Well, I guess the GFI worked

[IslandCrow]

Hopefully word has gotten out that GFIs/GFCIs (Ground Fault Interruptor or Ground Fault Circuit Interruptor) should be considered standard equipment for any fish tank. I know that. . .yet still I put off installing one until today, although my tank has been set up since November. Well, while doing a water change this evening, being the careless person I am, I had the other end of the siphon hose pointed right at the electrical outlet instead of the bucket (which is making me reconsider the placement of said bucket for future water changes). Well, I guess it's better to be lucky than good, because if I had done the water change yesterday, before I installed the GFI, who knows what kind of damage I could have done. Would I have burned down my house. . .probably not, especially since I was right there, but I certainly could have done some damage.

So, if you're putting off installing that GFI until "next weekend" like I was, stop it! Dig through your sofa for that $3.50 (or whatever they go for) and get yourself to the hardware store.

 

[Playa-1]

I agree :thumbsup:

 

[Juruense]

When I setup my fishroom I installed GFCI. They are only $12 and pretty easy to DIY.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

Yep definitely needs to be the considered standard tank set-up.

 

[WhoDat?]

There is also a setup that has a GFCI built in... If you don't want to change your outlets... The one I have is from lowes for about $30.... It has GFCI built in with about 2 feet of extension chord and 4 outlet plugs at the end... It's awesome and works great.... Has a test and reset button right there on the front....

If you want to take it to the next level of safety... Look into AFCI breakers for your breaker box....(Arc fault circuit interrupter).... They are awesome.... They detect if something is causing an arc that will lead to a fire .... GFCI won't trip in this case...

 

[stanlalee]

your right it should be standard protocol however my whole tank (all 100g) broke and the circuit breaker tripped immediately. other than ruining a $10 wall outlet nothing else happened so i guess my question being salt water and all what would cause the circuit breaker to trip and kill power vs what would cause the circuit to remain live and risk burning up your house?

 

[Fish Ace]

There is also a setup that has a GFCI built in... If you don't want to change your outlets... The one I have is from lowes for about $30.... It has GFCI built in with about 2 feet of extension chord and 4 outlet plugs at the end... It's awesome and works great.... Has a test and reset button right there on the front....

If you want to take it to the next level of safety... Look into AFCI breakers for your breaker box....(Arc fault circuit interrupter).... They are awesome.... They detect if something is causing an arc that will lead to a fire .... GFCI won't trip in this case...

The AFCI is not cheap but nice and the only problem I see is that if you had something causing a trip you now have to figure out excatly what cause it.

 

[WhoDat?]

Yep... you are right.... but I love that.... I'd rather be safe than sorry....

I think the one I got was a 20 Amp for $40....

 

[IslandCrow]

There is also a setup that has a GFCI built in... If you don't want to change your outlets... The one I have is from lowes for about $30.... It has GFCI built in with about 2 feet of extension chord and 4 outlet plugs at the end... It's awesome and works great.... Has a test and reset button right there on the front....

I think I know the one you're talking about. I had one, but sold it along with my 46g. The thing did work great. Normally I'd recommend just replacing the wall outlet with a GFI outlet, but I know the idea of changing out electrical outlets scares some people, and having to pay an electrician $60 for 10 minutes of work just seems wrong. In my case, I just really didn't want to move my tank, which wouldn't have been necessary if I'd done things right from the beginning and installed the GFI first. . .ah well, lesson learned (and apparently relearned).

For stanalee, I wish I could answer your question. I don't believe the circuit breakers that come on some power cords and outlets work quite the same way as a GFI, and may not trip under certain circumstances. . .or maybe they're just not guaranteed to trip quickly enough. I'm definitely no electrician, though, so that's more of a guess than anything else.

 

[WhoDat?]

Gfi trips when there is a problem with the ground....And basically means you would get shocked....And the plugs I was talking about work exactly like a gfi outlet... (I asked an electrician). Afci breakers are made to detect an arc.... Like if your lamps aren't seated properly or salt creep gets in there it will cause it to start arcing and heat up the endcaps and eventually melt or catch fire.... In this case gfi would not trip.... But afci breakers would trip way before this can happen....