refrigerator on gfci

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Uffdanow00

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Denver, co, us
I need to purchase some refrigerators that will be in various locations in a new building. It appears that some are in a non dwelling break room that have a sink and microwave, so I believe the space is classified as a kitchen and the refrigerator needs to be on a gfci per code. While ive heard many say that the gfci will trip when there is an issue, many manufacturers Ive found tell you to avoid putting their appliance on a gfci. So, in one location there is a new fridge with new electric and a gfci installed. I believe it is a dedicated circuit. Fridge plugs into a standard outlet and there is a resettable gfci in a more accessible location (not directly behind the fridge) between the outlet and the electrical panel. We are having intermittent trips here and Im looking for a solution. Is there a manufacturer that is less prone to nuisance trips? I assume this will be a more common issue with an increase in requirement for installation of gfci.
 
Coppersmith

Coppersmith

Senior Member
Location
Tampa, FL, USA
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Not having the fridge on a GFCI is a safety issue IMHO. It has a big metal handle that people grab tightly to open. If there is a short to the case, it can be deadly. I've had several calls where people have old fridges in the garage that trip the GFCI. After verifying the GFCI is functioning properly, I tell them the GFCI is doing it job to protect them from shock and they should throw out the fridge.
 
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texie

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Fort Collins, Colorado
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Electrician, Contractor, Inspector
Uffdanow00 said:
I need to purchase some refrigerators that will be in various locations in a new building. It appears that some are in a non dwelling break room that have a sink and microwave, so I believe the space is classified as a kitchen and the refrigerator needs to be on a gfci per code. While ive heard many say that the gfci will trip when there is an issue, many manufacturers Ive found tell you to avoid putting their appliance on a gfci. So, in one location there is a new fridge with new electric and a gfci installed. I believe it is a dedicated circuit. Fridge plugs into a standard outlet and there is a resettable gfci in a more accessible location (not directly behind the fridge) between the outlet and the electrical panel. We are having intermittent trips here and Im looking for a solution. Is there a manufacturer that is less prone to nuisance trips? I assume this will be a more common issue with an increase in requirement for installation of gfci.
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If you have a frige that is tripping a GFCI it has too much leakage current and is defective. I would refer it to the NRTL that listed it. The leakage current allowed under the standards is well below the 4-6 ma of a GFCI.
 
tom baker

tom baker

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texie said:
If you have a frige that is tripping a GFCI it has too much leakage current and is defective. I would refer it to the NRTL that listed it. The leakage current allowed under the standards is well below the 4-6 ma of a GFCI.
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The UL standard for leakage current was changed about 10 years ago, thats when the exception for GFCIs in garages etc was removed. New standard is .5 mA
 
tom baker

tom baker

First Chief Moderator
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Location
Bremerton, Washington
Uffdanow00 said:
I need to purchase some refrigerators that will be in various locations in a new building. It appears that some are in a non dwelling break room that have a sink and microwave, so I believe the space is classified as a kitchen and the refrigerator needs to be on a gfci per code. While ive heard many say that the gfci will trip when there is an issue, many manufacturers Ive found tell you to avoid putting their appliance on a gfci. So, in one location there is a new fridge with new electric and a gfci installed. I believe it is a dedicated circuit. Fridge plugs into a standard outlet and there is a resettable gfci in a more accessible location (not directly behind the fridge) between the outlet and the electrical panel. We are having intermittent trips here and Im looking for a solution. Is there a manufacturer that is less prone to nuisance trips? I assume this will be a more common issue with an increase in requirement for installation of gfci.
Click to expand...
Kitchens have had a requirement for GFCI for many years, but the issue was we knew what a kitchen was until we had to install GFCI. Its possible the GFCI is doing its job and tripping to an wiring or appliance issue. Older GFCIs were known to nuisance trip, the newest models are much better, no issues from RF, can't reset if it fails.
 
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Uffdanow00

Member
Location
Denver, co, us
I dont doubt the gfci is working as designed. Refrigerator is brand new which certainly does not mean it has no issues. The intermittent nature will make the issue a challenge to pin down. However, I will need to put refrigerators in these spaces and Im having trouble finding a manufacturer that does not tell you to avoid installing on a gfci. Are there an recommendations on seeking out an appliance that will be less likely to trip the gfi? Thank you
 
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hillbilly1

Senior Member
Location
North Georgia mountains
Occupation
Owner/electrical contractor
Probably is an issue with the appliance, gfi vending machine requirement has been out for quite a few years now without any major issues. Had an issue with a brand new Coke cooler that Coke refused to believe was bad, swapped around with another cooler, problem moved with the cooler.
 
synchro

synchro

Senior Member
Location
Chicago, IL
Occupation
EE
There may be class A GFCIs out there that are less susceptible to false tripping on short transients if they follow the UL 943 inverse time trip curves, but most of them apparently have an essentially flat time vs. current trip curve in order to save costs:

iaeimagazine.org

Now that industrial GFCIs are here, inspectors have a proactive option for shock protection - IAEI Magazine

UL Class A ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCI) began to be required in kitchens, bathrooms and outdoor outlets in the early ’70s, and have saved many lives over the years: According to...
iaeimagazine.org iaeimagazine.org

That being said, if the refrigerator has a constant leakage that's enough to trip a GFCI then that problem can only be blamed on the refrigerator itself.
 
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