GFI circuit poped

[rainbody]

Came home to a GFI cicuit popped and I cant get it reset. It will run for afew minutes then pop again. I have no idea where the interupt is. Ive got a panworld pump that may be the cause but i cant tell. Theres black gunk that i pulled from under the pump itself. Like tar but yellow when rubbed across my fingers. Any ideas? Is the pump the issue? What else should I isolate?

And I have to leave the tank for a month in 3 days!!!

Ryan

[+dapettit]

is the pump the only thing plugged into the GFCI? If it is plog something else into the GFCI and see if it trips. If it's plugged into a power strip or control that is plugged into the GFCI unplug the pump then test the GFCI again.

[rainbody]

Ive got it up and running for now. It runs about 10-15 mins then kick off. The last interupt being with the possible bad pump not running. But ive got it into limp mode which means tons of microbulbs but its turning over. Could the GFIC be bad? Would back pressure on a pump cause it to trip the GFCI?

Theres zero leaks or water issues that would cause a grounding at this point.

[AlexKilpatrick]

Can you just run an extension cord to a different plug? That would allow you to keep running. You would just need to be careful when you are working with the tank because you won't have the GFC protection. That will give you time until you can investigate further.

You can also get a GFCI extension cord as a different test.

In my experience, GFCI's pop immediately, or not at all. Is a heater kicking on?

[rainbody]

As of now its doing ok. Ive unplugged alot of the extras and am only running core items. 40 mins and going well.

Im now thinking that it was a surge issue and that several resets of the GFIC was needed. We will see as I bring the other items online one at a time. Any thoughts?

Why are all the issues always on days you cant do much or have something pressing?

[AlexKilpatrick]

Just be glad you aren't on vacation.

[rainbody]

I leave for a work "vacation" on friday. The wife is going to be "watching" the tank. Im going to be nervous until I come home.

Looks like a RKM-NET is seen in my future.

[muddybluewater]

GFCI plugs will get weaker over time. I had a whole batch that were bad that spread over 2-3 houses that I was building. I had to change all of them out. Also there are 15amp and 20 amp plugs if you have a 15 change it out.

[Captain Vash]

<-- Electrician. GFCIs are jerks. The do get old and end up needing to be replaced. If they have tripped once, then they get weaker faster. I hate them. I can come replace it for you.

[offroadodge]

GFCI plugs will get weaker over time. I had a whole batch that were bad that spread over 2-3 houses that I was building. I had to change all of them out. Also there are 15amp and 20 amp plugs if you have a 15 change it out.

As to this comment not a real good one, if there is a 15amp breaker with a GFCI then leave it a 15 amp. THe wire used to wire your house in that circuit is only approved for a max load of 15, you can load it down to around 12-14 then it WILL start getting hot. Unless you have an electrician come drop a digger ROMEX to handle the 20amp breaker i would NOT swap a 15 for a 20. Unless you can prove the reason to the insurance company when it burns the house down cause the wire in the wall caught on fire. ITS dedfntly a pump problm, take a DVOM(digital volt ohm meter) and put the red end into your water and the black to the ground(concrete) Just poke it threw the carpet all the way to the concrete. it wont leave a big enuff hole to notice. If it reads current then there you go. Unplug one at a time till you find the culpret. I found out the hard way, I was going to do something in my sump and had my WET knee on concrete and put my hand into the sump water and got the S__t shocked outta me. Then it started blowing the GFCI. turns out my mag 18 was bad and was BRAND new by 3 days. IMO DONT change the 15 amp for a 20, your playing with FIRE literally. THIS IS JMO!!! not trying to make anyone mad.

[rainbody]

It ran for 2 hours without a hitch. Afew minutes after plugging in the last 3 things(all one extension cord) it popped. So Im down to either a 18W UV, heater, or small powerhead. The trial and error testing is about to begin. Im thinking now maybe water go into the UV. The heaters is pretty new. Replace about a month ago(old heater melted bracket). Pump is noraml (hopefully)

Im just thankful it doesnt look like one of the Panworld Pumps. (knock on wood)

Ryan

[rainbody]

I had a electrican come out and install a 20amp circuit direct to the circuit box. Its got a GFCI circuit on the wall plug plus that standard breaker. I had it put there for just running the tank equipment which is all in the garage.

Im not thinking its the GFCI at this point. My money is on the UV piece. Guess Ill find out.

[Captain Vash]

I just stay away from GFCI. They are dumb except for the bathroom. I keep forgetting not to put plugged in things into the bathtub. =/

[muddybluewater]

When I said I had to change them out I meant that I had to have my electrician change them. They were on a 20 amp breaker and 12-2 wire. All of this per the 2008 NEC. My house is wired to the 2000 NEC and has 20amp breakers in it. Definitely look at you panel and see what size breaker you have. A 14-2 might be an issue with 20amps but I would have to look it up. I am not an electrician but do own a copy of the 2008 NEC.

[rainbody]

And the results are in. It was an submersible pump. The UV and heater both passed. The moment I plugged the pump back in, it popped. I removed the pump and found that the power input that goes into the pump housing was bad and voltage must of been leaking out into the live rock stock tank. Ill see how the night goes and post a pic of the burned out pump in the morning.

Thanks for everyones help. What a way to spend an evening.

Ryan

[muddybluewater]

That is why you use a GFI. It could have killed everything in the tank, and possibly you.

[Captain Vash]

I have the NEC 2002 edition. Surge protectors work well too.

[offroadodge]

cool congrats on the find. I too had my father drop a 10-2 wire to my fishy room to run everything. my house was wired with 14-2 and i just didnt trust it. I was drawing like 11.5-12.7 amps threw the 15amp breaker and it was warm to the touch all the time. now it doesnt get warm at all. this is a good thread for the newbies. there are always factors that catch you off guard.

[rainbody]

Yeah. I love that GFIC. The only issue is that it was running too many things. Not amps or anything but the next setup with have the return pump and maybe the skimmer on their own GFCI so that only a failure of themselves would mean a loss of power. It would prevent my issue of a powerhead failure shutdowning the core elements of the tank. Just a lesson I learned from all of this.

[+dapettit]

I have two tanks and both are on their on circuit,

Dave-

[subsea]

Yeah. I love that GFIC. The only issue is that it was running too many things. Not amps or anything but the next setup with have the return pump and maybe the skimmer on their own GFCI so that only a failure of themselves would mean a loss of power. It would prevent my issue of a powerhead failure shutdowning the core elements of the tank. Just a lesson I learned from all of this.

Hey rainbody,

Because I am an aggie and an engineer, I do two back-ups on my displays. Deep sand beds use tremendous amounts of oxygen. In the event the power goes off, I use inexpensive (less than $20) back-up air pumps. Because I lived in hurricane country, I had auto back-up generators but over the years I have come to use double redundacy. Just a thought.

Patrick