GFCI Outlet poll

[Brew12]

I use an external one from North Shore Safety.

http://nssltd.com/?gclid=CjwKCAiA6v...cIK8HvBVLfNm38b4TRGXfuw4iw_yuhvBoCNx8QAvD_BwE
They have auto reset versions that will attempt automatically to reset a tripped circuit for a period, which I think is kind of awesome.

So far reliable.

Are you sure that is what the "Auto Reset" feature means? Normally it means that on a loss of power the GFCI will not trip when power returns. It isn't used as much anymore because almost all GFCI's work that way now, but the early GFCI's needed power to stay latched closed.

 

[bar|none]

Are you sure that is what the "Auto Reset" feature means? Normally it means that on a loss of power the GFCI will not trip when power returns. It isn't used as much anymore because almost all GFCI's work that way now, but the early GFCI's needed power to stay latched closed.

No I'm not sure, so thanks for clarifying. Why would they offer the two options though?

Well at least that is a good thing because power goes out a lot where I live and I have a generator that kicks in automatically after 30 seconds or so.

Thanks for the info.

 

[zalick]

personal experience tells me i can handle 120v in small doses :p

Yup. Getting zapped is a right of passage working with electrical. :oops:

Just so others reading know what you mean:
It's all about the amps (dose) not the volts. ;)

Amps = watts/volts

100mA or more can be deadly. (.1amps)

 

[MarcF]

Yup. Getting zapped is a right of passage working with electrical. :oops:

Just so others reading know what you mean:
It's all about the amps (dose) not the volts. ;)

Amps = watts/volts

100mA or more can be deadly. (.1amps)

If .1 amps can be deadly, I don't want any at all.
Sure I've been zapped by some good old 110 here and there.
Done with that. No shocks - zero, zippo, nada.
Someone posted a link to a 5 outlet adapter with GFCI.
What do you think? Equal to an installation by an electrician of a 2 outlet one?
Amazon product ASIN B00YPBITXU

I just ordered it. Electrician quoted about same price. This is easier and you get 5 outlets. I guess a power strip plugged into any one of the outlets gives you protection on all of them. Now I'll have to search for a non GFCI outlet. There are none others on the wall. (Not to mention that it's switched to a wall switch, which I have taped ON so it doesn't get hit by accident. I also moved some furniture in front of it so it should be ok. There are hazards all over this world.

 

[reefiniteasy]

Questions for you all... what should I do in my classroom?
My nano and all of its components run off a surge protector on a regular outlet. In the past I had district electricians install a gfci for all my freshwater and turtle habitats, however they trip all the time. No joke, I’ve come back on a Monday to my tanks without power and no casualties thankfully.
So I don’t want the wall outlet changed to gfci, it will just trip. Is there an intermediate device that can go between the wall outlet and my surge protector that adds gfci capability to the surge protector and all the outlets? Then I would plug my return pump straight to the wall, no gfci. Will this be sufficient? Am I missing something? What should I do?
After reading all this I need my setup to be as safe as possible for my students.

 

[zalick]

If .1 amps can be deadly, I don't want any at all.
Sure I've been zapped by some good old 110 here and there.
Done with that. No shocks - zero, zippo, nada.
Someone posted a link to a 5 outlet adapter with GFCI.
What do you think? Equal to an installation by an electrician of a 2 outlet one?
Amazon product ASIN B00YPBITXU

I honestly don't know much about the various manufactures and what's good and what's not. I'm more wary these days of any electrical stuff purchased on Amazon due to lack of quality control out of China....

I'm sure others here will have a much better opinion on the hardware side.

 

[MnFish1]

My tank can handle a few hours unplugged, and my Apex notfies me of power outage. So not concerned with tripping the GFCI. More concerned with killing myself , so GFCI is mandatory for me.

Also, ground probe is mandatory for me too. Make sure those amps can find a better path to ground than through my heart!

Until it doesnt....

 

[MnFish1]

Maybe ask yourself this... what happens more?

