What Is A GFCI Outlet?
Simply put a GFCI outlet (or ground fault circuit interrupt outlet to give it it’s full name) is an electrical outlet that protects against electrical shock, often in wet areas such as bathrooms.
How is a GFCI Outlet Different From a Fuse?
A fuse is designed to protect a home from an electrical fire. If the hot wire in a cable touches the neutral wire a large amount of current will flow through the circuit causing it to heat up and possibly catch fire. The fuse wire heats up much quicker than the normal wires in the circuit and burns out before a fire can start. GFCI is much more sensitive than this. The GFCI outlet monitors the amount of current flowing from the hot wire to the neutral wire, and trips the circuit if it finds a difference. This can be as little as 5 milliamps and in as little as 30 milliseconds.
Checking Your GFCI Outlet
All GFCI outlets have two buttons, a test button and a reset button. You should make sure you test your ground fault circuit interrupter outlets at least one a year (we recommend every 6 months). You can do this by pressing the test button which will trip the outlet and stop the circuit. Pressing the reset button will then restore the circuit. There are two possible problems. If pressing the test button does not trip the outlet you should replace it immediately. If pressing the test button on your GFCI outlet causes it to trip but the outlet still works it has been incorrectly wired and should be fixed immediately.