Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it seems
to work again.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.

Neither one has the small green indicator light, which I see the new
units in the store now have on them.

Questions:

a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable are
they generally ?
Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

The Deck one is in a more-or-less weatherproof box, but of course does
see the cold. The one in our garage also gets pretty cold down there.

b. I understand the basic principle of how these function, but was
wondering if they also would trip
(as a normal house circuit breaker would) for a short circuit or an
excess current draw over 15 amps ?

Or, do they just solely protect against stray current going through an
individual ?

c. Are there better brands or models available ?

Thanks,
Bob

On May 20, 8:12*am, Robert11 wrote:
Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it seems
to work again.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.

Neither one has the small green indicator light, which I see the new
units in the store now have on them.

Questions:

a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable are
they generally ?

Almost all of the ones I've had from a variety of manufacturers
over decades are working. I've replaced maybe one.


Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

They should not have to be replaced. With a motor load like
the garage door sometimes they can falsely trip. That's why
they are not recommended for refrigerators. So, the garage
one may be OK.

The other one it could either be a bad GFCI or there could
actually be a ground fault on the circuit. Does that GFCI
also protect other outlets downstream? One of them get
wet, etc? Easy way to find out is to put in a new one and
see what happens.




The Deck one is in a more-or-less weatherproof box, but of course does
see the cold. *The one in our garage also gets pretty cold down there.

b. I understand the basic principle of how these function, but was
wondering if they also would trip
(as a normal house circuit breaker would) for a short circuit or an
excess current draw over 15 amps ?

No



Or, do they just solely protect against stray current going through an
individual ?

They protect against ground faults, ie current from the hot winding up
not coming back on the neutral because it's gone off to ground
somewhere. If they could detect an individual versus a wet outlet,
now that would be something.....



c. Are there better brands or models available ?

Thanks,
Bob

Don't know. I've uses whatever was availabe for 30 years with no
problems.

wrote:
On May 20, 8:12 am, Robert11 wrote:
Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it
seems to work again.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.

Neither one has the small green indicator light, which I see the new
units in the store now have on them.

Questions:

a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable
are they generally ?

Almost all of the ones I've had from a variety of manufacturers
over decades are working. I've replaced maybe one.


Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

They should not have to be replaced. With a motor load like
the garage door sometimes they can falsely trip. That's why
they are not recommended for refrigerators. So, the garage
one may be OK.

The other one it could either be a bad GFCI or there could
actually be a ground fault on the circuit. Does that GFCI
also protect other outlets downstream? One of them get
wet, etc? Easy way to find out is to put in a new one and
see what happens.




The cheaper way (to test the integrity of the GFCI outlet) is to disconnect
the wires leading to the downstream outlets and re-connect them to the
unproteced terminals.

As for the garage door opener compared to the refrigerator, I'd imagine that
the garage door opener has an even larger motor than the fridge. Therefore,
if the GFCI manufacturer discourages connecting a fridge, I'd think the same
considerations would apply for a garage door opener.

Robert11 wrote:

Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it seems
to work again.

That might be a once-in-a-lifetime thing-- or it might keep happening
when you use the garage door and the stars are aligned wrong.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

I'd swap that one out.


Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.
-snip-
a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable are
they generally ?

Pretty. I've got 25yr old ones that only trip when I test them. I've
also had one or 2 fail in a couple years.

Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

If there is an easy way to see if you have good power upstream from
the one that won't reset- then check it. By the time you pull it,
you might as well put a new one in.

The one that ripped and reset apparently just did its job.


The Deck one is in a more-or-less weatherproof box, but of course does
see the cold. The one in our garage also gets pretty cold down there.

cold won't bother them. 'more or less weatherproof' bothers *me*. Get
one of these-
http://www.amazon.com/Taymac-MM2410C.../dp/B001BS9UTC

Jim

On May 20, 10:40*am, "HeyBub" wrote:
wrote:
On May 20, 8:12 am, Robert11 wrote:
Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it
seems to work again.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.

Neither one has the small green indicator light, which I see the new
units in the store now have on them.

Questions:

a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable
are they generally ?

