Radion tripping GFCI

Status
Not open for further replies.
Oh... my GFCI is the first outlet off the circuit breaker box. I think there are issues if you have non GFCI outlets between the breaker box and the GFCI outlet. All outlets after the GFCI could cause the GFCI to trip if there are issues with anything plugged into them.
DISCLAIMER___ my comments are base on my experience alone and NOT on any knowledge of electricity.
 
Anyone find a solution to this. I just had a dedicated GFCI circuit put in and is running nothing but two Radions. Well, when I say running, it only runs for a second or two and then trips the GFCI. I would appreciate any input people might have.

Dave
 
I'm afraid not. It seems that some people's GFCI trip instantly with radions, and some people's don't, so to me that indicates it's a matter of the specific brand/sensitivity of the GFCI, as the radions are clearly leaking a small amount of current. Whether or not they trip depends on how sensitive your GFCI is. My electrician tells me that the newest GFCI outlets are waaaaaay more sensitive than they used to be. My solution was to run an extension cord from a non-GFCI outlet in to my cabinet for 6 months (which was ugly and prevented the doors from ever being able to close), until I finally convinced the electrician to come back and install a totally non-code, non-GFCI outlet inside the cabinet on the condition that only the radions - which have no part touching water - be plugged in to that outlet. Here's hoping my hanging system is as sturdy as I think it is, and that there's no chance of one of my units ever falling in to the water.
 
As I mentioned before, I tired several different brands of GFCI outlets and encountered the same problem with each of them. Question for those of you who can run GFCI without it tripping, what brand GFCI outlet are you using?

This thread is eight months old and still no feedback from Ecotech support? I would really like to get their input on this "potentially dangerous" problem.
 
Last edited:
for what is it worth, this problem has not gone away. I'm using a brand new set of Radions, and they tripped my 20A GFI even when only one of them was plugged in and nothing else was hooked up to the outlet. I even went back to my home improvement store and bought another GFI outlet. No change.

My only available solution was to replace the GFI outlet with a standard outlet. Now the only protection I have is the circuit breaker and the fuse inside my Apex controller.
 
Yah it never got resolved for me either. The electrician tried two different kinds of GFI plugs, then tried a GFI breaker. They tripped all of them. By the time we got to that all the house inspections were done so he was kind enough to run me a non GFI plug to my cabinet just for the lights. Definitely not to code, but I don't need to have my cabinet doors partially open for an extension cord anymore.
 
Just got a radion pro ! Plug it in and the same thing happened to me. You should have seen how scared I was when it didn't power up ;) I plugged into a non and works fine. Now to get some answers, I'll have no part of this 900$ jem that pops gfi which I know is in perfect working order.... Btw this happens through out let or plugged into my eb8.
 
You guys were all scaring me now that I just bought two Radion Pro's. I'm waiting for delivery of my new tank, but I just plugged in the two Radion's into a brand new GFI. So far they have run for about 10 minutes with no problems.

I'm using a Cooper 15 amp weather resistant GFCI if that helps anyone. Here is a link to it on Home Depot:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Cooper-Wiring-Devices-15-Amp-Decorator-GFCI-Tamper-and-Weather-Resistant-Duplex-Electrical-Outlet-White-TWRVGF15W-SP/203492707?N=25ecodZ25ecodZc33a#.UUz1Tlt4YYI

Let me know if I can provide any additional details.
 
bbwebb said:
You guys were all scaring me now that I just bought two Radion Pro's. I'm waiting for delivery of my new tank, but I just plugged in the two Radion's into a brand new GFI. So far they have run for about 10 minutes with no problems.

I'm using a Cooper 15 amp weather resistant GFCI if that helps anyone. Here is a link to it on Home Depot:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Cooper-Wiring-Devices-15-Amp-Decorator-GFCI-Tamper-and-Weather-Resistant-Duplex-Electrical-Outlet-White-TWRVGF15W-SP/203492707?N=25ecodZ25ecodZc33a#.UUz1Tlt4YYI

Let me know if I can provide any additional details.
Click to expand...

That's good news, hopefully the weather resistant feature plays a role in making it more stable, while still offering the needed protection.
 
2 radion pros tripping 2 gfcis here , even when plugged in one at a time.

Eco tech wants to replace my power supplies. I'll report back once I have results with new power supplies.

