# not your normal neutral question



## Elec tricka (Jun 12, 2015)

So i get a tripping breaker call its a gfci breaker that trips when newly installed flouresent 8 footers get turned on that are on different circuit.never happened with keyless.
Looked for a connected neutral nothing found in the light side. but on the gfci side the length of conductor visible from box to box with devices removed new wire run in some cases makes a difference on weather the light cir. makes the gfci. cir. trip.
Out to the meter on POCO pole feed to house.4 wires coming out of weather head 2 to transformer 2rolled up not connected #4 bare from transformer to guy wires down pole past meter were meters earth ground is split bolted to it as it continues in to ground.
Yes removing the split removes the neutral. Yes going to have to fix or replace meter base or have POCO connect properly.
The question is would a suspect or insufishent neutral when adding a unbalanced load like flouresents cause a trip in a sympahic way.
Or are lose neutrals just weird.:blink:


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## Dennis Alwon (May 9, 2009)

Sorry but I cannot follow what is going on there but yes loose neutrals can wreak havoc on an electrical system


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## wildleg (Apr 12, 2009)

I think spell check would also help.


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## backstay (Feb 3, 2011)

Communication skills are so important.


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## joebanana (Dec 21, 2010)

GFI's can't share a neuch in a MWBC.


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## 3xdad (Jan 25, 2011)

joebanana said:


> GFI's can't share a neuch in a MWBC.


Why not?


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## joebanana (Dec 21, 2010)

3xdad said:


> Why not?


Back feed I guess. Causes nuisance tripping.


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## backstay (Feb 3, 2011)

Only on a two pole GFCI breaker. Otherwise the hot to neutral current is balanced.


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## mbednarik (Oct 10, 2011)

Gfci devices have no idea what is going on upstream of them. Every service ever installed is a multi wire circuit. What type of egc is supplying the fluorescent lights?


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## Anathera (Feb 16, 2016)

Often times commercial fluorescent ballasts and led drivers trip a gfci for some reason, it's on the package of most of them never found out why

Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk


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## hardworkingstiff (Jan 22, 2007)

backstay said:


> Communication skills are so important.


I could not agree with you more. Some of the posts I read make me scratch my head and ask myself "what the eff is he trying to say"?.


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## Cl906um (Jul 21, 2012)

I had something similar. When a guy installed a TV and turned it on, the inrush current on that breaker tripped out the gfi breaker next to it feeding the laundry room. I searched everything out and could find nothing else that could explain this phenomenon. Two wire Romex feeding each circuit separately. Moved the one breaker further down in the panel and it fixed itself. Anyone have any other explanation why this could happen?


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## Cl906um (Jul 21, 2012)

hardworkingstiff said:


> I could not agree with you more. Some of the posts I read make me scratch my head and ask myself "what the eff is he trying to say"?.


I couldn't get through the original post completely, but think I added too it a bit:laughing:


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## hardworkingstiff (Jan 22, 2007)

cl219um said:


> I had something similar. When a guy installed a TV and turned it on, the inrush current on that breaker tripped out the gfi breaker next to it feeding the laundry room. I searched everything out and could find nothing else that could explain this phenomenon. Two wire Romex feeding each circuit separately. Moved the one breaker further down in the panel and it fixed itself. Anyone have any other explanation why this could happen?


My guess is that inrush developed just enough of a magnetic field that it induced a greater than 4-6 ma through the testing part of the gfci breaker. Moving it farther away got the gfci breaker out of the field. 

Just my guess so don't berate me if I'm wrong.


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## Jay82304 (May 12, 2015)

I had a similar issue, I think. I can't really understand fully what the heck you're trying to say. I had recentally installed a GFI on a dedicated branch circuit for a bathroom but re-used the old GFI. It was fine until the living room ceiling fan's lights were dimmed; again on a totally different circuit. The dimming kept tripping the GFI. I pulled my hair out checking everything, the last 2 things I did was move my dedicated breaker and changed out the GFI with a new (higher quality) receptacle. One of those fixed the problem.


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## donaldelectrician (Sep 30, 2010)

Jay82304 said:


> I had a similar issue, I think. I can't really understand fully what the heck you're trying to say. I had recentally installed a GFI on a dedicated branch circuit for a bathroom but re-used the old GFI. It was fine until the living room ceiling fan's lights were dimmed; again on a totally different circuit. The dimming kept tripping the GFI. I pulled my hair out checking everything, the last 2 things I did was move my dedicated breaker and changed out the GFI with a new (higher quality) receptacle. One of those fixed the problem.





Wow , have not heard of a GFI problem like that since the old days .

Moving the Breaker and better Quality are 2 sure reasons for problems .




Don


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