Almost all of the ones I've had from a variety of manufacturers
over decades are working. * I've replaced maybe one.

Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

They should not have to be replaced. *With a motor load like
the garage door sometimes they can falsely trip. *That's why
they are not recommended for refrigerators. *So, the garage
one may be OK.

The other one it could either be a bad GFCI or there could
actually be a ground fault on the circuit. *Does that GFCI
also protect other outlets downstream? *One of them get
wet, etc? * Easy way to find out is to put in a new one and
see what happens.

The cheaper way (to test the integrity of the GFCI outlet) is to disconnect
the wires leading to the downstream outlets and re-connect them to the
unproteced terminals.

That might be cheap but it tests nothing, doesn't prove
anything about the GFCI and
if you believe the results it could get someone killed.
For example, downstream the hot is shorted
to some metal, which in turn has some limited high
resistance path to ground. The GFCI detected it. You connect
it direct, eliminating the GFCI and now all the circuit
works. Until someone grabs the metal
and gets electrocuted.

On 05/20/2012 08:12 AM, Robert11 wrote:
Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it seems
to work again.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.

Neither one has the small green indicator light, which I see the new
units in the store now have on them.

Questions:

a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable are
they generally ?
Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

The Deck one is in a more-or-less weatherproof box, but of course does
see the cold. The one in our garage also gets pretty cold down there.

b. I understand the basic principle of how these function, but was
wondering if they also would trip
(as a normal house circuit breaker would) for a short circuit or an
excess current draw over 15 amps ?

Or, do they just solely protect against stray current going through an
individual ?

c. Are there better brands or models available ?

Thanks,
Bob

Is the breaker tripped? some of them will not reset if they trip and
then power is removed.

nate

--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel

In article
,
" wrote:

They should not have to be replaced. With a motor load like
the garage door sometimes they can falsely trip. That's why
they are not recommended for refrigerators. So, the garage
one may be OK.

The reason you do not use a GFCI with a refrigerator, is that they do
occasionally falsely trip. Your food will spoil if you do not notice it
right away.

I have a generator with a standard GFCI outlet. Vibration sometimes
causes it to trip, even with nothing plugged into it. I replaced the
outlet thinking it might be defective, but the replacement also trips!
Fortunately there is a 30 Amp twist-lock outlet that does not go through
the GFCI, so I can use it with my refrigerator during a lengthy power
outage.

Fred

wrote:

The cheaper way (to test the integrity of the GFCI outlet) is to
disconnect the wires leading to the downstream outlets and
re-connect them to the unproteced terminals.

That might be cheap but it tests nothing, doesn't prove
anything about the GFCI and
if you believe the results it could get someone killed.
For example, downstream the hot is shorted
to some metal, which in turn has some limited high
resistance path to ground. The GFCI detected it. You connect
it direct, eliminating the GFCI and now all the circuit
works. Until someone grabs the metal
and gets electrocuted.

You may be right, but death, dismemberment, or serious bodily injury was not
part of the question. No, your concern, while admirable, is superfluous.

On Sunday, May 20, 2012 5:12:27 AM UTC-7, Robert11 wrote:
Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it seems
to work again.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.

Neither one has the small green indicator light, which I see the new
units in the store now have on them.

Questions:

a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable are
they generally ?
Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

The Deck one is in a more-or-less weatherproof box, but of course does
see the cold. The one in our garage also gets pretty cold down there.

b. I understand the basic principle of how these function, but was
wondering if they also would trip
(as a normal house circuit breaker would) for a short circuit or an
excess current draw over 15 amps ?

Or, do they just solely protect against stray current going through an
individual ?

I thought I had a bad Leviton (made in Singapore) because it would trip every few weeks for apparently no reason, but when I swapped it with one from another circuit, the replacement tripped about as often, while the suspect one worked fine. Tripping went away after I tightened all the connections on the circuit.

OTOH I did have a couple of defective plug-in GFCIs. One was recalled by the manufacturer, but its replacement, which looked very different inside, failed in a week by not turning off the current when a ground fault occurred.. The replacement for that one has been OK for a decade.