FYI I attempted to buffer the power with a adaptive sine wave ups. And it still tripped the gfci .
 
Got two replacement power bars today. Same result one was dated 1 / 2013 an the other was from 2011. Will be in touch with ecotech support again.

The upside is I feel good about their support and my local dealers support in the matter
 
Had the same problem with one of my 5 radions.
Tried different outlets, installed a new outlet etc just to make sure it wasn't me.
Called Ecotech and they took care of it through warranty. Easy peasy.
 
I have the same issue now myself. Two brand new Radio Pro's. Is there an official solution to this issue out there? I have sent an email to Ecotech as well.
 
Has anyone ever tested their Radion by plugging the three prong power cord into a three to two adapter(used for when you have an older house and only have two prong receptacles)? Obviously it's not the recommended way to operate them but it would possibly prove where the problem lies. Since GFCI outlets work by sensing current flow through the "hot" side and the "neutral" and will trip on a difference between the two of as little as four or five mA the problem is likely within Ecotechs power supply having an improper bond between the mechanical ground(the third prong which is bonded to the outside case of the power supply) and the electrical ground or "neutral" that the electronics are supposed to be attached to. If I had to guess it's probably a capacitor or transistor that is getting it's ground reference from the wrong source(the mechanical instead of electrical ground) which doesn't affect the units operation(they are in fact both ground) but doesn't make the GCFI trip. Probably a huge pain in the butt to figure out which trace on the circuit board is the offending one. By putting the two prong adapter on you prevent any electricity from getting to mechanical ground(unless your power supply cases are physically touching another source of mechanical/earth ground that is). It would be interesting to see if the lights would run successfully this way(temporarily). It also wouldn't impair the safety or operation of the GFCI since they look for a difference in current flow between it's hot and neutral and if you were in contact with the tank water which had a grounding probe in it and somehow was also touching a defective power supply in which the case had become electrified the GCFI would instantly see the difference in current flow as some of the electricity would be leaving through you to get back to ground via the tank and trip.
 
Well, I just got my 3 Radion Gen3 Pros running and notice the GFCI tripping also. I tested all kinds of ways and still trips it instantly. It is something with the lights, I had one radion plugged in all by itself and nothing else plugged in on the whole breaker line, and trips it. They work fine on a standard outlet however. Wish I would of known this issue.
Mike
 
Mike,

Certain CFCI outlets do not like the switching GFCI power supply we utilize. I would recommend calling in today, we will be able to replace your power supplies under warranty with a non-switching type that will resolve your issue.
 
Alex Y EcoTech said:
Mike,

Certain CFCI outlets do not like the switching GFCI power supply we utilize. I would recommend calling in today, we will be able to replace your power supplies under warranty with a non-switching type that will resolve your issue.
Click to expand...

Alex,

While I do not intend to stir the pot here and as much as I like this product, I find the GFCI situation, answers and solution to be somewhat frustrating.

This issue here is not with "certain" GFCIs behaving poorly. The "issue" is with the design of the switch mode power supply.

The reason the GFCIs are tripping is either poor filtering that is allowing spikes to back-feed the GFCI (causing nuisance tripping) or (too much) leakage to ground through the filtering network (could be tested by simply isolating the ground). In either case, the SMPS needs to be reworked with a better filtering topology. Given a decent SMPS design, one should be able to stack several Radion supplies on a single GFCI without it tripping.

I would expect the Radion SMPS to be GFCI friendly seeing that most areas of the country has adopted building codes that require GFCI protection on the circuits that would be used to power a typical aquarium. Furthermore, any sane person would be using GFCI protection on ANY piece of equipment on or near their aquarium anyway.

While it is nice that you are willing to trade out customer SMPS units for linear units, I would expect that the resulting efficiency loss has to be significant, making the solution rather unattractive.

Is there a new design in the works?
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

K
Radion time help. (Long post)
Replies
2
Views
135
kj swans
K
newsalt
Aqua Illumination SOL Blue problem
Replies
2
Views
153
oreo57
oreo57
T
Stray Voltage - GFCI Question
Replies
12
Views
3K
Cruzersmith
C
R
LFS can order "red" or "blue" peacock mantis?
Replies
2
Views
149
game misconduct
G
rockryno
32gal Maxspect Lagoon Build - Chicago Sunburst BTAS and SPS!
Replies
3
Views
309
rockryno
rockryno
Back
Top