Electrical breaker keeps tripping

[wild_turkey 3077]

I have a GFCI outlet with several other outlets on the same circuit. Over the last couple days, the breaker in the main electrical panel keeps tripping for this group of outlets. I can flip the switch and everything comes back on, but then hours later it trips again.

I've heard GFCI outlets can wear out. In fact, this particular outlet wasn't working when I bought the house a couple years ago. I replaced it then and everything was normal until a couple days ago.

What next? Do I replace the GFCI again or is this likely a bigger issue like a faulty breaker, worn insulation, etc? If the former, I can change it myself again. If the latter, I'll call an electrician.

[Parliament 13979]

Run a jumper wire around it.

[Gil Bang 25507]

have you tried unplugging whatever is plugged in on that circuit?  Could have a faulty appliance or fixture.  Is there any chance that the circuit is overloaded?      Wife using a curling iron or blow dryer (or industrial-grade vibrator)?

[Quagmire 2139]

Have you asking it why it be trippin?

[wild_turkey 3077]

have you tried unplugging whatever is plugged in on that circuit?  Could have a faulty appliance or fixture.

We have a tankless water heater plugged into the GFCI outlet. It uses natural gas so the electric isn’t the main source of energy. The breaker has tripped even when the water heater isn’t active, although the control unit on the water heater is continuously powered on. I suppose it could have developed a short or some other malfunction internally, just seems kinda unlikely because it still works and it isn’t giving an error message.

We also have a lamp on another standard outlet, which now that I think about it, the lamp was moved there just a couple weeks ago. I guess I should take away the lamp, or perhaps plug it into a kitchen GFCI and see if it trips that one.

Nothing else is on this circuit AFAIK.

[Gil Bang 25507]

Well, you said that it's tripping the breaker, not the GFCI, so there's no reason to plug it into another  GFCI.  It's probably a non-grounded device anyway...most lamps are 2 prong cords, so there is no ground fault, because there is no ground.  Lamps are notoriously cheaply wired.  There's a really good chance that the lamp has a short somewhere...a frayed cord or bad switch or something. 

If I were in your shoes, I'd plug  the WH into another circuit...use an extension cord if you must.   Leave it for a day or two and see what happens. 

Edited February 12, 2019 by Gil Bang

[freyguy 4237]

Replace it with a non GFCI.

[Gil Bang 25507]

5 minutes ago, freyguy said:

Replace it with a non GFCI.

horrible advice. 

GFCI devices save lives.  Having  a non-GFCI outlet anywhere near water is fucking stupid and dangerous.

[freyguy 4237]

Eh, yes, sorta.  But they can be unnecessarily stringent as well.

What're the ratings on the GFCI and the circuit breaker in the box?

[Jkwellborn 6536]

One gfci on the run correct? And it’s not a gfci breaker or whatever those are? I’d pull everything off of the circuit and start adding things until it trips.

I would get one of those gfci outlet testers and see what it says.

I wouldn’t replace the outlet with a regular one since it’s around water. (This is coming from someone that hates the damn things)

You can swap a new gfci in. Check the outlets and make sure everything is right and not burned.

[Yarbr 123]

Older beer fridge? Those hate gfcis.

[wild_turkey 3077]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm 99% sure I solved the problem and it wasn't anything close to what I expected. It wasn't the tankless water heater or the lamp after all. Or the vibrator for that matter.

This is a very old 2 story house and I've found the electrical wiring to be crazy and without any sort of logic, which is probably because things have been added over the years in whatever manner was easiest at the time. This particular circuit is near an upstairs crawl space, which makes it easy to piggyback off of by simply climbing into the crawl space. We have a detached garage and somewhere along the way someone wired up a motion detector light on it, getting electrical to the garage by running a romex from this crawl space and this circuit, out the wall, through the air, and to the garage. I never paid much attention to how that was done until now. Tonight, I noticed when the breaker was on, the garage motion detector light was cycling on and off rather quickly. I looked at the wire and realized the insulation was flaking off and, much to my alarm, one end of it was sparking and slightly smoking. I think we were pretty close to having the garage burn down. Anyways, I don't really need that light so I cut the wire down and capped the ends. I'm assuming this will fix everything, but I guess I'll know in a couple days when the breaker doesn't trip again. 

[freyguy 4237]

Good deal.  But just in case it doesn't work out, you can also try these shade tree solutions.

[Jkwellborn 6536]

Wait a minute. Someone ran a piece of wire just up in the air like a power line? No pvc or conduit or anything? Holeee shit.

[horn4life 3748]

glad you found it! Anything blowing repetitively that is NOT the breaker itself means there is something going on with the load.  And yes folks do some dumb ass shit electrically when they have no idea what they are doing.

Glad you aren't staying at a weekly hotel...

Quote

 

 

[Hate 20037]

glad you found it! Anything blowing repetitively that is NOT a
Woman is a problem.

 

 


Fixed.

[blacklab 11808]

A long time ago I worked as an electrician at a large hotel casino. 

I got called in one Saturday because a dryer kept blowing fuses. The guys on duty kept replacing them and went through all the fuses we had and all the ones from that the hardware store had as well. When I asked why they didn't stop replacing them after the second time they blew they said "I thought we had a bad batch of fuses"

This was the same guy who wrecked all 3 sawzalls we had by moving them back and forth rather than just letting them do the work.

[blacklab 11808]

13 hours ago, freyguy said:

Good deal.  But just in case it doesn't work out, you can also try these shade tree solutions.

damn that's some funny shit.

I didn't see it but one of my shipmates dropped a crescent wrench across 450 volt bus bars one time.

The wrench just disappeared in a bright blue light.