hurk27
Senior Member
- Location
- Portage, Indiana NEC: 2008
I'm including a message that I sent UL as I think there might be a problem with an AFCI on a long run to a bedroom:
Thank's Wayne
[ March 29, 2005, 08:13 PM: Message edited by: hurk27 ]
I would like to hear your commits.To Steven A Brown
From what I have learned about AFCI testers is the signal is a very short duration high frequency event that applies about 75 amps to a given circuit under test. If this is true then if a run to a receptacle in a bedroom is long enough that there would be a voltage drop at this amount of current (remember resistance is current limiting) , then the AFCI will never see the full current that would normally cause it to trip.
This is why most after market AFCI testers will trip an AFCI breaker on a circuit close to the panel but when testing circuits that might be on the other side of the house they fail to produce the amount of current to cause the AFCI to trip. This could also render the AFCI inoperable due to a true arc also. So what's next install each AFCI protected circuit so it can pass a 75 amp signal?
I'm asking this to get an idea on how to respond to an inspector who has been redtaging a house because his Ideal Shure Test? AFCI tester will trip the AFCI's in the bedrooms close to the panel but when he goes to trip the AFCI's on the far side of the house it doesn't. We have replaced several of the breakers and it still will not trip them unless it is on a shorter run. I showed him what you wrote that the button on the AFCI is the only true way to test it but he insist that it is not because of a different brand as it does trip the ones close by the panel it is of a wiring problem or the breaker is bad. these are new issue Square D Home Line? with the green button. Is this possible that the voltage drop in an otherwise NEC compliant circuit could cause the tester to fail? And if it could would it cause the AFCI to not detect the correct arc signature? rendering the AFCI useless except for the GFP portion of it?
Thank's Wayne
[ March 29, 2005, 08:13 PM: Message edited by: hurk27 ]