electric help. gfci basics..

[peckhead]

my tank has been set up for 6 months now and i have never heard of a gfci until this week. i was at home depot and i saw what they look like.
i dont want my fish to be exposed to stray voltage and i dont want to get shocked either...
can i plug the gfci into a regular outlet and then plug a power strip into it? i dont think it is a surge protector...jsut a regular powerstrip...do i NEED a surge protector with a gfci or is power strip ok?
and...
can you get grounding probes from home depot or anything or can you only get them from aquarium stores..
and how exactly do you set up a grounding probe..is it just a stick and u put it in the water? do you plug it in?
sorry for all the questions..hope someone can help before i get killed lol...
thanks!

 

[joncat24]

just go to lowes or home depot and get a shockbuster gfci power strip or outlet then you can plug regular strips into that.

 

[reefnut]

The plug in GFCIs will work fine. I'd have both a GFCI & a Surge Protector on your tank.
Ground Probes are just rods that go into the water. They have a wire connected that plugs into the receptacles ground.
I have never seen them outside of an aquarium store but they can be made.

 

[peckhead]

but it is nessescary to have a grounding probe with a gfci right?
how can you make your own?????
thanks!

 

[peckhead]

so i got a probe today. in a little bit im going to get the gfci. its the yellow one that you can jsut plug into any outlet(from home depot) and it has three outlets on it so i will plug my power strip(not surge protector) into one, and the ground probe into the second... is this ok?

 

[mojo46825]

I dont believe that you need a grounding probe for your GFCI to work properly. These are suppose to trip with a sudden change in current draw. It doest care if it meets the 15 amp breaker limit. It looks for a quick spike in current. The common in your 115 v circuit is hooked to the ground in your breaker box so i dont think you will need a seperate rod in your tank. just a ground fault circuit interupter will do fine. Be careful what you stick in your tank as well. some have stuck things un there tank due to stray voltage in there tank. Like copper. That is a no no. If you ever had to stick something in your tank i would suggest stainless steel or titanium.Think about it for a second. Do you have a seperate ground rod in your bathroom sink where your gfci in your house is? Just a thought. I have installed many gfci's in my day and never a seperate rod. They shoud be wired properly and grounded just like a normal outlet. Hope this helps. Mojo (industrial techinician)

 

[wattsupdoc]

I dont believe that you need a grounding probe for your GFCI to work properly. These are suppose to trip with a sudden change in current draw. It doest care if it meets the 15 amp breaker limit. It looks for a quick spike in current.
The gfi will need to see the current going to ground in order to work. If only one conductor becomes exposed to the water then it cannot trip if there is nothing there to"draw" the current. Therefore there will be the potential to be shocked if the water isnt bonded to the ground.
The common in your 115 v circuit is hooked to the ground in your breaker box so i dont think you will need a seperate rod in your tank. just a ground fault circuit interupter will do fine.
Again, the tanks equipment will need to be properly grounded for the GFCI to be most effective.
Be careful what you stick in your tank as well. some have stuck things un there tank due to stray voltage in there tank. Like copper. That is a no no. If you ever had to stick something in your tank i would suggest stainless steel or titanium.
Definetly good advise.
Think about it for a second. Do you have a seperate ground rod in your bathroom sink where your gfci in your house is? Just a thought. I have installed many gfci's in my day and never a seperate rod.
Any metal water pipes are supposed to be bonded to the service equipment grounging conductor, so if it's copper pipe and not plastic, then essentially, yeah even the toilets got it's own ground.So should the tank, you dont go around sticking you're hand in the toilet all the time do you?

They shoud be wired properly and grounded just like a normal outlet. Hope this helps.
Again definetly good advise.
While it may not be necessary to have GFI protection, as good old common sense can go along way, it's definetly a good idea. And the probe cant hurt. most sytems dont have any other way to effectively bond the water in them, unless maybe a chiller or an external pump with a metal casing, that is in deirect contact with the water. So a probe provides the best solution to connect this source of water to the service grounding electrode.. Hope all that makes sense. I'm tired!

 

[b bauer]

if lowes is close by go and get a receptical tester they are maybe $10.they test to see if your plug has been installed correctly. a gfic will not work if your plug is wired wrong

 

[peckhead]

when i put my grounding probe in my sump, does it help my main tank? i have some electric stuff in my sump...heaters, pumps, skimmer...but in the dt i have power heads too....so where should i put the groujnding probe and will it affect my hole tank?

 

[wattsupdoc]

You can place it in the sump and it'll work fine there.

 

[peckhead]

Originally Posted by wattsupdoc
You can place it in the sump and it'll work fine there.

ok thanks.
ps. i read your other thread, it was a good help too!