Electrical wiring problem


  #1  
Old 04-27-02, 08:53 PM
sonicd
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
Electrical wiring problem

I have been installing GFIs in my house recently, and everything had gone well until I got to the master bathroom. I had two black sheathed 3 wire conncections coming into one outlet (that's a red, black, white, and ground). There were two red and two white wires attatched to the old outlet. I found which was line and which was load and installed the GFI "correctly", meaning it tripped when I hit the test button. The two single black wires are tied together behing the GFI. There is another outlet that had one white sheathed two wire going into it, so I installed it "correctly". When I tried to turn on my bath light fixture, it tripped the first GFI, and continued to trip it. The other GFI would not work unless the light switch was off, and the first GFI was not tripped. I am replacing the old light fixture, which was really two fixtures, with one fixture. When I took off the old fixture, the 3 wire came into one fixture, which was connected to a wire that went to the other fixture which was connected to a white two wire connection, which I assume goes to the second GFI. I have tried connecting the new fixture correctly (without knowing exactly what that is), but the light either stays on or trips the first GFI. The light fixture simply has one black and one white wire. Please respond here and directly to info@houston.rr.com. Thanks!
 
  #2  
Old 04-28-02, 08:28 AM
Wgoodrich
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
It is designed so that only one GFI protective device serves an entire circuit. YOu are not supposed to install a GFI at each receptacle. At times when you have two GFI protective devices one connected through the first the two GFI protecive devices will react and not work properly

Good Luck

Wg
 
  #3  
Old 04-28-02, 10:06 AM
resqcapt19
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
Warren,
It appears to me that this is a multiwire branch circuit with a shared neutral on the load side of the GFCI. He said that the GFCI trips when he turned on the light. His first GFCI was installed an outlet with two 3 wire cables. The red feeding the recps and the black spliced through. If the neutral for the red and black is common, the GFCI should trip. I would recommend that since there are only two receptacles that GFCIs be installed at each location with only line connections.
Don(resqcapt19)
 
  #4  
Old 04-28-02, 08:22 PM
J
Member
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: United States
Posts: 17,733
Upvotes: 0
Received 1 Upvote on 1 Post
resqcapt19 hit this nail dead on the head.
 
  #5  
Old 04-29-02, 06:24 AM
sonicd
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
Don,

How would I go about implementing your recommendation? Do I need to rewire the entire circuit, or is it something I can fix without having to rewire?

Thanks for your help
 
  #6  
Old 04-29-02, 06:33 AM
J
Member
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: United States
Posts: 17,733
Upvotes: 0
Received 1 Upvote on 1 Post
Don is suggesting that you use a GFCI receptacle in every outlet that you would like GFCI protection (sounds like that's what you already did). Use wirenuts to attach pigtails (short pieces of wire) to the hots, neutrals, and grounding wires. Attach the pigtails only to the "line" side of each receptacle. Do not use the "load" side screws at all.

At each outlet, you will use either the black hot or the red hot (probably every other one). The one you don't use will simply be passed through by connecting the two wires together without a connection to the receptacle.
 
  #7  
Old 04-29-02, 06:42 AM
sonicd
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
Getting closer...

So instead of using the red and white wires on the line and load of the first GFI, pigtail the red wire on the line side so that I still have current through the red wire to the new light. At the light, use the red wire and pigtail it to the black and white to white. I will also have to pigtail the black wire on the 2wire connection to the second GFI so I have current on the line side of that outlet.

Does this sound correct? My only question is, where do I pigtail at the first outlet, before, after, or at the outlet?

Thanks again, gentlemen!
 
  #8  
Old 04-29-02, 07:23 AM
sonicd
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
I pigtailed the white and the red before the first GFI and attached them to the line of that outlet, connected the red and white wires to the black and white wires of the light, and now the GFI doesn't trip, but I have continuous light to the light. The light switch will not turn it on or off. I do have power to the second GFI also. I will take any suggestions! Thanks again.
 
  #9  
Old 04-29-02, 08:54 AM
J
Member
Join Date: Sep 2000
Location: United States
Posts: 17,733
Upvotes: 0
Received 1 Upvote on 1 Post
Oops. I think we guessed wrong. It seems that you do not indeed have a multiwire circuit, but rather the black and red carry switched and unswitched power. I don't have time to sort through it all right now, but I'll come back and look later and see if somebody else has figured it out.
 
  #10  
Old 04-29-02, 10:07 AM
sonicd
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
The weird thing is that with the original outlet, everything worked fine! The red wires went to the line and load side of that outlet. I thought if I just followed that configuration, but with the GFI everything would work fine, but I guess I was wrong.
 
  #11  
Old 04-29-02, 10:38 AM
resqcapt19
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
sonicd,
If you know how everything was connected before you started we can make this work. First put everything back to the original condition. Remove each recptacle one at a time, remove the wires and if there are multiple wires on any terminal pigtail them. Then land the pigtailed or the single wires on the line terminals of the GFCI receptacle. Repeat at the other receptacle(s).
Don(resqcapt19)
 
  #12  
Old 04-29-02, 11:03 AM
sonicd
Visiting Guest
Posts: n/a
I have now put the original outlet back on. The light works when switched on, and turns off when switched off. I have a red and white wire at the line and load sides of the outlet. The black wire is still pigtailed behind the outlet. The light is connected by a black wire to black wire and white wire to white wire. Each of those also has another white and black wire which go to the second outlet (still GFI). When there is power to the light, there is power to that second outlet. I have the red wire terminated in a wire nut and bound with electrical tape. The second light works when turned on with the second light switch.

Should I just leave the configuration like it is, and only have my wife use the GFI to dry her hair with the light on?

Thanks again for your assistance!
 
 

Thread Tools
Search this Thread
 
Ask a Question
Question Title:
Description:
Your question will be posted in: