please some electric help

[pimpin]

sorry it might sound dumb but i have a issue where i cant plug in my ballast due to this home not having three prong pluggins my ? is witch would be safer 2 use the little plug ins that convert 3 prong to 2 or just change the whole plugin box and how hard is that any help please and thanx:sweating

 

[4u2sm0ke]

Hello fellow farmer..IMO..i would get a GFI outelet and install...very simple..Black on gold screw side and white on silver screw..and ground to green....that plug adapter works as long as the outlet itself is grounded..But with a GFI Much better and safer..hope this helps..take care and be safe

:passingjoint:

 

[Widowmaker]

GFI is a great idea!! If there is a ground wire in the box or the box is grounded. Was just at a house built in 40's that had no ground wires. There is nothing wrong or unsafe about using a 3 prong to 2 prong adapter if the ground wire that comes out of the adapter is screwed down to the screw in the middle of the duplex receptacle and there is a ground in the box.
GFI’s are a very good safety device; Home depot sells plug-in GFI adapters, ~$12. The problem is that they can interrupt power when it senses current flow and GFI's sometimes pop when there’s nothing really wrong. I put them on my chiller and pumps, because of water and I want to be safe. Don’t want the paramedics moving my plants around while giving me CPR, LOL!! Problem is the GFI on my pumps popped and the watered cooled light came on without water flow. The light got very hot after an hour and half, but nothing seems to be screwed up, fingers crossed. Read on another site, that something similar happened and when the pump turned on it cracked the inside glass and popped the bulb. The Fresca Sol water cooled fixture can with stand the heat safely. The mistake was turning on cold water into a hot fixture. Hope that helps.
:icon_spin:

 

[pimpin]

thanx guys any other inputs bout 2 head to the store in a bit

 

[convex]

Changing the receptacle to a grounded one is as complex but much cheaper than a GFI receptacle.

The little adapters work fine, but I am always leary of them heating up.
Personally, I would just change the receptacle and be done with it, the fewer points of failure the better.

 

[pimpin]

me again pals well i switched the box 2 a gfi but another problem is in the wire there was no ground wire so i connected the rest and wtf is that safe i read in the instructions and said if there is only 2 wires just connect them but thats it help

 

[Widowmaker]

me again pals well i switched the box 2 a gfi but another problem is in the wire there was no ground wire so i connected the rest and wtf is that safe i read in the instructions and said if there is only 2 wires just connect them but thats it help

The ground wire is a safety "device". It is normally not needed. Of the two wires you have, one that should be a hot (120VAC) the other is a neutral (white wire) and most of the time the neutral is tied to ground or earth at the breaker panel. A ground wire is, in a perfect world, a clean and no current flow safety connection. There are many homes with just 2 wire systems and it’s not an issue. Its like a safety belt most of the time its a good thing, if its wrapped around your neck maybe not so good. THE ONLY SAFE way to add a ground to that outlet is to run a 3 wire cable to the breaker panel. DO NOT RUN a wire to a cold water pipe, THIS IS NOT SAFE!!! There should only be one ground (earth) connection in a house, at the panel at the electrical entrance to the home. Follow the instructions on the GFI box, I have no idea how effective it is without a ground, just don't know, might work fine. But if the GFI pops a few inopportune times you may want to put in a non GFI outlet. Hope that helps.
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[pimpin]

thanx all i waited and turned it on for about 3 hours seemed fine well see thanx

 

[capegrower]

if he has an old house it might be grounded to the metal box with metal clad conduit.

 

[WomBat]

the fewer points of failure the better.

any electrican would say the same =]

 

[Widowmaker]

At this point in your electrical project if the electrical outlet is mounted to a metal box that is grounded your golden. If not… to meet code the outlet should be marked "No ground conductor". The GFI adds a higher level of safety if it’s functioning properly. It’s OK by electrical code to have a GFI installed without a ground if properly labeled. If you want to pick up a Plug tester you can find out if your grounded. Glad to see that all the suggestion on this thread were safe.
:icon_spin:

 

[pimpin]

all you guys been much help thanx

 

[lazarus718]

Srry man, I know this thread is an oldie but title caught my eye...I worked as an electrician for a few years and was a tech on a guided missile system for the military before that...if you don't have a ground you aren't going to without a licensed electrician bro. If you took that receptacle out and there was no ground in the box you will not just simply be fixing the problem by putting in a GFI. You won't be completely safe by installing one now either. The Ground Fault Circuit Interruptors work by sensing a "spike" in current and opening the connection between the hot line and the neutral. The current that was overloading the circuit at that time then travels back through the ground wire (lower resistance) instead of through whatever device you have plugged into it or through your body (both with higher resistances).

