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GFI wiring question - daisy chain


richieb

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The new owners of our house have asked for GFI’s to be installed in the kitchen where due to the age of the home we’re not required and are not present. So there are three duplex outlets, two with light switch,  on the sink side wall. Looking at the wall the far right and center duplexes have 

two white/two black wires+ ground. Far left duplex is one white/one black + ground. None of them work when power is turned on although the two switches only work. No “operation” light on, nothing happens when resetting. Breakers are working. Is there something I’m missing about “daisy chaining” GFI’s? Playing with the “blue fire” is not my forte—. Ideas?

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When I bought my house last year. The mortgage company required the previous owner to install them in the house. Anywhere where there was a water Fossett . So like the kitchen, bathrooms & laundry room and any of the outside sockets , and the garage, because the water heater is in the garage


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In my area the city does not allow light switches on kitchen outlets. Also when you make a change the wiring has to be brought up to code and for a kitchen it's a minimum of four number 10 outlets. Each outlet can be a GFI plug or each circuit can be a GFI circuit breaker. Well anyway I don't know what the codes are now with all the electronic baloney involved. A plug behind the refrigerator should have one circuit with a GFI breaker.

JJK

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“Daisy chaining” GFI’s can cause nuisance trips downstream. I don’t understand why you’d want to do that anyway.

Typically for a branch circuit, you’d identify the first receptacle in the chain and put the GFI there, then parallel downstream outlets on the circuit powered from the load side of the GFI.

Call an electrician.

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Get an electrician to bring that wiring up to current code.  You don’t want to make a mistake and have something go wrong that will cause the new owner a problem he’ll want you to pay for.  A possibly very expensive problem.

 

The little money it will cost is more than worth it for your peace of mind.

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On 9/19/2020 at 4:47 PM, richieb said:

The new owners of our house have asked for GFI’s to be installed in the kitchen where due to the age of the home we’re not required and are not present. So there are three duplex outlets, two with light switch,  on the sink side wall. Looking at the wall the far right and center duplexes have 

two white/two black wires+ ground. Far left duplex is one white/one black + ground. None of them work when power is turned on although the two switches only work. No “operation” light on, nothing happens when resetting. Breakers are working. Is there something I’m missing about “daisy chaining” GFI’s? Playing with the “blue fire” is not my forte—. Ideas?

Did you wire the GFI's backwards?  There's an "in" and a protected downstream side to them.

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On 9/20/2020 at 8:40 AM, codewritinfool said:

Daisy chaining” GFI’s can cause nuisance trips downstream. I don’t understand why you’d want to do that anyway.

True, put the GFI in the first receptacle in the circuit and the others are covered, no reason to have more.

 

Never tried more than one on a circuit, it may cause a problem ?

 

.

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20 minutes ago, babadono said:

So he had the ins/outs mixed up? And for this others suggested an electrician? "I moved 3 wires, that'll be $400".

California jaded, I suppose.

Fixed now.  The 3 plugs were on 2 different circuits so he needed 2 GFIs.  Once the line and load on the hot side got straightened out the sockets still didn't work.  He had to switch the neutrals and everything started working as it should.

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5 hours ago, babadono said:

Switched the neutrals? I'll take your word for it. Draw me a pic. at SWAG.

 

5 hours ago, CECAA850 said:

Fixed now.  The 3 plugs were on 2 different circuits so he needed 2 GFIs.  Once the line and load on the hot side got straightened out the sockets still didn't work.  He had to switch the neutrals and everything started working as it should.


Kudos to The Blue Fire Professor. I was in deep, up to my neck, Carl threw me a rope. Had my line/load terminology all mixed up and thought common was just that - common. Good learning experience, didn’t get zapped once. The session went so well I’m considering, although not strongly, taking back most everything I’ve ever posted about Carl. He’s a target hard to miss. And yeah on this beautiful day in KC - suns out, guns out - right Carl 👉💪

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