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May 22, 2003 | 06:13 AM

Chuck 6083

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From: Where they take the census by counting the appliances on the front porch and multiplying by five

PING! Hey electricians!

Got a problem here I'm wondering about.

Here are the specifics: My father has a fountain in his front yard. The pump is 110V and It is wired with a 20A Ground Fault Circuit Breaker. It works fine, as does the CB.

We want to install a Timer on this pump. It seems no matter which one I buy, or how I wire it, it works until it "trips" for cutting off the pump, and then the CB will trip. Voila' no more power!

Am I missing something, or are you not supposed to use a timer with a GFCB?

I am NO electrician. I am, however, very cautious. I know the basics and simple wiring. It seems to be elementary, but I'm beginning to become frustrated with trying to get this to work. I'd like for it to be as safe as possible of course.

Any ideas?

Thanks,
Chuck

May 22, 2003 | 07:35 AM

Longneck

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PING! Hey electricians!

Chuck,
I'm no electrician either but have you tried to run the circuit with a regular breaker and trying to have the timer click off and on? Could be a problem with the breaker? Is the pump hardwired to the breaker or does it go through a plug? Have you tried running a normal breaker with a GFCI recepticle? Like I said I am no electrician just throwing out some options, I am sure someone else will have better answers for you.

Longneck

May 22, 2003 | 08:24 AM

BrianA

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Joined: Aug 2001

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From: Trussville, Alabama

PING! Hey electricians!

First off, I'd suspect a faulty GF CB. I have had one "go bad" before and it would trip intermittently when turning the bathroom lights on or off. The GF CB doesn't work like conventional circuit breakers. GF CB's actually sense current and make sure what is going out is the same as what is coming back. That way nobody can become a "ground fault" and never trip the (conventional style) circuit breaker.
Another possibility, if there is something screwy with the way the timer breaks the circuit, that too might cause the problem. In other words, if the timer breaks the circuit for the current going to the pump at an instant in time, there will still be current flowing thru the wires to keep the timer running. If there is even the slightest period where the two currents (out going and returning) do not match, the GF CB will trip.
Let us know what you find out. I'd like to know.
Thanks,
Brian

May 22, 2003 | 09:10 AM

1997RangerXLT

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Joined: Sep 2002

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From: Charleston, SC

PING! Hey electricians!

GFI's are designed to cut the power in 1/2 of a sine wave if the common or ground service is interrupted. The timer cuts the ground out, and the GFI cuts the power off. The timer can't turn the pump back on because it has no power (GFI is needing resetting) and does not work anymore.
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My guess w/o seeing the wiring.

Last edited by 1997RangerXLT; May 22, 2003 at 09:17 AM.

May 24, 2003 | 03:18 PM

924x2150

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Joined: Sep 2002

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From: Langhorne, PA

PING! Hey electricians!

Do you have a ground fault circuit interrupter receptacle in the yard, or is it the GFCI installed in your circuit breaker box?
I am clueless about your dilemma, but I know that my GFI is operating with a timer-switched 1hp pool pump. My GFI is in the circuit breaker box. The GFI has an extra white wire coming out of it, which i'm guessing, is for the GFI protection.