Hot tubs get the one real exemption in the pool code. A spa or hot tub fitted with a safety cover meeting ASTM F1346 is excused from the barrier rules, so no 48-inch fence is required around it anywhere in Plymouth County.
780 CMR Appendix G, AG105.5, exempts a spa or hot tub with a safety cover complying with ASTM F1346 from the appendix barrier provisions. That lockable, load-rated cover stands in for a fence, which is why most South Shore hot tubs sit on a deck without an enclosure. The tub still needs a building or electrical permit from the town, because the 240-volt connection must be bonded and GFCI-protected and inspected. Without a compliant cover, the spa is treated like a pool and the 48-inch barrier applies.
Running a hot tub with no ASTM F1346 cover and no barrier is a code violation, since the spa then falls under the pool barrier rules. Unbonded spa wiring fails the electrical inspection.
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