:mad0233:

The reason the device might be helpful for you is that it would open the circuit if something went wrong, however, it would fry whatever was plugged into it if the amperage was high enough or it would still electrocute you if you happened to be part of that circuit at the time. Pumps (motors) do not work great with GFI's either, the current surge in the start-up and/or shutdown of the motor tends to trip them since they really do have a low tolerance to changes in current levels. I know its been a while since the post but let us know how your fix-it worked out and hit me up if you still have any ?'s.

 

[hiboy]

THE NEC code is to install a gfi if a three prong outlet is needed at that location only, and not to have any other outlets on its load side. THe black wire to the gold screw stating line, the white wire to the silver screw stating line. No other wires to hook up

 

[lazarus718]

THE NEC code is to install a gfi if a three prong outlet is needed at that location only, and not to have any other outlets on its load side. THe black wire to the gold screw stating line, the white wire to the silver screw stating line. No other wires to hook up

If you want it to be grounded, then yes you must connect the ground wire to the ground screw attached to the device. You don't need a ground for your circuit to work bro. The GFI will work without it and you won't even know it isn't grounded properly, so you are right that you don't have to hook up any other wires for it to function.

As far as line side and load side go, anything wired in series to the load side after the GFCI will also be protected by a properly installed device. So if the GFCI trips, anything downline in that circuit will cease to operate as well.

 

[hiboy]

If you want it to be grounded, then yes you must connect the ground wire to the ground screw attached to the device. You don't need a ground for your circuit to work bro. The GFI will work without it and you won't even know it isn't grounded properly, so you are right that you don't have to hook up any other wires for it to function.

As far as line side and load side go, anything wired in series to the load side after the GFCI will also be protected by a properly installed device. So if the GFCI trips, anything downline in that circuit will cease to operate as well.

Lazarus, it is unsafe to install any devices with a ground slot on the load of an ungrounded GFI. It is also against code. Check your code book if you have one. You dont need a ground for anything to work, its for safety. It is NEC to install a GFI to an ungrounded circuit or to replace an ungrounded outlet., the GFI protects it..

 

[lazarus718]

Lazarus, it is unsafe to install any devices with a ground slot on the load of an ungrounded GFI. It is also against code. Check your code book if you have one. You dont need a ground for anything to work, its for safety. It is NEC to install a GFI to an ungrounded circuit or to replace an ungrounded outlet., the GFI protects it..

Yeah, I know dude...you're just clarifying what I said. It is against code to install a GFCI if it's not grounded bro, hence the "ground-fault" part of the device's name. I'm guessing he isn't concerned about code since he probably is growing illegally in the first place man. The GFI does not offer protection to an ungrounded outlet, only a ground offers that. I have the last two NEC code books, '08 and '10, and like I said before, it used to be my job bro. Tell me the article in the NEC that states it is common practice to insert a GFCI to replace an ungrounded outlet and I'll take your word once I read it. Have never heard that and never seen it in practice man.

 

[hiboy]

Sure I"ll dig it out tomorrow on the job, i still am an electrician unfortunately, at least i'm the owner. haha. WHat i wanted to tell him dude is that its not legal or safe to put grounded outlets on the load side of an ungrounded GFI. Your ARE allowed to install a (gfi) at an ungrounded location only. Im not clarifying what you said, im correcting you.:lock:

 

[lazarus718]

Totally agree man, if you don't have a ground that is continuous all the way down to your electrode, you don't have a ground. Sorry about my pickiness but people just don't understand grounds and it irritates me. They see a circuit work without one and they think they don't need it. I think we both had different ways of conveying the same information.

 

[Underground]

You guys are both touched.
A) A GFCI doesn't detect spikes. It has a current transformer on the hot and neutral. If there is a difference it opens the circuit. It does this because the only way to get a difference is if there is a short to ground. Hence the name ground fault interrupter. Yes they can trip on heavy motor starts because it is an inductive load which creates inductive reactance current.

B) Yes you can put 3 wire fuckin outlets on the load side of a GFCI. In fact, that's the only way you can. And you have to label them "No equipment ground" I don't remember where it is. 250 somewhere I'm sure, look it up.