GFCIs are allowed to delay disconnecting the AC according to the level of leakage current, anywhere from 0.03 second for 200mA leakage, up to 6 seconds for 5mA leakage (safety standard UL943). GFCIs work by comparing the current going in one wire and out the other, by passing the hot and neutral lines through a transformer. When the currents are equal they cancel out, but if there's leakage to ground, the transformer will sense the difference in currents. Because GFCIs work this way, they won't protect from all shocks, such as when somebody stands on an insulated floor and sticks his or her fingers into the narrow slots of a GFCI-protected outlet. This does not mean you should stand on a conductive surface!

On May 20, 8:12*am, Robert11 wrote:
Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it seems
to work again.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.

Neither one has the small green indicator light, which I see the new
units in the store now have on them.

Questions:

a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable are
they generally ?
Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

The Deck one is in a more-or-less weatherproof box, but of course does
see the cold. *The one in our garage also gets pretty cold down there.

b. I understand the basic principle of how these function, but was
wondering if they also would trip
(as a normal house circuit breaker would) for a short circuit or an
excess current draw over 15 amps ?

Or, do they just solely protect against stray current going through an
individual ?

c. Are there better brands or models available ?

Thanks,
Bob

@Bob:

"More-or-Less weatherproof" could mean that there is some
water infiltration into the box causing it to trip...

As others have said the culprit could also be loose connections
somewhere in the circuit or a tripped breaker preventing GFCI
reset...

Also look for signs of insects, sometimes they can crawl into
the boxes and cause issues with outdoor receptacles....

On Sunday, May 20, 2012 12:12:27 PM UTC, Robert11 wrote:
Hello,

Have the typical Leviton GFCI dual outlets (as sold by ACE Hardware)
around our house.

One has the electric garage door opener plugged into it.
It has recently tripped, but on pushing back in the red button, it seems
to work again.

Another, the outlet on our Deck, has tripped, but the red button will
not stay pushed in (nothing plugged into the outlet).

Both are about 3 years old, and worked until now.

Neither one has the small green indicator light, which I see the new
units in the store now have on them.

Questions:

a. For consumer grade Leviton GFCI outlets like these, how reliable are
they generally ?
Should they have to be replaced in 3 years, e.g., normally ?
Are they both likely defective ?

The Deck one is in a more-or-less weatherproof box, but of course does
see the cold. The one in our garage also gets pretty cold down there.

b. I understand the basic principle of how these function, but was
wondering if they also would trip
(as a normal house circuit breaker would) for a short circuit or an
excess current draw over 15 amps ?

Or, do they just solely protect against stray current going through an
individual ?

c. Are there better brands or models available ?

Thanks,
Bob

In general the devices a very reliable but like anything elese they can fail. Most of the failed devices arent actually because of the device but because moisture and or contaminets got in them. This can even happen in 'dry' areas through "thermal pumping" where changes in temperature draws moisture inside the device.

Jimmie

On May 21, 12:05*am, Fred McKenzie wrote:
In article
,

" wrote:
They should not have to be replaced. *With a motor load like
the garage door sometimes they can falsely trip. *That's why
they are not recommended for refrigerators. *So, the garage
one may be OK.

The reason you do not use a GFCI with a refrigerator, is that they do
occasionally falsely trip. *Your food will spoil if you do not notice it
right away.

I have a generator with a standard GFCI outlet. *Vibration sometimes
causes it to trip, even with nothing plugged into it. *I replaced the
outlet thinking it might be defective, but the replacement also trips!
Fortunately there is a 30 Amp twist-lock outlet that does not go through
the GFCI, so I can use it with my refrigerator during a lengthy power
outage.

Fred

If I had a generator that had a GFCI that tripped due to vibration, I
would isolate the GFCI from the vibration.

If mounting the GFCI itself in such a manner as to isolate it was not
feasible, I'd replace it with a standard outlet and build a short
extension cord with a GFCI receptacle attached.

To be safe, I'd secure the GFCI extension cord to the generator in a
manner that prevented easy removal.