1. Entire tanks dieing from a flipped gfci

Or

2. People killing themselves be reaching into a tank with current in it.

1

 

[bar|none]

Questions for you all... what should I do in my classroom?
My nano and all of its components run off a surge protector on a regular outlet. In the past I had district electricians install a gfci for all my freshwater and turtle habitats, however they trip all the time. No joke, I’ve come back on a Monday to my tanks without power and no casualties thankfully.
So I don’t want the wall outlet changed to gfci, it will just trip. Is there an intermediate device that can go between the wall outlet and my surge protector that adds gfci capability to the surge protector and all the outlets? Then I would plug my return pump straight to the wall, no gfci. Will this be sufficient? Am I missing something? What should I do?
After reading all this I need my setup to be as safe as possible for my students.

http://nssltd.com/?gclid=CjwKCAiA6v...cIK8HvBVLfNm38b4TRGXfuw4iw_yuhvBoCNx8QAvD_BwE

 

[C. Eymann]

Ill plug pretty much everything but the main return pump into GFI outlets if available, otherwise, not absolutely necessary (for me)
Most the stuff we use on our aquariums doesn't really have the amperage to cause severe injury.

 

[MnFish1]

I would never use a grounding probe without a GFCI.

I would consider you the expert. The question I would have is - let say the tank is 'alone' - i.e no water getting splashed on something etc. (I use a cord with a GFI) - maybe that is a mistake. But - it flipped during a power surge - and nuked my tank - there was no 'human' danger. How to mitigate?

 

[MnFish1]

@Brew12 - here is a (true) scenario - not aquarium related - but - it applies. So - in the middle of the night - a flood occurred in my house - I was in a state of shock (not literally) - I saw a red light - which was the 'surge suppressor' light still on under 2 feet of water - I picked it up (it was 3AM - and normally there was not water in our bedroom or living room) - and got a shock - and was like - oh - wow how stupid am I. But the question - where is the 'real risk' as compared to the 'theoretical risk'

 

[reefiniteasy]

@bar|none thank you! That looks exactly like what I need. Two questions:

1. would I want automatic or manual reset?
2. Do I then need a ground probe to go from tank to surge protector or tank to receptacle on gfci?

 

[zalick]

Until it doesnt....

And my tank won't theoretically or actually, kill myself or my kids. It's all risk mitigation. To each there own.

 

[MnFish1]

And my tank won't theoretically or actually, kill myself or my kids. It's all risk mitigation. To each there own.

I think I agree with you - but taking it from someone who had a SW tank in his daughters room. and it caught on fire - with a GFI - yeah - there's that. Im not an electrical expert - I just know - it works both ways. Well - at least I was surprised as to how well they opened every cupboard and cleaned every item - when the insurance came - took 5 days.. So there's that - I have no agenda.

 

[zalick]

I think I agree with you - but taking it from someone who had a SW tank in his daughters room. and it caught on fire - with a GFI - yeah - there's that. Im not an electrical expert - I just know - it works both ways. Well - at least I was surprised as to how well they opened every cupboard and cleaned every item - when the insurance came - took 5 days.. So there's that - I have no agenda.

I hear you! As much as I advocate using a GFCI, A GFCI is the only thing that's ever caught fire electrically in my house.....and it had nothing to do with what was plugged in to it. It just burnt up....

 

[Claybird1985]

2 cents

 

[Brew12]

@Brew12 - here is a (true) scenario - not aquarium related - but - it applies. So - in the middle of the night - a flood occurred in my house - I was in a state of shock (not literally) - I saw a red light - which was the 'surge suppressor' light still on under 2 feet of water - I picked it up (it was 3AM - and normally there was not water in our bedroom or living room) - and got a shock - and was like - oh - wow how stupid am I. But the question - where is the 'real risk' as compared to the 'theoretical risk'

This isn't a scenario that a GFCI is designed to protect against. For this you would want an AFCI breaker which are now required by code as the main breaker on new houses.

The best equivalent I can think of is asking what good a seatbelt does when it does no good to protect you from being hit by a car as you cross the street. The answer is that it doesn't do any good, but it wasn't designed to. It doesn't mean seatbelts don't serve a good purpose.

 

[Brew12]

No I'm not sure, so thanks for clarifying. Why would they offer the two options though?

Well at least that is a good thing because power goes out a lot where I live and I have a generator that kicks in automatically after 30 seconds or so.

Thanks for the info.

Some people want the GFCI to be manually reset on a loss of power, but I can't say I understand why. Then again, some people may fell the "old school" GFCI were better and they are catering to that crowd.

 

[MnFish1]

This isn't a scenario that a GFCI is designed to protect against. For this you would want an AFCI breaker which are now required by code as the main breaker on new houses.

The best equivalent I can think of is asking what good a seatbelt does when it does no good to protect you from being hit by a car as you cross the street. The answer is that it doesn't do any good, but it wasn't designed to. It doesn't mean seatbelts don't serve a good purpose.

Thanks appreciated