receptacles, and ventilation (620.22) | A separate branch circuit for car lights, receptacles, auxiliary lighting power source, and ventilation on each car, with the OCPD in the machine room or control room; a required lighting circuit may not be GFCI protected |
| Machine rooms and control rooms (620.23) | A separate branch circuit supplying the room's lighting and receptacles; the lighting switch at the point of entry; at least one 125 V, single-phase, 15- or 20-ampere duplex receptacle; lighting not connected to the load side of a GFCI |
| Hoistway pits (620.24) | A separate branch circuit for pit lighting and receptacles; the light switch readily accessible from the pit access door; at least one 125 V, 15- or 20-ampere duplex receptacle in the pit; pit lighting not on the load side of a GFCI |
| Other utilization equipment (620.25) | Additional branch circuits for other utilization equipment, such as sump pumps, as needed |
Disconnecting means (620.51 to 620.55)
| Disconnect | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Main power (620.51) | A single listed means for each elevator to disconnect all ungrounded main power supply conductors; an enclosed externally operable fused motor-circuit switch or circuit breaker, lockable open; no provision may be made to open or close it from any other part of the premises, except that where sprinklers protect the hoistway or machine room it may be arranged to open automatically before water is applied, and it may never close automatically |
| Location | Readily accessible to qualified persons, and within sight of the motor controller (or as otherwise permitted for machine-room-less elevators) |
| Identification | Marked to identify the location of the supply-side OCPD; where more than one elevator, each disconnect numbered to match its machine and controller |
| Car lighting, receptacles, and ventilation (620.53) | A separate single means for each car to disconnect all ungrounded conductors of that branch circuit, located in the machine room or control room, lockable open |
| Heating and air conditioning (620.54) | A separate disconnecting means for the car's HVAC supply |
GFCI protection (620.85)
- Each 125 V, single-phase, 15- and 20-ampere receptacle installed in pits, hoistways, on cars, on platform lift platforms or runways, and in escalator and moving walk wellways must be of the GFCI type.
- Each 125 V, single-phase, 15- and 20-ampere receptacle in machine rooms, control rooms, machinery spaces, and control spaces must have GFCI protection.
- A single receptacle supplying a permanently installed sump pump does not require GFCI protection.
Grounding and coordination
- Grounding (620.81 to 620.84): metal raceways, Type MC cable, and Type AC cable attached to cars must be bonded to grounded metal parts of the car; frames of motors, machines, controllers, and metal enclosures must be grounded under Article 250.
- Selective coordination (620.62): where more than one driving machine disconnecting means is supplied by a single feeder, the OCPDs in each disconnect must be selectively coordinated with any other supply-side OCPDs. The 2026 NEC requires the coordination to be re-evaluated when OCPDs are replaced or the elevator system is modified, added to, or reduced.
Worked example: a three-elevator feeder
Three elevators have motor controller input ratings of 40 A each at 480 V. Under Table 620.14, the demand factor for three elevators is 0.90: A. The feeder must also be sized for the duty rating under 620.13, and the feeder OCPDs must be selectively coordinated with each elevator's disconnect.
What is the maximum percentage of the interior cross-sectional area of an elevator wireway that conductors may occupy under 620.32?
20%
50%
40%
75%
Which receptacle in an elevator installation is exempt from GFCI protection under 620.85?
A duplex receptacle in the machine room
A receptacle on top of the elevator car
A duplex receptacle in the hoistway pit
A single receptacle for a permanent pit sump pump
What feature must an elevator's main power disconnecting means have under 620.51?
It must be lockable open and not closable from elsewhere
It must be operable from the lobby fire alarm panel
It must be a GFCI circuit breaker rated for the motor
It must be located in the elevator pit
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