I have a freezer in my garage that is plugged into a GFI outlet. I was told that this was not a good thing.
Would this be an easy fix by changing out the outlet, or should I move the freezer which is a lot of work?
Thanks in advance.
Kate
That appears to be one of those things where if you don't have a problem, I wouldn't sweat it. It won't damage the freezer. Theoretically, high humidity or the compressor start can trip the GFCI outlet. This can lead to spoiled food if you aren't in the freezer often.
If you haven't been having a problem with GFCI trips, you may not need to do anything. If you have and the outlet is a GFCI outlet, replacing it with a standard outlet is easy to do.
If the outlet is a standard outlet protected by a GFCI breaker or a GFCI outlet that is further upstream, you can either move the freezer or get someone to run a new circuit to the freezer. Electrical work in garages is pretty straightforward, so hiring someone to add an outlet shouldn't cost you a lot.
Kate wrote in news:hf49bv$585$ snipped-for-privacy@news.eternal- september.org:
Your local code may say that outlets in the garage must be GFCI.
Hopefully a NEC wiz will tell you if it's required at that level.
The 2008 removed the exceptions and you now need GFCIs on all receptacles in the basement.
snipped-for-privacy@aol.com wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:
OP is asking about a garage outlet.
Nothing with a motor should be on a GFCI. And after the original building inspection, it is YOUR house. Change them out.
s
Do you use the outlet for power tools also? What else do you use the outlet for besides the freezer.
The outlet won't trip until the first time it trips.
You have to either change the outlet or run an extension cord from yoiur next door neighbor.
I would change the outlet, then change it back again after I sold the house but before I moved out.
Never put a freezer, refrigerator, or anything that must run all the time on a GFI type outlet. Those outlets or breakers sometimes trip for no real reason and can let your food thaw. Sump pumps and such can trip them and you get a flood.
Same deal, all receptacles.
snipped-for-privacy@aol.com wrote in news:fepbh5pqutvf8hmaand6pf3jg8822v5vmv@
4ax.com:
OK. Have no idea. Can barely spell NCE without spellchecker.
Easy. Swap the GFI outlet for a regular one. Get a large rubber mat to put in front of the freezer.
At the very least, don't remove the GFI if it protects other outlets downstream.
I've had some GFIs that falsely tripped once a month, others that never did even with motors or straight fluorescents were on the same circuit. A hash filter (EMI filter) wired ahead of a GFI should eliminate virtually all false trips in even the noisiest environment (a hash filter between the GFI and refrigerator can prevent false trips from noise generated by the latter), and GFI chips have turn-off time delays to minimize them as well. UL standard 943 allows for a delay of as much as 5-6 seconds when the leakage is under 6mA but requires turn-off within a couple 1/100ths of a second at 100mA.
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