GFCI Breaker Vs GFCI Receptacle

gravtyklz

I was just wondering if GFCI breakers do any better of a job than a GFCI Receptacle?

I can think of instances of where it would be more efficient to use a breaker than a receptacle, but I was wondering if one was actually any better than the other.

I went to a service call today where a GFI breaker was apparently tripping on the customer. The circuit was tested with everything on it running and it only went up to 7.5 Amps. So it wasnt over loaded. Then someone said to me without really being able to explain it said that the GFI receptacles were too sensitive, and that a breaker would be better.

So fact or myth?

goose134

Well, it might be possible that the breaker is functioning perfectly. If one of the appliances on the circuit has a ground leak or a ground fault, that would trip it. Try running everything on the circuit and after it trips unplug one appliance. Turn it back on and if it trips again, try another one, one at a time and it might isolate your problem. As to the sensitivity factor I'm not sure. Kirchoff's law is pretty specific.

Magnettica

GFCI circuit breakers are inconvienent if they're used for say, kitchen countertop receptacle protection. Although this method is code compliant, a receptacle device is more convienent on the countertop. The breakers are normally more expensive as well.

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househelper

It would be more efficient to unplug everything, then turn the breaker back on. If it does not trip, start plugging things back in. When it trips, you've found the problem.

gravtyklz

I was just wondering if one actually worked better than the other...I guess the consensus is that they both operate the exact same?

I replaced the gfi receptacle with a gfi breaker because there were interior lights running off of the circuit and they didnt want to go outside to reset a receptacle if it tripped.

How do you guys normally handle quirky service calls? Things that only happen "sometimes".

Do you leave the owner instructions or just keep going back hoping maybe it will act that way when you get there?

gravtyklz

Well whatever is tripping it is apparently inconsistant. (1)I first got a call that a pong water filter/pump wasnt working at all. I found a gfi that was tripped so I reset it and all was well. (2) Then I got a call saying that it wasnt working again, so I went back turned everything on that could possibly be on and all was well.

There was a drop cord sitting out there too, but no one claims to have used it for anything.

mdshunk

If I'm retrofitting 3-wire receptacles on an old 2-wire circuit, depending on how it's wired, I'll sometimes use a GFCI breaker. There was a certain style of wiring where they ran into the light box in each room, and dropped a single cable down to each receptacle. That would be an aweful lot of GFCI receptacles to protect those locations, so the breaker is the cheaper option. Also, same deal with K&T. They normally had a K&T "buss" in the basement or attic, and dropped single drops to each receptacle. The GFCI breaker is the way to fly there. For most everything else, I use the GFCI receptacle for the convenience of the point of use reset ability.

te12c02w

I'm guessing this procedure has been researched by now and maybe even discussed, but I didn't see it. I didn't go through all the past post though. When we have to start putting in AFCI protection, how do we handle the GFCI requirement in a dwelling? Putting the two in line present any problems? Have the manufacturers researched this? Does AFCI on top of GFCI or viceversa create any new problems we might not be aware of? Electrical signature of one interfering with the other?

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Jim R

mdshunk

Absolutely no problems in that regard.

te12c02w

Thank you

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Jim R

LNG24

Off subject a little, but I had a GFCI in the bathroom of my house that would trip when my cell phone would ring. Would only happen if the cell phone was laying directly underneath the outlet on the counter top. It WAS NOT plugged in to anything!

I had an electrician friend come out and check it out because he didn't believe me either. We switched it out and the new one didn't do it.

frenchsparky

Sure that do happend with older style GFCI repectales.

I am not sure if this was mention in this fourm or other one.

Anyway one good example it did happend few years back very instering event [ a fanstic service call for me ]

have to came to the commercal complex area and the owner have to called me to do some electrical repairs some how right next to the other buliding we have few firetrucks parked around the building and their two way radio was so powerfull it trip over 80 + gfci's not only on that building i was working and also next doors as well took me a better part of the day to reset all of it and found few GFCI's just dont work anymore just replace with new one and slove the issuse with that.

Merci, Marc

mdshunk

Yeah, GFCI's installed pre 92-ish were very sensitive to RF. The present generation of GFCI breakers and receptacles still suffer that way, but not as much. You can still walk up to a panel with GFCI breakers, key up a 2-way radio, and trip every GFCI in the panel. It's just a quirk that doesn't happen that often, but the manufacturer's are making it better as newer generations of the product come out.

gravtyklz

So X-10 could really screw with GFI's too then huh? Alot of X-10's stuff sends RF signals either remotely or through the actual wiring of the house.

mdshunk

No, not in my experience. It's pretty much limited to the very high megahertz ranges, at 1/4 watt and greater. Speedy Pety might have some input on this, since I think he's into radios a bit.