Question about grounding outlet that is having an issue.

[xfreakazoidx]

Someone told me to come to this forum to post this so here I am lol.

So we bought a new house and my father who came over to check things out changed one electrical outlet to a three prong outlet. He also grounded it (that green wire). So its where I have my Monster surge protector and HD tv, consoles...etc. Well on the surge protector the "Grounded ok" light is off. Does this mean he grounded it wrong? Or does the surge protector not see it as grounded?

Also I noticed last week the power on that outlet went out for about 15 seconds then turned back on. It did it again a minute later. Then yesterday it did it one more time. I think I hear a click once and awhile near the outlet (maybe its the surge protector?). I checked out the other outlets and none of them went out. I even checked the fuse box and nothing had blown. I looked up Monsters FAQ and it said when it detects low voltage/high voltage spikes it shuts the protector down for 15 seconds.

Which makes sense but then I realized my Bluray that was plugged in separately in the second outlet (on the wall) also went out. Which would mean the outlet is the issue too since theres no reason for the Bluray to turn off since its not connected to the Monster power surge protector.

Sorry if this all sounds confusing. I'm not a electrician so I don't understand these things fully. My father says everything is grounded fine and its not the outlet (though he hasn't ran a check). So I need some help.

 

[BoomerD]

Call a licensed electrician.

 

[imagoon]

The electrical isn't "ok" if the power is turning on and off. You need to run to the store buy a cheap outlet tester (http://www.amazon.com/GE-3-Wire-Rece.../dp/B002LZTKIA)

Just hooking up a green wire doesn't mean that the ground is good back to the house ground. If it fails, you likely want a pro to help you from the sounds of it.

 

[disappoint]

Are you French by any chance? Cause we like fries with that.

Hey do you know how we find out who should be working with electricity and who shouldn't?

By process of elimination.

 

[Harvey]

Call a licensed electrician.

^ THIS!... and quickly. Get it right once and for all.

 

[disappoint]

Creepbird wants to see some fireworks.

 

[SearchMaster]

My father says everything is grounded fine and its not the outlet (though he hasn't ran a check).

Hmmmm.....I see where you got your electrician talents from

I do a fair amount of electrical work on my own but for this one I'd likely call an electrician. It's possible that the outlet itself is just bad, I've had a couple that failed, and they're cheap enough that it would be worth trying to replace it and see if it solves the problem. If not, call for help.

 

[inachu]

I third that.

Call an electrician. Also buy a polarity checker they are $14 and under.

 

[inachu]

I suspect your father screwed the ground into the case of the outlet if it is metal.
In the trade we call that a 4-O box. Not sure on the age of your house so you may have either wood or metal stud beams.

 

[NutBucket]

How long ago did you buy? Home warranty?

 

[stormkroe]

If the existing receptacle had no ground pin, there is probably no bond. That means connecting a conductor from the ground screw of the outlet to a screw in the box does nothing at all. That would explain the error code from your protector.
There is a fairly easy way to bring this up to code (Canadian code, anyway). Install a GFCI receptacle there.
CEC 26-700
8 Notwithstanding Subrule (7), at existing outlets where a grounding means does not exist in the receptacle enclosure, grounding-type receptacles without a bonding conductor shall be permitted to be installed, provided that each receptacle is
(a) protected by a ground fault circuit interrupter of the Class A type that is an integral part of this receptacle;
(b) supplied from a receptacle containing a ground fault circuit interrupter of the Class A type;
(c) or supplied from a circuit protected by a ground fault circuit interrupter of the Class A type.

 

[Paperdoc]

Stormkroe is correct about substituting an GFCI instead of proper grounding to meet requirements in the Canadian electrical codes. However, that probably will not solve your problem.

We can't tell you for sure because we're not there to look. But in most houses that have only 2-prong outlets in the wall boxes, the problem is that the wiring in the walls from the fuse box up to the room outlet has NO Grounding or Bonding wire. Thus there is NO Ground available in the box at all. Merely connecting a wire from the Ground terminal of a new 3-prong outlet to the metal box it is mounted in does nothing at all! The only way to provide a Ground connection at such a box is to run a new wire from a reliable Ground (preferably at the fuse box) to the outlet mounting box in the wall.

The reason that GFCI units are allowed as substitutes is that they can provide most of the safety protection for people of a properly grounded 3-prong outlet, but they do it differently. A grounded outlet allows a device (like a toaster or TV) to use that third prong to connect its chassis to true Ground. Then if ever that is a failure in the device that allows the Hot wire to touch the chassis (which could thus expose a person to danger if they touch the outside of the device), a very heavy current will flow through the Hot line to Ground, and cause the fuse for that circuit to "blow", thus shutting off the dangerous voltage supplied to the device very quickly. This is to protect a person from harm by electrocution. Once the original problem has been fixed, you then have to replace the fuse.

A GFCI works differently in a wall box that has NO Ground lead from the fuse box. This device constantly compares the current flowing in the Hot wire to the current in the Neutral wire. They should always be the same. If it detects that they are NOT the same (there's a tolerance of about 5 milliamps, I believe), it assumes this is because electricity is leaking out to some wrong conduction path - maybe even through a person who is being electrocuted! So it shuts off the connection from the wire supplying it to the outlet's prong holes. This does not "blow" the fuse, but it does prevent further current from going out to the device plugged in. And you have to reset the GFCI unit on its own body, not back at the fuse panel. HOWEVER, for the purpose of this thread, NOTE that there is NO true Ground supplied by the GFCI. So, as a means of providing a true Ground connection to electrical devices, a GFCI is useless. It is OK for protecting people from electrocution, but not for what OP wants.

 

[Greenman]

Ask your father how he grounded the outlet. My guess is he did it by using a jumper wire from the ground to the neutral on the back of the outlet. If that's the case, you need an electrician.

If you can pull the outlet out of the wall and get a picture of the back I might be able to help you figure out whats going on. If you're the least bit unsure of how to do that then don't attempt it.