Joseph Meehan wrote:

surf wrote:

We have an admiral AC unit. It's pluged into a 3 prong wall socket
plug. I assumed the wall socket was grounded as it is 3 prong, but the
manual says have an electrician very that. My mother is an old widow
and doesn't have alot of money. Is there a way I can determine this ?
The unit resets itself after a couple of days, that is it shuts off,
the green light on the plug turns off and you have to hit the test and
reset switch if I recall correctly, then it makes a noise and the
green light is back on and you can run the unit. The test and reset
switchs are on the plug that goes into the wall socket. It seems to
trip when it's not running. She has been using it since last summer
and it seems to work fine otherwise. The manual however seems to
indicate it shouldn't trip.


That sounds like your AC is plugged into a GFI. Normally I would not
suggest doing that, in part due to exactly what you are seeing.

Where is the A/C located? Is it in a kitchen or bath?


The OP clearly stated that the test and reset switches were on the PLUG,
like the one's I see used on hair dryers in recent years.

If it IS a CFCI plug, and the receptical it's plugged into DOES have a
ground which gets connected to the case of the AC through a ground
conductor in the cord, it's entirely possible that after running the AC
a while condensation occuring inside the unit could create leakage to
ground and trip the GFCI.

Even if the receptical doesn't have a valid ground, it's still possible
that condensation and dripping water outside could cause enough leakage
to trip the GFCI.

Methinks that problem is going to be a bitch to find and correct, and
hiring professional help to do that will prolly cost a lot more than if
the OP just purchases a new window AC for his mom.

If it was me, and there was an equipment grounding conductor in the AC's
power cord, I'd just verify that the receptical was properly grounded
and then chop off that GFCI plug and replace it with a standard grounded
plug. But that's me, and I'm not suggesting the OP does it, 'cause his
skills are as yet undefined.

HTH,

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
"Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength."