Any electricians around?

[Pantoot]

Fixed it. Thanks.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

I am stumped by the gfci outlet in the bathroom. Upper receptacle is dead, lower one is live. Downstream is dead. This is a new outlet, replaced old one that had same problem. Both line and load screws on sides measure 120v, lower outlet is 120 but upper outlet is 0.
Protection isn't tripping...any ideas?

More than one gfci on the same circuit? I've seen this problem with jacuzzi type tubs. There will be a hidden gfci on the tub and another on the same circuit elsewhere in the bathroom.

 

[MrDudeMan]

Deleting an OP after fixing your problem it is pretty much the exact opposite way to use a forum. Thankfully Magnus quoted it. Why the hell would you do that?

 

[Jeff7]

Deleting an OP after fixing your problem it is pretty much the exact opposite way to use a forum. Thankfully Magnus quoted it. Why the hell would you do that?

And how was it fixed?

 

[MrDudeMan]

And how was it fixed?

Exactly.

 

[Jeff7]

Here it is again - XKCD - Wisdom of the Ancients.


It's bad enough when there's no answer to the post. But it's worse when the person says "I have the solution." and then destroys the evidence.


OP, return and redeem yourself! For the future!

 

[Pantoot]

Here it is again - XKCD - Wisdom of the Ancients.


It's bad enough when there's no answer to the post. But it's worse when the person says "I have the solution." and then destroys the evidence.


OP, return and redeem yourself! For the future!

Lol, I must have just missed Magnus' helpful post when I deleted it.
Really, I deleted it because my diagnoses was completely incorrect, and I didn't want someone stumbling upon my situation thinking it matched. I probably should have edited my post with what really happened, but between typing on an ipad and embarrassment, I opted to just delete.

What really happened...

After posting, I went back to the outlet and retested. This time I saw a reading of 4V on the top outlet...Being an engineer, I jammed the probe a little bit farther in, and suddenly, 120V. Ok, so the outlet is ok.

I was troubleshooting why the outlets along the vanity weren't working, and because this outlet is like 4 feet away, by the toilet, I assumed that they were on the same GFCI. Now that I surmised that the new outlet was ok, I went around the house, looking for more GFCI. Turns out the kid's bathroom had tripped, and they didn't bother to tell me that their toothbrushes weren't recharging or whatever. I reset this outlet, and now the wife can dry her hair again in our bathroom.

The morale of the story, if there is to be one? Check all the outlets before posting that you have some crazy scenario where half of a GFCI outlet isn't working.

 

[highland145]

Being an engineer, I jammed the probe a little bit farther in

Reasonable.

 

[DrPizza]

Lol, I must have just missed Magnus' helpful post when I deleted it.
Really, I deleted it because my diagnoses was completely incorrect, and I didn't want someone stumbling upon my situation thinking it matched. I probably should have edited my post with what really happened, but between typing on an ipad and embarrassment, I opted to just delete.

What really happened...

After posting, I went back to the outlet and retested. This time I saw a reading of 4V on the top outlet...Being an engineer, I jammed the probe a little bit farther in, and suddenly, 120V. Ok, so the outlet is ok.

I was troubleshooting why the outlets along the vanity weren't working, and because this outlet is like 4 feet away, by the toilet, I assumed that they were on the same GFCI. Now that I surmised that the new outlet was ok, I went around the house, looking for more GFCI. Turns out the kid's bathroom had tripped, and they didn't bother to tell me that their toothbrushes weren't recharging or whatever. I reset this outlet, and now the wife can dry her hair again in our bathroom.

The morale of the story, if there is to be one? Check all the outlets before posting that you have some crazy scenario where half of a GFCI outlet isn't working.

Open letter to electricians:

Dear electricians,
Wire is cheap (relatively), especially compared to the cost of a house. In fact, compared to the cost of a house, the material cost of 12/2 with ground is all but neglible. WHY the heck can't you guys wire a house in such a way that it's obvious which breaker goes to which circuit? Why instead do you run wire through a house, like a drunken sailor intent on absolutely minimizing the total cost of the wire? Even when two rooms share a wall, the cost of the extra wire is negligible to have one room on one circuit, and the other room on another circuit. It's an extra 15 feet of wire, if that. That's $3.

Breakers are cheap too. Any person in existence who has tried to figure out why an outlet isn't working, only to find out that it's downstream of a GFCI located 2 rooms away would probably vote to make that type of wiring a capital offense. Personally, I'm against the death penalty. Though, I can't say that in this instance, I don't admire Singapore's love of public lashings. I cannot comprehend how the NEC has not made it a rule, not for safety's sake, but rather, for sanity's sake, that any outlet protected by a GFCI must be in the same room. If that's not possible - then GFCI breaker.

There's more than enough space in panels for more circuits than the bare minimum required in houses. And, if need be, you can put in an additional panel - say, a separate small panel just for a kitchen (which eliminates a dozen circuits from the main panel).

Why is it that consumers would be upset with any other product that appears to be designed by a drunken sailor with ADHD who dropped out of engineering school after 1 semester. Putting a GFCI reset in a different room from the outlet it protects makes as much sense as having a car with the engine in the front, but the oil dipstick inside the back passenger wheel well.

Sincerely,
DrPizza

 

[Humpy]

The cost of wire is only part of it. An electrician will wire a house pretty much however the guy writing the check wants it done.

It should have been a open letter to cheap-ass homeowners who really only care about square footage and granite counter tops.

 

[lupi]

Remember watching one of those home improvement shows where someone looks at an outlet with some suspicion, then removes the cover and notices it looks like it was wired with just an extension cord. Begins to pull on it and has an extension cord start pulling through plaster down the wall to where it was "jumpered" from.

 

[alkemyst]

Deleting an OP after fixing your problem it is pretty much the exact opposite way to use a forum. Thankfully Magnus quoted it. Why the hell would you do that?

QFT

 

[Jeff7]

Being an engineer, I jammed the probe a little bit farther in Reasonable.

"Shove it in harder! It's ok, I'm an engineer!"

 

[Jeff7]

Lol, I must have just missed Magnus' helpful post when I deleted it.
Really, I deleted it because my diagnoses was completely incorrect, and I didn't want someone stumbling upon my situation thinking it matched. I probably should have edited my post with what really happened, but between typing on an ipad and embarrassment, I opted to just delete.

What really happened...

After posting, I went back to the outlet and retested. This time I saw a reading of 4V on the top outlet...Being an engineer, I jammed the probe a little bit farther in, and suddenly, 120V. Ok, so the outlet is ok.

I was troubleshooting why the outlets along the vanity weren't working, and because this outlet is like 4 feet away, by the toilet, I assumed that they were on the same GFCI. Now that I surmised that the new outlet was ok, I went around the house, looking for more GFCI. Turns out the kid's bathroom had tripped, and they didn't bother to tell me that their toothbrushes weren't recharging or whatever. I reset this outlet, and now the wife can dry her hair again in our bathroom.

The morale of the story, if there is to be one? Check all the outlets before posting that you have some crazy scenario where half of a GFCI outlet isn't working.

Thank you for posting it.

Even if you incorrectly diagnosed it, someone else probably will do the same thing, and search for the same problem.
"Oh. So it's not what I thought it was. *click* Yeah, it works now."

Being an engineer, I jammed the probe a little bit farther in

Reasonable.

"Shove it in harder! It's ok, I'm an engineer!"

 

[highland145]

"Shove it in harder! It's ok, I'm an engineer!"

Years ago, a friend of mine was helping his Dad built a computer. The Dad has his Phd in chemical engineering and the same attitude.....he had to buy another cpu when he bent the pins because he had it turned around.:biggrin:

 

[Thebobo]

Deleting an OP after fixing your problem it is pretty much the exact opposite way to use a forum. Thankfully Magnus quoted it. Why the hell would you do that?

In case the house burns down or someone gets hurt?

 

[Greenman]

The cost of wire is only part of it. An electrician will wire a house pretty much however the guy writing the check wants it done.

It should have been a open letter to cheap-ass homeowners who really only care about square footage and granite counter tops.

Amen brother!
I hear this all the time. Owner wants each room to be on it's own 20amp breaker, with a separate lighting circuit of course. They want an outlet every 4 feet, they want a 3 wire double switched circuit to the ceiling light "in case they ever want a fan", they want cat5, cable, and phone in every room, they want 4 recessed lights in every room, and 1 in every closet, they want it all, the only thing they don't want is to pay for it.

 

[jad1097]

Amen brother!
I hear this all the time. Owner wants each room to be on it's own 20amp breaker, with a separate lighting circuit of course. They want an outlet every 4 feet, they want a 3 wire double switched circuit to the ceiling light "in case they ever want a fan", they want cat5, cable, and phone in every room, they want 4 recessed lights in every room, and 1 in every closet, they want it all, the only thing they don't want is to pay for it.

true

industrial work is much better than residential IMO

 

[stormkroe]

The crazy arc fault requirements of the NEC have really upped the price of materials. Silver lining: mass production of arc fault breakers caused by the hilariously overboard requirement drives prices way down. I get to buy $32 afci breakers back home in the US to use in Canadia where they retail for $90