Replies

1. 
   SamT | Jul 30, 2003 12:00am | #1

   I dunno'

   Have you checked for a bad ground the gfci. they will work without a ground, but will not test that way.

   SamT

   "Law reflects, but in no sense determines the moral worth of a society.... The better the society, the less law there will be. In Heaven, there will be no law, and the lion will lie down with the lamb.... The worse the society, the more law there will be. In Hell, there will be nothing but law, and due process will be meticulously observed."

   Grant Gilmore, The Ages of American Law (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1977), pp. 110-111.
   From 32866.117

2. 
   BillHartmann | Jul 30, 2003 12:47am | #2

   A GFCI without a ground will still self test. But an external tester won't trip it.

   You said that the "tester does not light". Most of them have several different lights a chart showing the problem depending on the charge of what does light and not light.

   I "think" that you have the GFCI wired backwards. That is power connected to the load side.

   BTW, what are you trying to do? Using a surge protector on a GFCI in a well house is not standard practice.

1. 
   JohnCA07 | Jul 30, 2003 09:09pm | #3

   Bill,

   I wired the GFCI to the standard hot (red) to brass screw and common (white) to silver screw and ground (green) to green screw.

   The reason for the surge protector is to protect the ultraviolet filter as well as the backwash components on the other filter systems.

   If I had wired the GFCI incorrectly (hot to load), wouldn’t testing the surge protector show my wiring to be out of sync also?  As it stands the outlet test shows nothing (no lights) and the surge protector test shows all is good.  I just don’t get it.I’ll open the box again just to be sure I didn’t mix up the hot and common.

1. 
   billyg83440 | Jul 30, 2003 09:20pm | #4

   Make sure not only that the wires coming into the GFI outlet are wired to the correct color screws on the outlet, but that the power into the GFI goes to the LINE screws, not the LOAD screws. This will be labeled on the outlet.

   Not sure if or why it'd cause this problem, but power into the outlet must go to the right place for it to work correctly.

2. 
   BillHartmann | Jul 30, 2003 10:29pm | #5

   Well there are too sets of terminals. One for the line and the other for a load, where you can connect other outlets.

   Most of the GFCI's that I have seen lately though have had a piece of tape across the load terminals to keep people from using it accidently.

   My only guess at this point is that the GFCI is defective and that plug on the tester is not quiet long enough to meet up with some "bad" conntacts inside the GFCI.

   But let me suggest something much better.

   First are backwash and UV-light equipment grounded? If so you don't need the GFCI. Even if they arent't then I would run a ground wire from the metal on each device to electrical ground (and also the pump directly or indirectly). What you are doing is bonding everything and then you don't need the GFCI.

   Actually even if none this grounded there is no real need for the GFCI in the application as this is not hand held equipment that you will be in the middle of. But I would still install a GFCI convient outlet in the well house for use when doing an work down there with power equipment.

   Then surge protection I would get a hardwired one. Internatic makes one that it designed for main pannel, in the $50-75 range I think, but you can probably find something cheaper. One thing would be the outlets with surge protection built in.

   The power strips are just not the best thing to be using in a damp localtion like this and you have several more connections to fail.

   I like the nice clean, built-in look.

1. 
   JohnCA07 | Jul 31, 2003 09:36pm | #6

   The wiring coming into the GFCI is correct and connected to line not load and tape is over the load lugs.  I have another GFCI on hand so I'll swap it out to see if talks to the tester.

   The UV and backwash plugs are 3 prong so yes they are setup for ground.  However, the metal on them is not wired directly to a ground rod if that is what you were asking. Most everything in this setup is some form of plastic except the pressure tank and a few check valves.

   The well pump and pressure switch are setup with a direct ground at the well so that takes care of grounding everything but the pressure tank. The pressure tank has plastic fittings so its isolated but I'm guessing that any water traveling through the pipes could carry deadly current if energized.  Can anyone confirm this?

   I think I still need to look into grounding the pressure tank in some way (I guess I can drill a hole in one of the legs and run a ground wire to it?).

   I'll be installing a surge protector at the service entrance as we complete the house rewire but that’s sill a few months off.

   Thanks for the info.