[RFI] GFCI Operation

[Paul Christensen]

> "A GFCI will protect against a shock that would result from the hot wire
conducting current to the ground conductor or external ground, but it will
not protect against a shock from the hot to the neutral wires. One can still
be seriously shocked in a GFCI-protected circuit. Ed, W1RFI"

Ed, I believe this is an exception limited to a leakage path onto the
grounded neutral conductor of the same branch circuit.   The GFCI should
protect against leakage to ground or to any other neutral other than the
branch circuit supplying current to the GFCI.  Still, you make a very valid
point in that the GFCI does not protect against *all* forms of leakage
current.

Paul, W9AC




-----Original Message-----
From: RFI [mailto:rfi-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of Jim Brown
Sent: Tuesday, February 02, 2016 12:43 AM
To: Rfi List
Subject: Re: [RFI] Galaxy Grow Light Ballast Update

On Mon,2/1/2016 7:50 PM, DWKANEPE at aol.com wrote:
> Just a point of information...a fuse or circuit breaker will NOT and 
> is not intended to prevent electrical shock.

That is WRONG.

> Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter protection will! 

GFCI's protect against a very different mechanism, namely leakage current.
GFCI's sample current in the phase (hot) and neutral conductor, and open the
circuit if they are out of balance by more than
6-10 mA, which means that current must be flowing on the Green wire, and
producing enough IR drop between the Green wire and other grounded objects
(like plumbing).

> Fuses, breakers and other OCPD's are intended to protect wiring and, 
> in some cases, utilization equipment.

AND human life.

Fuses/breakers protect us in the case of a FAULT -- that is, something
causes a short between phase and exposed equipment, causing the exposed
equipment to be hot with respect to ground.

BTW -- I've been paid to TEACH and write tutorials on this stuff for more
than ten years.

73, Jim K9YC

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