GFCI installation help

Question

So I just replaced an old gfci with a new one. It has two cable connected to it. With originally the two black wires connected together to a third black wire with a wire screw cap and connected to the line. Same for the 2 white wires. The ground wires were connected together and connected to the ground on the gfci.

I took out the old gfci and replaced it with a new one. Wired it the same way the old one was. No power. The circuit tester does not have any light turn on (according to the tester that means open hot) when I use it to test the gfci. When I use it to test the 2 outlets connected to the gfci it tell me that they are wired correctly. It does not reset.

I rewired the gfci 1 cable through line, and one through load. When I try to reset it it does so but immediately goes out. According to the circuit tester the gfci still has open hot, but when I test the outlets connected to the gfci I also get the open power reading. Additionally the red led that is on the gfci starts to blink and let out a constant klick noise

What should I do?

Answer 1

OK, stop. Put it back the way you found it; it was that way for a reason.

Since you don't even know what LOAD does exactly, you don't really have a reason to want to use the terminals (other than "gotta try random stuff til it works"). Don't ever do that with electrical -- you will find many combinations that will work (mission accomplished) and will create a lingering problem that will kill you.

Your first problem with this GFCI happened because you attached the wires to LOAD instead of LINE. That was a mistake from removing the warning tape unnecessarily (or getting one with the warning tape on the wrong terminals; that has happened).

Your second problem was because the downline wiring is not compatible with a GFCI, which may be why the original installer used pigtails. Whatever: It's not your problem today; you're not here to chase that problem. Be good to fix it someday, though.

Now, you said you hooked it up exactly as you found it. I'm guessing you were looking at the physical dimensions, e.g. which side has the ground. That throws people all the time, because it's just not consistent among devices. You need the LINE side (which means don't take the warning tape off the LOAD side).

If that doesn't work, either this GFCI is defective, or there's a line problem upstream of the GFCI, e.g. the original problem was not this GFCI.

Answer 2

Verify you have the line and load terminals on the GFCI , if I understood all 3 wires were pigtailed and the blacks terminated on the brass screws the shite on the silver screw , if you put them on the load terminal it won’t work or if you swapped hot and neutral you need the hot and neutral feeding the outlet to the line AND the black hot wires to the brass colored screw sometimes black, and the white wires going to the silver screw.

Some GFCI’s require the test and reset button to be pressed to activate them, but verify line and load (the load normally is covered with a label) and the polarity.