so ground probe in tank would trip when the offending item leaks?
Easier to figure out
Yes. With a ground probe installed, the gfci will trip immediately.
Now, here is the part where I always warn people to never use a ground plug without a GFCI.
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so ground probe in tank would trip when the offending item leaks?
Easier to figure out
I"m guessing it's probably best to do the following.Yes. With a ground probe installed, the gfci will trip immediately.
Now, here is the part where I always warn people to never use a ground plug without a GFCI.
Exactly. The aquarium glass is an insulator preventing fault current from going to ground. A ground probe allows current to flow to ground so will cause a GFCI to trip immediately.I do not
so ground probe in tank would trip when the offending item leaks?
Easier to figure out
Keep in mind that too much load will not trip a GFCI. It can trip a breaker on overload, but that doesn't seem to be what is happening here.First just doing a quick calculation of what you have for your tank I got 11-1200 watts with everything on, which is 10 amps. You could have another 4-500 watts depending on what computer and monitor you are using. Just with those numbers you need a dedicated 20 amp circuit for that room alone. Or just a 15 amp for your tank.
You also could have saltwater spilled some where and the remnants are arcing and tripping the breaker. Or a bad connection or a bad cord.
I"m guessing it's probably best to do the following.
1. unplug all aquarium cords
2. install ground probe
3. start plugging back cords one at a time
4. when trip occurs pull cord that tripped it and try again without
5. replace the offending item
Funny you should mentionFirst just doing a quick calculation of what you have for your tank I got 11-1200 watts with everything on, which is 10 amps. You could have another 4-500 watts depending on what computer and monitor you are using. Just with those numbers you need a dedicated 20 amp circuit for that room alone. Or just a 15 amp for your tank.
You also could have saltwater spilled some where and the remnants are arcing and tripping the breaker. Or a bad connection or a bad cord.
Keep in mind as well, if the GFCI is not tripping... you may have damage to both 'hot and neutral ' wires on a piece of equipment. Normally, if for instance a hot wire is damaged it would trip it from imbalance. If both are damaged wiring either exterior or interior workings of pump or heater etc, it may not trip. The circuit is still being completed. I have pulled a few pumps from lake or sump environments where the GFCI did not trip and there was damage to both wires. As others have mentioned, ground probe and each device one at a time, till you find it. Inspect wiring along cords and at entrance to equipment for any signs of damage. It can be a laborious process I know, but the fault is always found somewhere. Good luck.I do not
so ground probe in tank would trip when the offending item leaks?
Easier to figure out