Updated 24 March------------Having a new GFCI problem I have been unable to locate in the "receptacle circuit". While on shore power (from house) The GFCI receptacle on that string itself had power, showing two lights on the tester as "normal", but the GFCI was popped and would not reset. The rest of the receptacles all dead.The other 120v circuits in the trailer, including the GFCI "galley" receptacle on its own cicuit are ok.Swapped over to inverter with shore power plugged into that, and now the receptacle circuit is fine and the GFCI button can be reset so everything seems ok. Back to shore power and not ok.To get a quick fix, I took out the GFCI receptacle and replaced it with an ordinary one, so now everything seems ok even when plugged into the house. However, whatever was causing that GFCI to pop is still there of course. I checked for that by plugging the trailer into the house bathroom GFCI receptacle and it popped.So just what is the risk here? If I don't plug into a shore power GFCI receptacle, I would never know, and when off-grid on inverter I would never know.Hunting for that GFCI would take hours and hours taking out each receptacle I guess, since the usual swapping things around didn't find it. So until I get that ambitious, should I care?Thanks

Change or replace the gfci.Just had one go bad in the condo.

I think, in simple terms, the GFCI detects differences in current between conductors ... if there's more current flowing out than coming back, there's a potential "ground fault"... meaning current has found a return path to "earth" that bypasses the correct return path (the neutral and ground conductors). In terms of human safety, this is because someone has contacted an energized appliance and a water source (IE hair drier in the bathtub)You could have a failed appliance somewhere on the circuit, that is leaking current into the RV frame or your inverter could be miswired (neutral bonding for example). It could be as simple as a loose connection inside an outlet, an open neutral for example.

Feed through function has failed. Replace the GFCI.

GFCIs do go bad. Yours did.I once replaced a full size upright deep freeze, only to find a bad GFCI outlet. DW was NOT happy.

enblethen wrote:Feed through function has failed. Replace the GFCI.I replaced the GFCI receptacle with an ordinary receptacle and the GFCI fault is still somewhere in that circuit. (the trailer still pops the stick house GFCI) I expect the fault is where some wire insulation has come away from a white wire going into a receptacle and it is touching the frame or some kind of thing like that which will be hard to find.I get two lights on the receptacles for "normal" so that says there is a ground ok. So is the safety feature of the "three-prong plug" still in effect even though somewhere in the circuit there is a GFCI fault? What about the two- prong plugs that have one fat prong? Ok?Any risk at all?

GFCI Risks? Update | Good Sam Community

BFL13
Explorer II
Mar 22, 2015
I will check that outside receptacle, thanks. that is often the culprit in these GFCI episodes.

I did some of checking and no luck. ( Fridge unplugged, swapped extension cords and adapters, nothing plugged into the receptacles in that circuit.) The converter is with the galley receptacle circuit which is GFCI not popped. Water heater electic not connected. (that circuit worked though) It is just the one receptacle circuit which also has a couple of 120v lights to it.

I was surprised when the GFCI receptacle was popped, that it still worked and showed the two lights for normal on the tester, but the rest of the receptacles did not work. I somehow thought that GFCI receptacle would also be dead when it is popped.

I know you can't reset it till it has power, but it would not reset even though it had the shore power. But when I plugged into the inverter for power, not shore power, the GFCI would reset, and that got all the other receptacles on that circuit working.

I can't see what is so different about the PSW inverter vs shore power from the house. Inverter is not bonded though. Uses the same cord and 30/15 adapter. Oh well.
DrewE
Explorer II
Mar 22, 2015
There are a couple of possibilities I can think of. One (that I suspect is less likely) is that the GFCI broke and replacing it will solve the problems. I don't think it's too likely because the system worked fine from inverter power, whereas I would expect it to be failing regardless of the power source if the GFCI were faulty and popping unnecessarily. However, it is still a possibility and a fairly easy and inexpensive one to fix.

The more likely scenario is that there is an actual neutral/ground fault somewhere in the circuit—that is, a conductive path between the neutral line and the ground line. I would guess that you don't have trouble with it on inverter power because the inverter is not wired to bond the neutral to ground when it's in operation, and so neutral is floating and there's no way for fault current to flow through the ground fault to trip the GFCI.

Since the GFCI outlet itself were powered when the button was popped but the other outlets downstream from it were properly shut off, then the GFCI was wired backwards—the power input lead was attached to the feed-through terminals and vice-versa. When the GFCI is popped the outlet should be dead; if it isn't, the wiring needs to be corrected.
BFL13
Explorer II
Mar 22, 2015
Aha thanks! I will swap those when I put a GFCI receptacle back in there.
Executive45
Explorer III
Mar 22, 2015
I think your issue is in the wiring also. The fact that you put a regular receptacle in there and the GFCI popped when you plugged into the house bathroom, IMO, negates a bad GFCI in the coach. Have you done any electrical work in the coach recently? Often, when replacing receptacles care is not taken to ensure each set of wires is installed in their proper place on the receptacle. Cross wiring will cause the receptacle to work but will trip any GFCI.....I would not use that circuit until I'd found this "issue"...Dennis
BFL13
Explorer II
Mar 22, 2015
Bobbo wrote:
GFCIs do go bad. Yours did.

I once replaced a full size upright deep freeze, only to find a bad GFCI outlet. DW was NOT happy.

Did that put you in the dog house? :) ( Not that our agility dogs have to live in such things)

Executive-- thanks, I will check that too.
Dusty_R
Explorer
Mar 23, 2015
Bobbo wrote:
GFCIs do go bad. Yours did.

I once replaced a full size upright deep freeze, only to find a bad GFCI outlet. DW was NOT happy.

Compressor type refrigation equipment and GFCI's do not get along well. Best not to plug a refigator/freezer into a GFCI receiptical.
Paul_D_
Explorer
Mar 23, 2015
If you are going to replace the gfci , read the labels carefully. There has been a manufacturing change:
The "line" terminals are now at the top and the "load" terminals at the bottom near the ground (green) . As pointed out by an above respondent the polarity on these is critical for proper operation.

If it does turn out the fault is on the "load" side of the receptacle; at least you have a good idea where to look as they are the devices that are off when the gfci trips.

When using a core with a "polarized" 2 prong end ( like a hair dryer) the gfci my not trip if no path to ground exists. For example if the dryer falls in a plastic tub of water with plastic pipes.
Gene_Ginny
Explorer
Mar 23, 2015
BFL13 wrote:
... I was surprised when the GFCI receptacle was popped, that it still worked and showed the two lights for normal on the tester, but the rest of the receptacles did not work. I somehow thought that GFCI receptacle would also be dead when it is popped.....
It should be dead when it "popped". It sounds very much as if the Line an Load were reversed. When that happens you can not reset it.

See Previous post by Paul D.
Gene_Ginny
Explorer
Mar 23, 2015
BFL13 wrote:
... Hunting for that GFCI would take hours and hours taking out each receptacle I guess, since the usual swapping things around didn't find it. So until I get that ambitious, should I care?...
YES
BFL13
Explorer II
Mar 23, 2015
Gene&Ginny wrote:
BFL13 wrote:
... Hunting for that GFCI would take hours and hours taking out each receptacle I guess, since the usual swapping things around didn't find it. So until I get that ambitious, should I care?...
YES

At least I didn't cut off the ground prong on the shore power cord to make the problem go away.

Instead I got rid of that pesky GFCI receptacle! "Shoot the messenger" works for me :)

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