Are gfci circuit breakers better than gfci receptacles? |
Question And Answer Category: Electrical |
Question: |
| Dear Blankhelp, I have a series of outlets in my garage that are not ground fault protected. It's only 3 outlets, so rather than install a GFCI receptacle at each one, I wondered if a GFCI circuit breaker might be a better choice. Which is better, gfci circuit breaker or a gfci receptacle? thank you, love this simple self help site, Marc |
Our Advice and Answer: |
| Dear Marc, First thank you, we are trying to meet the needs of people trying to search the web for simple solutions to their problems. No self help written by experts only for experts here. Thank you. OK, you stated something very important in your question. You said it was a series of outlets in your garage that you intend to add Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter protection. If all these outlets are on the same circuit/breaker (you used GFCI breaker instead of GFCI breakers), so it seems possible to protect all the outlets with one GFCI breaker (follow manufacturer's instructions, and this is based on how your outlets are wired together). Even if the three outlets in you garage each need a GFCI breaker, there are features, we'll discuss later, that GFCI receptacles have over gfci circuit breakers. OK, before proceeding, only qualified electricians should work on electrical circuits. There is too much potential of property damage and personnel injury associated with electrical work, to save a few bucks only to hurt someone. Especially when you are trying to make your home safer. Years past, garage receptacles were not GFCI protected, however today accessible outlets are required to be protected, per the NEC. We hope this is a result forward thinkers, not someone tying washing their car barefooted. So good going with upgrading your garage. Ok, some positive features of gfci receptacles have over gfci circuit breaker: 1. They are cheaper. Usually 1/3 the cost. 2. They are local to the fault. Meaning if you accidentally trip a GFCI receptacle, you can quickly reset it, without having to leave the area. Saving time, and possibly items unattended. 3. You can selectively protect outlets you want, and not protect ones you don't want. Example, you don't want to GFCI protect your ceiling outlet only powering your garage door opener. It will accidentally trip the day you need to get in, on the most rainiest day of the year. Trust us. 4. While installing a GFCI receptacle, you can securely deenergize (turn off) the circuit without loosing power to your whole house. With a gfci circuit breaker, you need to either work inside an energized circuit breaker panel (which is dangerous) or totally deenergize (turn off) the whole panel, and possibly all your lights. Remember, turn off the breaker and secure it off before doing any circuit work. Now the positive features of gfci circuit breaker over gfci receptacles: 1. Possible Less Installation Time. One breaker installation can protect a whole circuit. 2. Possible Less Cost. A gfci circuit breaker is 1/3 the cost of a typical GFCI receptacle, so if you need to buy many receptacles in a single circuit, you might want to determine if a gfci circuit breaker might be a cheaper alternative. As you can see we are GFCI receptacle fans over gfci circuit breakers. Just because it seems like the better choice. Tell us how your project goes, and remember, hiring an electrician can be cheaper in time, and peace of mind. Sincerely, The BlankHelp Team |
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