GFI issues

[Bmi48219]

Three of our external outlets, one GFI outlet in the garage feeds a patio outlet, outlet in front courtyard & outlet near A/C compressor. For a year now the circuit goes dead requiring me to reset the GFI outlet in garage to restore power to the outlets. I replaced the garage GFI outlet without success.
The outlets on the house exterior are protected by weatherproof covers. None are in continuous use, or have any device plugged into them for longer than it takes to complete an ordinary task, like vacuuming a car. The GFI protected circuits in bathrooms and kitchen almost never trip.
I’d welcome any diagnostic ideas.

[smoked turkey]

I suspect the outlets exposed to moisture are tripping the GFCI. i have experienced that too long a run due to very small leakage between the hot (120v in this case) and the neutral is also enough to trip the GFCI. They are very sensitive. i would disconnect the outlet(s) and see if the problem persists. If so it could be leakage of the romex.

[Winger Ed.]

I had a similar problem with some outlets in the garage.
Sometimes they worked, sometimes they didn't.
But the breaker didn't trip.

I plugged in one of those tester things with the little lights on it, and it showed a bad/open neutral.
After a lot of head scratching, I found a corded power strip plugged into an outlet on the circuit that was bad.
Whenever it felt like it- the thing would short the ground wire to the neutral.
I don't understand why, but getting rid of the plug in strip fixed it.

The GFI might be OK, and its doing what something else is 'telling' it to do.
Those GFIs are pretty sensitive, maybe you have something like that going on
with another outlet in the circuit.

[shell70634]

I had to replace every outside gfi outlet with standard outlets within 2 years of building my house. I don't know if they make gfi's that can withstand the elements or not, but I have never had one that works well. You could try a gfi breaker for that circuit.

Shelly

[Texas by God]

If you have a sprinkler system, check to see if the outside GFI outlet is getting wet. I've seen this happen a few times.

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[Bmi48219]

I purchased and installed a new GFI outlet in the garage. I know it’s wired correctly, power from panel into the top, load from bottom. Ground lead connected. I tested line hot & common and they are live. No power on load side. The new GFI outlet appears to be tamper resistant, it has internal shutters blocking a plug from being inserted. Going to pull the 3 outlets the GFI protects in the morning to see if they are wet inside or have a lose ground wire.

[jsizemore]

I did some repairs on a rental unit that had a GFCI that was connected to the condensate pump in the crawlspace that would trip sporadically. When it rained really hard the front porch roof runoff would douse the outside outlet that was part of that GFCI circuit. That foam gasket wasn't up to the keeping outlet dry. I bent a piece of flashing that tucked up underneath the bottom edge of the lap siding above the outlet and cover from a coke can. Drip edge of the flashing is beyond the face of the outlet cover. Outlet still gets used on a regular basis for the past 2 years without a problem.

To determine that that outlet was the problem, I pulled the wire out of the box and capped each conductor with a wirenut and tape to prove it was the source of the fault.

[Hannibal]

I had to replace every outside gfi outlet with standard outlets within 2 years of building my house. I don't know if they make gfi's that can withstand the elements or not, but I have never had one that works well. You could try a gfi breaker for that circuit.

Shelly

Be VERY careful. GFCI outlets are required by electric code in exterior locations due to the very real danger of electrocution/death.

I know you didn't ask for advise, but I would make sure GFCI outlets go back into those locations or install GFCI breakers if I were you. The breakers are typically considerably more expensive.

[wildwilly501]

I think I’d just replace the three regular outlets when you have them opened up they don’t cost much

[Bmi48219]

Yep, the three outlets on the home exterior are fed / protected by the GFI Outlet in the garage that’s giving me fits. That’s the one I have to get functioning. Either it instantly recognizes the ground they share is bad or maybe the common.
Going to check the outside outlets, could be something simple.

[Catshooter]

Bmi,


Here's how a GFI works. In order to do work electricity has to flow, move. It flows out on one wire and back on the other. In a perfect circuit, both wires have exactly the same amount of amps on it. The GFI measures each wire's amperage and compares the two. If they differ by more than five thousandths of an amp (if I recall correctly) it trips. So if there is leak of power the GFI will see it. The GFI can't even see the ground wire, pays no attention to it, doesn't need it to work.

If you've replaced the GFI and still no joy then there is power leaking somewhere for some reason. It's doing it's job, no matter what a pain in the butt it may be. Moisture can do it easily at any of the outlets. Or a mouse gnawing on a wire. Look around, you'll find it now that you know how it works can help.

[Newboy]

Some electric motors do not like GFI outlets.


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[Mal Paso]

Some electric motors do not like GFI outlets.


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There are motor rated GFIs.

Pass and Seymour used to be my problem solver. No nuisance tripping and they lasted. Now they are $15 wholesale and trip every time the power goes out.

Leviton is the Worst. I had to replace 1 out of every 3 I installed within months.

[1006]

Check all of the outlets for loose wire connections an moisture. Electricity vibrates, and connections can become loose with time. GFI outlets do wear out and require replacing; some last longer than others. You might have a pinched wire with damaged insulation. It could also be a loose wire between the breaker connection and the GFI. Lightening can trip them, as well.

[William Yanda]

I clicked on this thread expecting to find information about GFI brass. Silly me.

[BeeMan]

If nothing more obvious shows up, you might also want to check for insects, nests or webs, and corrosion on the exposed portions of wiring inside the covered boxes on the outside receptacles. Same for the load output side of the GFI outlet in the garage. These can hold moisture that allows the leakage current that will trip the GFI. And moisture doesn't have to be liquid water. It can be condensation due to temperature changes on the outlets outside or even in the garage. We saw some strange things in outside electrical service with HVAC equipment.

[MaryB]

Condensation on spider webs kept tripping the one on my deck. When I took it apart the box was packed with web... and it had caused corrosion so I cleaned it out, replaced the outlet, sealed the box up except for a small weep hole at the bottom so condensation doesn't fill it with water. Check the weep hole yearly to make sure dust doesn't plug it. Used some of those foam outlet gaskets to seal the face up.

[Bmi48219]

Found the problem, exterior protected outlet by A/C compressor. That’s the problem with CBS-Stucco construction. Wall surface around outlet cover isn’t smooth enough for a good seal with the thin foam sealing pad included in weatherproof outlet cover. Trimmed high spots on stucco with a grinder and silicone sealed top & sides of cover. The other two outlets were ok for being 21 years old. I knew I had a duplex outlet saved from when I switched interior outlets to Deco style somewhere. Just took 1/2 hour to find it. Up & running now. Thanks for all the input!

[David2011]

I had to replace every outside gfi outlet with standard outlets within 2 years of building my house. I don't know if they make gfi's that can withstand the elements or not, but I have never had one that works well. You could try a gfi breaker for that circuit.

Shelly

Weather resistant GFI outlets are available. I just installed one a couple of weeks ago.

I bought a house that had GFI outlets on every outdoor outlet. They tripped constantly. An electrician told me that having multiple GFI outlets on a circuit can be a problem. According to him, it makes them more sensitive. It didn’t make sense since each one is a standalone device but replacing all but the first one in the circuit with standard outlets plus installing a new GFI in the first box on the circuit solved the problem.

[Randy Bohannon]

I am just finishing up rewiring my entire house, I used a local electrician to help to not do it wrong and bring it 100% up to code. I located all of the boxes and pulled all of the wires one of the coolest things in modern electrical wiring is putting the GFI’s in the panel with everything on that circuit GFI protected without all the problems with individual GFI’s allowing to use non GFI outlets anywhere and be protected. Also having outlets and lights separated makes for a stable residential electrical system.