Jayflight 2018 GCFI keeps tripping

mixter7 · 09-27-2021, 03:28 PM

I'm having a strange electrical problem. My GCFI, located in the restroom keeps tripping. When i reset it takes about 20 seconds to re-trip. This seems to have been a gradual problem. We thought it was because of the previous RV place we stayed at, but now its doing it at home. We have it plugged in 24/7 because we use the refrigerator. Could this be a low battery problem? I also read in another post that it could be the water heating element gone bad, but I'm not sure where that's located? I inspected wiring behind the breaker box and GCFI outlet and everything looks good. I'm also going to inspect the wiring in the outside outlet too. Any help is appreciated (smh).

Grumpy · 09-27-2021, 03:39 PM

Nothing to do with the battery or the water heater. The GFCI only involves the outlets that are connected to it. They have been known to go bad.

mixter7 · 09-28-2021, 12:43 PM

So, I've checked about half the outlets and they appear normal. The reason i thought is could be the electrical water heating element is because of this article, but i have no idea where its located. I thought it would be near the gas water heater?

Grumpy · 09-28-2021, 12:59 PM

If you have a standard gas/elec water heater it has it's own separate breaker and it is wired directly to the panel. No GFCI involved

muckinfuss · 09-28-2021, 01:06 PM

Go to Home Depot, buy a GFCI and make a swap. If it continues to act up, you need an electrician able to do circuit diagnosing since guessing from a distance or at the problem won't fix it.

mixter7 · 09-28-2021, 01:13 PM

Good idea, I’m going to try that. The regular outlets aren’t your conventional ones and are hard to check. The covers are hard to remove on the backside.

Bill Johnson · 09-28-2021, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mixter7

I'm having a strange electrical problem. My GCFI, located in the restroom keeps tripping. When i reset it takes about 20 seconds to re-trip. This seems to have been a gradual problem. We thought it was because of the previous RV place we stayed at, but now its doing it at home. We have it plugged in 24/7 because we use the refrigerator. Could this be a low battery problem? I also read in another post that it could be the water heating element gone bad, but I'm not sure where that's located? I inspected wiring behind the breaker box and GCFI outlet and everything looks good. I'm also going to inspect the wiring in the outside outlet too. Any help is appreciated (smh).

Do you have anything plugged into the outside outlets, kitchen, or bathroom outlets? unplug everything and see if it pops. If it does go to a home improvement store and replace it. In my motorhome I replaced many rv outlets that are crimped on the Romex. If there isn't enough wire add a few pieces, just make sure they are the same gauge. If the wire is a 14 gauge use 14 gauge. Make sure the power is off when you work on it. if it pops after that I would disconnect each other outlet untill it doesn't. If it still does it it's in the wiring somewhere

mixter7 · 09-28-2021, 05:59 PM

So my breaker box labeling shows the circuit that has the issue involves the refrigerator, GCFI,and other outlets......i discovered the refrigerator has an outlet on the outside of the trailer behind the plastic cover. I unplugged it and it didn't trip. So i figured chances are it could be this outlet since it has 3 romex running through it. I took it apart and wire nutted everything according to color to eliminate, but it tripped again. I think my next option will be swapping out the GCFI for another as Muckinfuss suggested.

Bill Johnson · 09-28-2021, 06:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mixter7

So my breaker box labeling shows the circuit that has the issue involves the refrigerator, GCFI,and other outlets......i discovered the refrigerator has an outlet on the outside of the trailer behind the plastic cover. I unplugged it and it didn't trip. So i figured chances are it could be this outlet since it has 3 romex running through it. I took it apart and wire nutted everything according to color to eliminate, but it tripped again. I think my next option will be swapping out the GCFI for another as Muckinfuss suggested.

It sounds like if you replace the GFCI and it still trips it's probably something in the refrigerator isn't right and leaking current. Just thinking again, isn't there a 120 heating element on an RV fridge or residential refrigerator like on my home last week my compressor on my AC shorted so that was 7,100.00 for new a ac and furnace

Bill Johnson · 09-28-2021, 06:20 PM

https://www.fluke.com/en-us/learn/bl...urement-basics

https://www.fluke.com/en-us/learn/bl...ected-circuits

mixter7 · 10-04-2021, 01:52 PM

Okay, so i figured out the electrical issue i was having. It was not a easy go. I just so happened to buy a bad GCFI at Home Depot. I know, what are the odds. At that point, it made it seem like it was the outlet where the refridge was plugged into. So i re-wired it with a normal plug. I returned the bad GCFI and bought another at Lowe's. Wala, problem solved. Also, if had read the fine print on the original GCFI I would have saved some time. It was flashing red. Hopefully, this thread saves someone the heartache. Thanks all for your input......you guys rock!

Bill Johnson · 10-04-2021, 06:57 PM

Good job glad it worked out

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