jimmyhg Posted November 2, 2006 Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 Hey guys, my first post. Just got my tank a week ago and currently doing fishless cycling. I was wondering how many of you use a GFCI. I have looked for a power bar that has one built in but with no luck. I was thinking to replace my wall outlet with one. I know how and can do this safely. I was wondering how many of you use a GFCI and what your opinions are. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted November 2, 2006 Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 What is a GFCI? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunl Posted November 2, 2006 Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 Ground Fault Circuit Interruptor. I seriously doubt many people use them at all, as most people are as careful as possible to not get water near the wires. If I do have a huge mess like my exploding sump the other day (different story, but would have made a great AFV video), I have the breaker panel switched off before going near. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronrca Posted November 2, 2006 Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 I always use GFI receptacles on all my aqua equipment. If there is any current that does not flow back to the receptacle, there is a fault and the GFI will trip. Any electrical equipment submerged in water should be on a GFI receptacle. If the equipment such as a pump housing should crack or the cable should fail for whatever reason, water tends to be a conductor rather than an insulator therefore if you were to reach into your tank, you would get a shock. A GFI trips on milliamps and extremely fast therefore minimizing damage. What are the chances equipment could fail? Ive heard enough people experience it that buying a $20 GFI is a small price to pay. Heaters failure tend to be more common than pumps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trixie Posted November 2, 2006 Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 I use a GFCI and a battery wet pad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HOSStile Posted November 2, 2006 Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 (edited) And you only have to put 1 GFCI in a circuit which may run to multiple plugs, You can determine which plugs will be affected by pulling the breaker in question and checking for voltage at the outlets. Edited November 2, 2006 by HOSStile Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midgetwaiter Posted November 2, 2006 Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 What is a GFCI? It stands for Ground Fault Circuit Interrupt. It is a device (power bar, circuit breaker, outlet) that can sense the amount of current flowing from the hot wire to the neutral wire and if it finds that the current going out on the hot wire is more than the current on the neutral wire it shuts off the circuit. You can find them in your house on outdoor outlets or sometimes in bathrooms. Consider a scenario where a heater cracks and the elements are exposed to the water. The water is now a conductor, because there is no path to ground nothing happens but if you stick your hand into the water the current now has a path to ground through you. In a non GFCI situation you will continue to conduct the current until you max the breaker (usually 15 amps) and you are not a happy person. With a GFCI that is working correctly the current that is going through you will be sensed by the device and it will interrupt the circuit, you'll get a little shock maybe but nothing serious. There is also a device people use called a ground probe. This is basically a wire that sits in your water and provides a path to ground in case there is any current introduced. It can protect you as well because even if you stick your hand into the electrified water the ground probe will provide a better path to the ground than you will and will take most of the current. Having a ground probe in the aquarium with a leaky electrical device might not be the best for your fish though, without the ground all you have is potential, with it you have current. If used along with a GFCI the ground probe is a better idea, as soon as a device starts to leak electricity the probe will ground it out and the GFCI will trip. Most people don't use GFCI unfortunately. Even if you don't feel up to putting a new outlet in yourself you can buy power bars and extension cords with them built in, it's cheap insurance. If anyone is interested the Canadian Tire in Shaughnessy had a bunch of beige GFCI outlets in a discount bin for $3 when I was there a couple weeks ago. They usually cost ~$20. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted November 2, 2006 Report Share Posted November 2, 2006 My fishroom is GFCI protected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trooper Posted November 3, 2006 Report Share Posted November 3, 2006 You can also get breakers that are GFI protected. It would be great for multiple tanks that run on the same circuit . Cost is considerabley more than a regular breaker, but a small price to pay for a possible freak accident. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midgetwaiter Posted November 3, 2006 Report Share Posted November 3, 2006 You can also get breakers that are GFI protected. It would be great for multiple tanks that run on the same circuit . Cost is considerabley more than a regular breaker, but a small price to pay for a possible freak accident. Most of the GFCI outlets you can get will protect 3 outlets that are on the same circuit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willfishguy Posted November 3, 2006 Report Share Posted November 3, 2006 Now if I could just get one hooked up to my electric eel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmyhg Posted November 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 3, 2006 Thanks for the info and good discussion. I will be installing a GFCI in replacement of the wall plug. Jimmy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wibber Posted November 4, 2006 Report Share Posted November 4, 2006 Most of the GFCI outlets you can get will protect 3 outlets that are on the same circuit. Curious - where do you get the figure of 3 outlets? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trooper Posted November 4, 2006 Report Share Posted November 4, 2006 You can also get breakers that are GFI protected. It would be great for multiple tanks that run on the same circuit . Cost is considerabley more than a regular breaker, but a small price to pay for a possible freak accident. Most of the GFCI outlets you can get will protect 3 outlets that are on the same circuit. I understand if you place a GFCI plug in front of a non protected plug, it will then protect that plug. I'm not certain how many you can protect in a series by code? I have protected a second bathroom in a house off of another GFCI in the first bath. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midgetwaiter Posted November 4, 2006 Report Share Posted November 4, 2006 Most of the GFCI outlets you can get will protect 3 outlets that are on the same circuit. Curious - where do you get the figure of 3 outlets? To tell you the truth I don't remember. I did a search and like Trooper says it some places the number of outlets protected on the load side are limited by code. I think that I got the information from the instructions that came with the last one I installed, I remember trying to figure out how many were on the load side of my circuit just before I installed it. I can't confirm that though I can't find the instructions. Could be that I picked it up from something somebody told me or that I read somewhere but I'm usually pretty careful about passing stuff like that on, maybe not careful enough though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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