Circuit loses power GFCI

Submitted by SorenAmroth t3_1197ety in DIY

I have a GFCI 20A outlet, a Switched outlet, and a 15A duplex outlet(s) to which our Samsung fridge is connected to. All on the same circuit*

We've been in the house 2 years with no issue until now; the circuit loses power. Now that I replaced the GFCI with a new one i can tell its tripping. Eedit: I changed the GFCI to a new one and it still trips. Also the fridge (I believe is downstream from the GFCI not directly plugged into it)

The GFCI is opposite side of kitchen counter. Switched outlet is on side with sink, furthest away.

I have used an Klein RT250 and says my Hot neutral are Reversed on my Switched outlet.

" REVERSED HOT/NEUTRAL "

Would that be reason enough to cause a gfci to trip and cause my fridge(whole circuit) to lose power? Please advise thanks.

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brock_lee t1_j9kw324 wrote

First, is it a 20 amp circuit, or 15? Putting a 15 amp outlet for the fridge on a 20 amp circuit is OK, but putting a 20 amp outlet on a 15 amp circuit is not.

Did you test the switched outlet, both outlets, in both the off and on positions, and get different readings on the "reversed" wires at any time? I would definitely shut off the breaker and check (and fix) the wiring on the switched outlet.

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CabinetSpider21 t1_j9ky4b0 wrote

Honestly gfi trip for a fart in the wind they are uber sensitive. But you didn't do anything recently? New appliance? No new rework? Is this consistent regardless if your switched outlet is in on or off position?

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SorenAmroth OP t1_j9kza4f wrote

Replying to brock_lee (#1,923,246)

Need to report back Amperage the Circuit breaker is in panel later. By test u mean with my outlet tester?
I would need to recheck tester readings for all outlets while in off and on position. (Assuming you mean the Switched outlet )
The part idk is where in the circuit each sits. GFCI->switched outlet-> fridge. or Switched->gfci->fridge etc.

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brock_lee t1_j9kznvv wrote

Replying to SorenAmroth (#1,923,708)

Yes, I was referring to testing the switched outlet. Sometimes people switch the neutral which can make for unexpected readings on a tester (and should be fixed). But, in the switched on position, if it reads the hot and neutral are reversed, they almost certainly are.

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PlatypusTrapper t1_j9l0ln0 wrote

GFCIs fail over time. Might be time to replace it.

Personally, I don’t like putting a GFCI on a fridge. The motor makes them trip too often.

edit I misunderstood. You just changed your GFCI.

2 things could be happening. You could just have a particularly sensitive GFCI that you’ve installed and may want to consider replacing it again. The other possibility is that the fridge is starting to wear out. That doesn’t mean that the fridge is bad per day but it could be working worse than it used to and the motor might burn out soon. I wouldn’t replace it until that actually happens but it could happen soon.

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TerranPhil t1_j9l2hky wrote

The compressor on the fridge is going which is causing the trip.

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zerohm t1_j9lnm9x wrote

When you say "the circuit loses power", do you mean it trips in the breaker box?

The GFCI will only trip things "downstream" if they are connected to the "load" terminals on the back of the GFCI. If they are in parallel, the GFCI will not trip anything other than it's own outlets.

Is the refrigerator on the GFCI? It would not surprise me if the refrigerator didn't trip the GFCI when it was young, but as it got old the compressor kicking on started to draw more current (to overcome more friction as parts age).

Regardless of all that, I would probably address the Reversed Hot/Neutral issue first.

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time_spent t1_j9lsfeq wrote

I just had a similar issue where the end outlet read hot/neutral reversed (even though correctly wired at the outlet) and GFCI kept tripping. It was caused by mixing up the supply neutral (bottom) with the outgoing protected neutral (top).

Check supply hot/neutral are both on the bottom connectors and the protected run hot/neutral are on the top.

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gregra193 t1_j9m51ce wrote

The fridge should really be on a dedicated circuit and also not downstream from a GFCI. Fridge motors + GFCI doesn’t always play nice.

If hot and neutral are truly reversed, you probably have a black wire going where a white one should go…somewhere on that circuit. The GFCI should be wired so it doesn’t protect things downstream. If not possible because one of those outlets is close to water, I’d really recommend a licensed electrician.

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ChessLord144 t1_j9mt6mo wrote

Refrigerators should be on their own dedicated circuit.

My guess is that, as your fridge has gotten older, it is drawing more power when the compressor kicks on that it used to.

It is also entirely possible that the fridge compressor has developed a legit ground fault that needs to be addressed.

The first step is unplugging or shutting off everything else in that circuit and leave it off to see if the fridge alone will trip the GFI.

One other question: are you plugging anything at all into the GFI outlet? How about the switched outlet?

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WealthyMarmot t1_j9mt6zv wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#1,930,840)

> OP said the outlet is GFCI not the breaker. You can't have both together.

Sure you can. It's just unnecessary and occasionally makes troubleshooting a little annoying.

> GFCI specifications were changed to Arc fault because everyone complained GFCI'S tripped too often.

GFCIs and AFCIs are two totally different things. AFCIs in no way replace GFCIs and won't protect against ground faults (unless the fault causes arcing). Maybe you mean switching a GFCI breaker out for a combo breaker that does both?

> I would love to replace all these stupid outlets and breakers in my house if it wasn't for insurance reasons.

They're there for a very good reason, especially the GFCIs. And frankly it doesn't sound like you should be replacing anything.

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SorenAmroth OP t1_j9mux0o wrote

Replying to gregra193 (#1,928,719)

Have now fixed the Hot NEu Reversed and all outlets are wired properly. My current beleif is that fridge is the culprit.

An aging Samsung smart fridge was never totally fond of ><

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SorenAmroth OP t1_j9mv0a8 wrote

Replying to zerohm (#1,926,831)

Have now fixed the Hot NEu Reversed and all outlets are wired properly. My current beleif is that fridge is the culprit.

An aging Samsung smart fridge was never totally fond of ><

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WealthyMarmot t1_j9mv3jd wrote

Replying to gregra193 (#1,928,719)

> The fridge should really be on a dedicated circuit and also not downstream from a GFCI.

Yeah, as long as the fridge outlet is at least six feet from the sink. Otherwise it requires a GFCI (at least in my area).

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gregra193 t1_j9mzv9p wrote

Replying to SorenAmroth (#1,931,637)

Just because it’s tripping, doesn’t mean there is actually a problem with the fridge. The outlet might just be too sensitive and tripping, often caused by a motor starting and stopping.

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Mammoth-Pain-358 t1_j9onj88 wrote

Replying to WealthyMarmot (#1,931,459)

I have done a lot of electrical work. NEC electrical code article 210.12(A), installing an AFCI breaker is required in all single-phase and 15 to 20 amp circuits with a 120V supply. This rule applies to the area of the kitchen, most rooms of a house, and hallways. Bathrooms are required to have GFCI outlets and AFCI breakers are not required. Also, you can install a GFCI outlet on a circuit with a GFCI breaker. The NEC doesn’t encourage this practice however.

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