First off, most outdoor receptacles plus concrete floor pole buildings and several other locations require GFCI protection if your jurisdiction had adopted any of the later NEC's BUT THATS JUST A STATEMENT that may or may not hold true or be required in your jurisdiction, I'm ONLY saying, do as you please, this is intended as engineering information only, NOT to start a code discussion. Use GFCI fine, don't use GFCI fine, it's your choice.
Second, it only takes in the vicinity of around 5 +/- milliamps of current leakage to trip a GFCI and nuisance tripping can indeed be a problem as you have found. Moisture, dirt, contamination, insulation failure, material breakdown and other things can cause the trip. The GFCI may be working perfect and doing its job you know!!!!
If the current flowing in the ungrounded conductor on your heater isn't all being returned (within 5 +/- milliamps) by the grounded conductor (its leaking elsewhere), that can trip the GFCI. Such a fault/leakage path may or may not be easily determinable, depending on your test instrument. There should be like an open circuit (approaching infinity resistance on some meters) from the heater to electrical paths other then the grounded and ungrounded conductors. If there's a fault leakage path elsewhere that's conducting more then 5 milliamps, the GFCI is designed to trip.
Its common for inexpensive poor quality GFCI's to go bad, so you may want to try a new one if you fail to find that your block heater is defective. You might try a few manual test and resets as I have seen that help to some extent. Similar you may try to clean the heater and its plug and cord and connectors free of dirt or moisture that might help.
Finally, if you cant find a problem with the heater or it has no current leaks/faults (maybe try a different one) ,,,,,,,,,the GFCI itself isn't at fault (maybe try a new one),,,,,,,,,cleaning and test and resets don't help,,,,,,,,,, you can try a non GFCI if you choose.
NOTE a GFCI can be wired such that downstream outlets and connections after the GFCI are also protected, what's on your GFCI circuit at this time??? Do other appliances besides your block heater cause the GFCI to trip??? I take it she only trips when you plug a load into it correct???
We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today. [ About Us ]
Today's Featured Article - New Hitches For Your Old Tractor - by Chris Pratt. For this article, we are going to make the irrational and unlikely assumption that you purchased an older tractor that is in tip top shape and needs no immediate repairs other than an oil change and a good bath. To the newcomer planning to restore the machine, this means you have everything you need for the moment (something to sit in the shop and just look at for awhile while you read the books). To the newcomer that wants to get out and use the machine for field work, you may have already hit a major roadblock. That is the dreaded "proprietary hitch". With the exception of the
... [Read Article]
Latest Ad:
Sell 1958 Hi-Altitude Massey Fergerson tractor, original condition. three point hitch pto engine, Runs well, photos available upon request
[More Ads]
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy
TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.
