gfci outlets are a must

[jamal]

i was working on my tank tonite changing out the gfo in my reactor when the top off tube slipped out of my sump and on to the power strip near my sump. i didnt even know it had happened. so i am plugging up the pump when i notice that it isnt working. i thought the pump may have gone bad since i had it out of the water. i turn around and notice that my gfci has tripped. i thought it was a power spike because i didnt smell anything burning and at the time i hadnt noticed that the tube from my ato had slipped out. so i tried to reset it foolishly and was lucky that it wouldnt allow me to do so. when i realized what had happened i was very satisfied with my purchase. if you dont have them go get em. i put it off for so long before i finally moved but i am glad i did.

[treesprite]

I had to suffer electrocution before I got mine. Definately a must-have item.

[Sikryd]

Its warnings like yours that get me off my butt and do stuff! lol Glad it turned out alright.

I am putting in a new circuit now myself.

[dschflier]

I love and hate hearing these incidents. Very happy to hear you were GFCI protected. I need to install them. I think I will do that this week finally.

[jamal]

i know what you mean. i posted this for the people who were reluctant to get this protection to convince a few more folks of its significance. happy and safe reefing.

[Boxxr]

i know what you mean. i posted this for the people who were reluctant to get this protection to convince a few more folks of its significance. happy and safe reefing.

 

 

While I agree that they are necessary, I think that there are some things that need to be done when using them. As some here know, I lost my whole tank because of a GFCI tripping. I was without power for about 20 hours in December. I came home to a 60 degree tank that was without aeration for the same time period. All my sps gone as well as all but one fish.

 

What I did, or didn't do, is cover the gfci from the splashing of playful fish. I think that one of them splashed on the GFCI and tripped the whole thing. My neighbor didn't notice the problem.

 

So I am glad that you were not hurt when you were working on the tank, I think there needs to be a note of caution too. In my case, I think a non-gfci circuit would have prevented my loss. But, as in life, you live and learn. I never leave home without a cover over my outlets.

 

-Karl

[Boret]

What to connect to a GFCI outlet and what NOT to connect?

 

I want my system to be as automatic as possible. I travel quite a bit and I need to make sure the tank will thrive while I am gone.

I am afraid that running the return pump in a GFCI outlet might be problematic, as it might be tripped by something else and then stop returning water to the tank.

If I can't manually push the reset button that device won't run at all. On the other hand it might just trip the GFCI outlet for the specific device and let the rest of the system run as opposed to shutting the whole thing through the main breaker.... I see how anything that is above water, or in close proximity of water, such a light fixture above the fuge, should be in a GFCI outlet.

 

Any input on this guys?

 

Thanks!

 

B.

[mogurnda]

My view is that everything should be on the GFCI. I lost several favorite fish when one tripped when I was away a few years ago, but still consider the safety of people in the house a higher priority than that of my livestock. My approach now is to have the pumps on two separate GFCI-protected lines, so that there is circulation even if one trips.

 

Glad to see you're still with us, Jamal!

[bcjm]

Well, I am still not on a CGFI. That thing trip periodically without anything happens. Is there one brand better than the other? Is there a way to install the CGFI on the fuse panel instead of the wall socket?

[Black Mammoth]

Everything should be on GFCI. If it goes in the tank, it should be on GFCI. If it is near any water, it should be on GFCI. I rather lose thousand of dollars than a life or home. There is a reason why it is code in bathrooms, kitchen, etc. If you have a GFCI tripping all the time, it could be a bad GFCI, but I would proceed with caution. There is a good chance that there is a problem with a device on the circuit. If you feel that it is a bad GFCI, replace it! They aren't very expensive; especially considering your life or your livestock. Prices will vary, but for instance, a 20amp GFCI outlet is about $15. Obviously, you will want to use a 15amp GFCI if you are on a 15amp line. A GFCI breaker will also vary from manufacture and model. The one I needed was $52 (20amp), but they had some for about $35 (20amp). The basic difference between the breaker and the outlet is where you are protected. If you get the breaker, it will protect the line from the panel to the first (and all) outlets. The GFCI socket only protects that socket and down the line. So make sure you know how the line is running. You might be thinking you are protecting a series of outlets when you really aren't. I went with the GFCI breakers because I ran a bunch of new lines for the new tank. So $52 GFCI breaker vs new breaker ($11) and a GFCI outlet ($15)...so it was about twice as much, an additional $26. Was it worth getting the breaker over the outlet? I don't know. The bad thing about using GFCI breakers is that you better know what you are doing when you open up your panel. Make sure you are very careful. Make sure you turn off the main power breaker.

Edited March 2, 2009 by Black Mammoth

[DJBoy98]

There's 2 ways to remedy this.

 

1) locate the sockets away and higher from the tank or any water holding items. Do drip loops when plugging in the cords.

 

2) Have 2 GFI circuits with the light, pumps, etc split among the 2. That way, if 1 trips there's still another going.

If both trips then there's bigger issues and lose of fishes/corals is alot easier to swallow than a fire damaged home.

 

 

 

While I agree that they are necessary, I think that there are some things that need to be done when using them. As some here know, I lost my whole tank because of a GFCI tripping. I was without power for about 20 hours in December. I came home to a 60 degree tank that was without aeration for the same time period. All my sps gone as well as all but one fish.

 

What I did, or didn't do, is cover the gfci from the splashing of playful fish. I think that one of them splashed on the GFCI and tripped the whole thing. My neighbor didn't notice the problem.

 

So I am glad that you were not hurt when you were working on the tank, I think there needs to be a note of caution too. In my case, I think a non-gfci circuit would have prevented my loss. But, as in life, you live and learn. I never leave home without a cover over my outlets.

 

-Karl

[JC Pollman]

Redundancy and safety should go hand-in-hand. Your power should be split into two lines, so if one goes down the other still works. Example: put your main pump on one line and your closed-loop pump on the other. Also, put half your lights on one line, and the other half on the other. When I say "split", this is not complicated: just split the wire when it gets to your sump (or fishroom) you do not have to run two wires from the main fuse box. Then, you should have multiple GFCIs (come on, they are on $10 a piece at the hardware store). If you only have one GFCI protecting each line, then when something goes wrong, and entire line is shut down - which also makes trouble shooting much harder.

[davelin315]

Just make each socket independent of the others. If you wire them correctly, you can daisy chain them together so that they don't interrupt flow to the next one when they trip. Each of my sockets is independently wired and I have enough sockets so that I don't have anything except for my protein skimmer and top off plugged into the same strip. I have three pumps, 2 of which are closed loops, wired to separate GFCI sockets so if anything trips, it will not knock out more than one pump, unless of course, I have a catastrophic flood in the basement - I'm knocking on wood right now.