GFCI in garage . garage door opener.

Status
Not open for further replies.
hillbilly1 said:
The code reasoning behind putting the garage door receptacle on gfci, is apparently people were plugging in extension cords into the outlet and running it outside............you know you have to idiot proof everything until they make better idiots!
Click to expand...
Actually it was not related to the use of the door opener receptacle for other purposes. It was related to door opener failures that energized the door tracks and children died as a result.
 
drcampbell said:
The exception, if I'm interpreting the Code correctly, is when a 125-volt, 15 or 20-amp receptacle is not used. Either hard-wiring it, (no receptacle at all) or using something different. I suppose a NEMA 14-15R (125/250-volt, 3-pole, 4-wire) would not require a GFCI, even if it were supplied with only a 120-volt circuit.

Upon further reflection:
I don't think I've ever seen a NEMA 14-15R, except on a catalog page.
It's no more work to hard-wire a garage-door opener than to change the cord.
Will a NEMA 6-15P (250-volt, 2-pole, three-wire, without noodle) fit into a NEMA 14-15R?
Click to expand...
The 2020 language bases the requirement for GFCI protection on the rating of the branch circuit and not on the rating of the receptacle connected to the branch circuit.
 
goldstar said:
I agree 100% until that one night when your wife comes home on a snowy night and the garage door doesn't open because the GFCI tripped. There's no CMP at NFPA that handles wife complaints. It becomes a matter of how long you want to hear her complain about the garage door not opening :cool:
Click to expand...
Hey I never said I agree with the requirement, only that it was a requirement!
 
don_resqcapt19 said:
Actually it was not related to the use of the door opener receptacle for other purposes. It was related to door opener failures that energized the door tracks and children died as a result.
Click to expand...
Which makes more sense. I wonder about some of the articles in EC&M, I know of one “accident” article that couldn’t happen the way the writer wrote. I had inside information on that accident. Customer was an idiot anyway.
 
don_resqcapt19 said:
Actually it was not related to the use of the door opener receptacle for other purposes. It was related to door opener failures that energized the door tracks and children died as a result.
Click to expand...
Could have been a major factor in the decision, IIRC all the exceptions for GFCI protection on receptacles dedicated to individual appliances went away at the same time not just the garage door opener outlet. No more refrigerators/freezers and other fixed appliances in garages, basements, etc. on a non GFCI protected receptacle all came at same time. I've seen freezers in garages with a fault on those "dedicated outlets" that were shocking people before, as well as ones with a fault that were taking out the entire garage circuit but the appliance repairman said we need to get rid of the GFCI, instead I found the component that was faulted and told them to show it to the appliance guy.
 
Do lighting circuits in garages or sheds need to be gfi, assuming switches are accessible?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top