Electrical Question/Concerns

[davelin315]

 

So, this is what the plug and socket of my basement dehumidifier looks like...

 

Needless to say, I have replaced the socket and the dehumidifier is unplugged now. The new socket is a GFCI left over from my tank room construction and there was no damage at all in the wiring in the box. No other sockets in the line exhibit this kind of damage so I am led to believe this was an issue with this specific plug.

 

Question I have is if the plug itself was the issue and the dehumidifier is fine or this overload was because there is a problem with the dehumidifier. Any ideas? I won't replace the plug if the dehumidifier is shot.

 

Another concern/question is whether the fact that it is a 10 amp breaker wired to 15 amp sockets is an issue - I think this is fine as the breaker should trip before the socket gets overloaded but this one simply burned up without tripping it. I can't remember if this was an issue or not but believe it is only an issue when the breaker can supply more power than the wiring and sockets can handle versus the reverse.

 

This socket is not in the tank room itself but the humidity in the basement is high from the water volume in the basement so this one needs to go back online to help reduce the moisture/humidity from the tank.

[camelcruiser]

There are a ton of variables with what you have there. If the wiring was loose on the receptacle it can cause arcing and if left loose to long can cause that type of damage. Also not sure on the age of the breaker but just like any mechanical equipment it has the potential of not tripping, a build up of dust or construction dust can effect it's ability to work correctly. There are a lot more options as to what caused it but without seeing it it's hard to say. Just my guess would be a loose connection on the receptacle though.

[John Ford]

I would lean toward a loose connection as well. Without amping the dehumidifier there's really no way to be sure.

A ten amp breaker? I can't say I've seen one. they do go bad.. It's not that common but it happens

[davelin315]

All of the breakers the buildes installed were pretty much 10 amp square d and don't leave a lot of options for replacement with AFCI or GFCI breakers.

 

There was no loose witting in the box or the back of the plug, couldn't tell you if inside the plug was loose or if inside the socket was as they both were burned and melted. Could be an accumulation of dust as there is an HVAC intake right above this socket so there is a lot of dust accumulation in the area. If you think it could be the dehumidifier is there a way to test it out? Cutting off the plug and putting a new one on is easy, but that is about as far as my electrical knowledge will take me in terms of testing out whether it caused the arc.

[Coral Hind]

It looks like a surface tracking issue between the hot and ground. Some conductive contamination or water on the surface allowed a short circuit condition to happen. The green coloring suggest moisture and oxidation. Loose wires on the back or loose connection with the outlet's fingers normally looks different that what you have. I would replace the cord cap on the de-humidifer and it should be fine.

 

PM me or post up a pic of your panel or the model info of the panel so I can see is an AFCI is available.

[Djplus1]

Do you know what gauge wiring is in your house? If it's 14 (like most houses) just swap out the 10 amp breaker for a 15 amp breaker, if for whatever reason it's 12 (not likely being that you have 10amp breakers) you can even throw a 20 amp breaker in.

 

A 10 amp breaker is pretty much a waste of space unless it's dedicated to one random thing that only needs 10 amps.

[davelin315]

I did look into whether they had AFCI for this particular panel before and they didn't (at least not 5-6 years ago), hence when I added AFCI for my tank it all went into a subpanel.

 

I don't know what gauge the wiring is but knowing the builder (Centex) they cut a lot of corners so I would assume they used whatever gauge wire was cheapest - nothing is overbuilt in this home and most of the plumbing/electrical leaves a lot to be desired.  I've replaced quite a bit myself already, although can't say that I have replaced any of the in-wall wiring.

 

I cut the plug off and replaced it with another one and it is running in the GFCI outlet now.  I monitored it for awhile and then tripped the GFCI to make sure it worked and have not had any problems.

[davelin315]

It looks like a surface tracking issue between the hot and ground. Some conductive contamination or water on the surface allowed a short circuit condition to happen. The green coloring suggest moisture and oxidation. Loose wires on the back or loose connection with the outlet's fingers normally looks different that what you have. I would replace the cord cap on the de-humidifer and it should be fine.

 

PM me or post up a pic of your panel or the model info of the panel so I can see is an AFCI is available.

Upon closer inspection the return looks like a lot of condensation built up on it from the humidity in the basement (certainly had nothing to do with the 650+ gallons of water circulating down there...) and could have dripped down on the socket.  I'm thinking of installing an outdoor cover on the thing to prevent this from happening again!

[mling]

The pic you have kind of looks like what mine looked like when some water got to it, causing a short circuit.  Could the plug have been loose and somehow water from the dehumidifier got to it ? In which case you might want to check that the dehumidifier does not have a leak.

 

Mine cased a tank crash, every thing got fried.  Came back from vacation to a very smelly house !

[Coral Hind]

I'm thinking of installing an outdoor cover on the thing to prevent this from happening again!

That's a great idea!