Author Topic: Electrical Issue: should I be scared?  (Read 2103 times)

Miss Tash

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Electrical Issue: should I be scared?
« on: January 11, 2017, 11:42:49 AM »
I did a major remodel of my house this summer including electrical work in every room/every circuit performed by a competent, professional electrician.  During a bad windstorm last week the power went off to the whole house.  Two circuits failed to come back on.  Both had been upgraded.  No breakers were tripped but the GFCI indicator lights were red.  I pressed the test button and the power came back on.  Same for both circuits.  The power to the house had gone off one other time, when Xcel put the meter back on, and I had no issues then.
So, is this just an annoyance or is it a time bomb waiting to burn my little bungalow to the ground?

CmFtns

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Re: Electrical Issue: should I be scared?
« Reply #1 on: January 11, 2017, 12:12:49 PM »
I'm sure stuff is wired fine... In theory GFCI circuits shouldn't trip unless there is a problem but in reality I have had/seen some GFCI circuits be very sensitive/touchy and randomly trip due to various reasons like the startup cycles of some appliances like refrigerators or different tiny power surges or instant power cutoffs.

Personally I would not give this a second though and just flip the GFCI switch back on but I am not a professional electrician giving advice but also you are doubting a professional electrician's work so why listen to me even if I was a professional.

Miss Tash

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Re: Electrical Issue: should I be scared?
« Reply #2 on: January 11, 2017, 12:20:52 PM »
I may have said GFCI when I actually meant "arc fault" outlet.  If that makes a difference.

FIRE me

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Re: Electrical Issue: should I be scared?
« Reply #3 on: January 11, 2017, 12:27:07 PM »
I would not be worried. You probably had a brief surge when the power went out, tripping the GFCI.

HipGnosis

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Re: Electrical Issue: should I be scared?
« Reply #4 on: January 11, 2017, 02:48:11 PM »
I would not be worried. You probably had a brief surge when the power went out, tripping the GFCI.
Or (I believe more likely) when the power came back on - as everything in the house tries to start at the same time.

paddedhat

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Re: Electrical Issue: should I be scared?
« Reply #5 on: January 12, 2017, 07:07:13 AM »
I may have said GFCI when I actually meant "arc fault" outlet.  If that makes a difference.

Yes it does. ARC fault breakers are a relatively new safety requirement to meet new electrical codes. They are not ground fault devices, they deal with arcing only. An arc is when a wire shorts out and sparks. This can be caused by failing lamps, switches, wiring, and other plug in devices and appliances, with worn cords being a common fault. It can protect against cords/extension cords that have been run under rugs, or taped to the floor, that are damaged from wear and about to ignite rugs and flooring. (this practice, BTW is an extremely dumb thing to do, and results in many home fires)  They protect against damaged or loose connections and wiring concealed in walls and in junction and switch boxes. That said, they can occasionally be a real PITA to deal with. They can false trip when things like vacuum cleaners and blow dryers are used, due to arcing of the brushes in the blower motors. In your case, my opinion is that you probably had a genuine arc when the power failed the first time, but it was outside the home, when a high voltage transformer reset, or a tree hit the lines. The fact that two separate circuits tripped at once means that it's highly unlikely that you have an internal issue.

Here is a bit more from the National Electrical Manufacturers Association:

How does an AFCI work?

In essence, the detection is accomplished by the use of advanced electronic technology to monitor the circuit for the presence of “normal” and “dangerous” arcing conditions. Some equipment in the home, such as a motor driven vacuum cleaner or furnace motor, naturally create arcs. This is considered to be a normal arcing condition. Another normal arcing condition that can sometimes be seen is when a light switch is turned off and the opening of the contacts creates an arc.