ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Water Cooler GFCI?

The NEC is a minimum code, as we all know. Many engineers design projects with requirements past the minimum code. Although not required by code, GFCI's are a great choice. I have not seen a quality compressor on a Water Cooler trip a GFCI.
During use, most water coolers get splash on the floor from the person spilling, pipe leak or dribbling. When my kid is standing in the puddle, and holding the metalic cooler/operator button, I would prefer that the branch circuit serving the cooler is GFCI protected.

Ron,
I agree with you 100%.I would venture to guess though,that they never get tested.I can't imagine a school district maintenance man removing the front cover of an EDF to push a test button.I would also go on to question how many other gfci get tested once a month and documented anywhere.I personally don't have a schedule for testing and documenting GFCI receptacles at my own house.I can't fathom a large school district assigning this task to someone.(They are all complaining about not enough money for the schools already)IMO,the only time a gfci receptacle gets tested is when power is lost and someone is troubleshooting the problem.The new gfci that wont reset if defective will make things safer if they work as their supposed to.
I would still like to hear about the safety drawbacks that osha professor bought up as opposed to using a duplex receptacle on an EDF.Anyone have anything on this?

See the similiar discussions here:
https://www.electrical-contractor.net/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000737.html

Since a malfuntioning GFCI recept, will either falsely trip or not trip at all, I don't see any drawback to place a GFCI on the water cooler circuit as opposed to a standard duplex.
If it falsely trips, then someone will attend to the faulty GFCI. If it doesn't trip due to failure, then it is just as good as a standard duplex.
I agree with txsparky, that they probably will never be tested, but is that a reason not to install a gfci?

Last year in my HS the water coolers had GFCIs on them and the triped almost everytime the cooler turned on. (Yuck I hate warm water) They eventually raplaced them with non GFCI outlets though.

Not to ruffle any feathers here, but:
What are the modes of failure possible with an EDF? I don't see much possibility of the fountain itself being energized through a minor fault in the compressor, the push buttons are only water valves, and the water is not in direct contact with any energized parts. I know that there is always something that can go wrong, but I'm with The OSHA professor, the GFCI is more of a problem.
Where I feel the need for GFCI protection is where the possibility exists for contact with water, ground, and energized parts. I just don't feel that all three are here in normal circumstances, and a solid ground is all thats needed.

I have been in labs where the heating elements in water baths have developed an electrical leakage to the bath and I measured 80 volts to the receptacle ground, good place for GFCI.

txsparky,

I didn't say the hazard was with "GFCI receptacle on an EDF", but rather, "how a GFCI works, and what possible safety drawbacks are associated with GFCI's".
This is frequently seen on construction sites which require GFCI's in addition to a continuous low impedance equipment ground.

Sometimes users thing that it's OK to loose the ground or ground pin because the branch circuit is GFCI protected and working.

What would you say If I told you that such a condition on a construction site (branch circuit with no equipment grounding conductor but protected with a functional class A GFCI) could and has resulted in both very serious accidents as well as fatalities ?

Stay tunned for the next installment. Hint: you qualified electrical workers already know the ans. (sorry, it's the educator in me)

OSHA Professor
Grizzy

[This message has been edited by OSHA Professor (edited 02-15-2003).]