A 120V clothes dryer located in a finished basement laundry room requires which of the following circuit protections?

• A. Ground-fault circuit protection
• B. Arc-fault circuit protection
• C. Both ground-fault circuit protection and arc-fault circuit protection
• D. Neither ground-fault nor arc-fault protection

Answer: (C)

In a dwelling, laundry-area circuits that serve receptacles must have both GFCI and AFCI protection. A GFCI protects against ground-fault shocks, which is especially important in damp or wet areas like a basement laundry room where a 120V outlet may be exposed to moisture. An AFCI protects against arcing faults in the wiring and cords, which can ignite a fire and are a common failure mode in laundry circuits due to damaged cords or connections. Because this scenario involves a 120V receptacle in a finished basement laundry area, the circuit feeding that outlet must be protected by both types. That’s why the best answer is that both protections are required.