Molo
Member
1. Do they work differently with a ground?
2. Are they less safe without a ground?
2. Are they less safe without a ground?
The stuff inside works the same with or w/o a ground but, instead of a ground wire telling the GFCI there is a ground fault and tripping it a person or thing has to become the ground fault before the GFCI will trip.1. Do they work differently with a ground?
They are less safe without a ground, but they are more safe than an existing circuit with no GFCI protection.2. Are they less safe without a ground?
No1. Do they work differently with a ground?
No2. Are they less safe without a ground?
Yes it willWithout a Ground the Test button will not work.
Yes it will
Yes they do. A GFCI with no egc can't sense a fault until a ground path is made.
GFCI is much safer than any circuit without one, yes but GFCI with a ground is best.
The GFCI has its own internal test circuit. It is the only approved test from the manufacture.Then it is not a very good test.
How does it cause a ground fault with no ground ?
I read through this and did not find a description of how the TEST button works. There is conflicting information WRT the TEST button whether or not it will work in the absence of the protection ground.There is some almost correct info in this thread...
Not exactly...in fact, the fault is that some of the current fault path is through you or some other path and not entirely getting back to the neutral. I guess it is a matter of semantics. A EGC TO the GFCI is NOT required for it to work. An EGC is there to provide a secondary fault path for an overcurrent situation to trip the breaker or blow the fuse. Its presence will do NOTHING in most cases to protect you in the manner that a GFCI does. The fuse or CB will take many AMPS to remove power and could be the result of just plugging in too many things, and may not be a fault or safety hazard in the normal sense at all....a properly functioning GFCI only takes >5ma 'leaking' somewhere it isn't supposed to, and other than heating up the contacts which may weaken them, won't trip with overcurrent at all. IOW, it is not an overcurrent protection device, it is more of a misplaced current protection device designed to protect people and pets from potential harm. The CB or fuse is there to protect the wiring from overheating and burning down the structure, and other than that, isn't really designed as a first line people protector.I know how they work, and I should have added the word equal to make it perfectly clear.
The point was that a L-N fault will not be caught by a GFCI device.
This is awkward, but...
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