I have a ground fault interrupter outlet which works fine. However, I added 2 other regular duplex outlets to it. I added one to the load side of the gfci outlet. then, i piggybacked off that 2nd outlet to another regular duplex outlet. This is in a pool shed.
Today, I was using a pump to pump water out of our pool cover, and the electrical connection fell in the water, but the pump continued to run.
I then plugged the pump into the original gfci outlet and dropped the connection in the water; it immediately tripped the outlet.
Is there a limit to the number of outlets added the load side of a gfci outlet?
Would I be better served by installing a gfci breaker to protect those outlets?
Thanks.
Dave

 

It seems that the wiring of the subsequent outlet is wrong. Check to make sure that hot and neutrals are not reversed on the last outlet and the ground connection is correct, if present.

 

Reversing the wiring on an down stream outlet should not affect the gfci tripping. Check to make sure you are on the load terminals and not the line terminals.

 

I agree with Joe. Most likely you have reversed the line and load on the GFCI. If you spluge for $13 and buy a "premium" GFCI from Pass & Seymour, it has a little light on it that tells you when you have the wires reversed. You should also spend $8 and buy a GFCI receptacle tester. That's a much easier way to test downstream receptacle protection than dropping a pump in the water.

 

Ok,
I checked the outlets with a gfci tester, and it tripped all three of them.
So does that mean that there was no leakge to ground with an exposed electrical connection in water?
The only other thing I can think of is as follows:
The original (first outlet) is a gfci. Then , off its load terminals is a standard duplex outlet. Then, hooked in series to the duplex outlet is another gfci outlet. could this setup be a problem? The pump was hooked up to this second gfci when it didn't trip in the water. But the gfci tester tripped this outlet.
Thanks again.
Dave

 

Is it a submersable pump?

Your tester seems to indicate that the circuit is wired correctly and functioning correctly. I'd call it good.

But I'm not sure why you wasted money putting two GFCI receptacles in series.

 

I just had an extra gfci receptacle lying around.
The pump is submersible, but the connection where the pump plugs into the extension cord fell in the water and did not trip the gfci, which i found interesting since it wasn't even a very snug connection in the extension cord (i could see the metal of the spade plug connections when i pulled it out of the water).

 

A pool of water in an insulated container (like your pool cover) isn't grounded. So you had no ground fault. Yes, the water caused some current leakage between hot and neutral, but that isn't what a GFCI checks for.

 

I was thinking the same thing as John. However I would like to add that your circuit ground must be bad because the water would cause leakage to the ground wire if was good and trip the gfci. With no ground either though the water or though the ground wire the current on the white a black has no differential and not a fault.

 

The gfci tester lit up appropriately (2 amber lights) to show that the circuit was grounded properly.
I just want to be sure that everyone is protected in case something should fall into the pool. I would assume that in order for someone to get a shock, electricity would have to go to ground, thus tripping the outlet. Right?

 

OK, I have no new input to why the GFI did or didn't trip. Check the wiring as others had said.

I'd like to suggest a different outlet configuration and see what others think.

You have the original GFI outlet. Attach the wire leading out of the box the the LINE side of the GFI, not the LOAD side as it is now. At the first "new" recepticaal box attach this wire to the LINE side of the "extra" GFI outlet you have laying around. Now attach the wire that comes of of this box to the LOAD side of the GFI outlet. At the final box put your normal outlet there.

I don't think this will help your problem, other than you can check/remake all the connections. However it makes more sense to me. Right now you have a GFI outlet protectiing a normal outelet, and a second GFI. Doesn't do much. With my suggestion you would have the original GFI by itself, then you would have the extra GFI always hot protecting the normal outlet.

Just my 2 cents

 

Actually,
I think what I'll do is get rid of the second gfci and just put a standard outlet there. That way i'll have a gfci protecting 2 other standard outlets.