[AT] engine heater

[Ron Cook]

How many amps is your block heater pulling?  I think ground fault 
outlets can be either 15 or 20 amps.  Maybe yours is too light for the 
load.  I have a ground fault outlet that will trip if a block heater is 
plugged into it.  I just don't use that outlet for anything much more 
than lighting.  Or maybe I need to replace my outlet, too????

Ron Cook
Salix, IA

On 11/30/2011 9:31 PM, Al Walker wrote:
> Hi Folks,
> I've got an engine block heater that trips my ground fault outlet.  I am not able to explain it to myself.  My understanding is that current should flow from one flat blade in the plug to the other. Alternating, of course.  In between those two flat blades in the plug is the heating element.  I did not think this would leak enough current to the ground wire to trip a ground fault breaker.  If I disconnect that ground wire, it seems to work, but the plug gets pretty hot.  Is this normal behavior for a resistor heating element?
> Al in NW MN
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