Cold Start... REAL COLD

[EZSnow]

-15 this morning and the 'stroke got going WITHOUT the block heater!!

Not on purpose, but it did start awful hard, so I checked things out. Seems the heater tripped the GFI overnight. Ol' Smokey didn't like it much, but she woke up for me!!

Bad GFI, Too small of a cord, or just too much load?

[ratlover]

Ive had it trip twice :confused: Dont know why or how

the plug at the apartment building decided to shoot sparks at me so my truck has been starting without a block heater for the last couple of weeks :headwall I hate not having instant heat and dont like the thought of the extra wear from the cold running.

I've bought the biggest cord I could find, its the diameter of my thumb or better.

[John DiMartino]

Ive had it happen a few times too, it is easy to have happen.I think the best thing is to get one of the HD cords(14 guage Min,12 preffered if its 50 ft or more,with the end thats lit up,so you can see when its got power. Any moisture in the plug can make it happen,even the tiniest bit of electrical leakage will trip it. Its doing its job,so I wouldtn mess with it.

[CPSS]

Bad GFI, Too small of a cord, or just too much load?

If it was the GFI that tripped, the only cause would be a current leakage to ground. If the plug was wet that would cause it. Check the block heater wiring, frequently the cord itself gets cracked or melted, allowing moisture in that would trip the GFI. The GFI won't trip from overload, only a fuse or circuit breaker will detect an over current condition.

[CPSS]

I installed this MARINCO power inlet on my Powerstroke.

[EZSnow]

CPSS, that is SLICK!! Who, where, and how much?
Is the lid spring-loaded, or just a cap? Does it require a special plug, or is it just a standard 120v plug?

I'm in!

[festerw]

I believe this is the same thing we have one for our boat
Overton's (http://www.overtons.com/cgi-bin/overtons/order/pdetail.cgi?34531++2K8)

[sno-mover]

CPSS, that is SLICK!! Who, where, and how much?
ME TOO:burnout :)

[myoder]

:huh Stupid question but what is a GFI?

[yahoo2]

:canada It was -32F last saturday morning.. :) my truck was plugged in and warm still wouldnt start,i guess the batterys were just so cold,cuz the charger started it right away.

A GFCI or "Ground Fault Circuit Inturupter" detects current flow to ground,and opens the circuit. I wouldnt plug a block heater into a gfci, just because your dealing with snow and water always. just go with a normal recepticle, itll still blow if theres a problem (short/overload)

1/2 the time i find the problem with block heaters is the cheap plug that comes on the end of the heater cord from factory, we cut all those ends off and get a better one. also if your extension cord has one of those garbage rubber 3 recepticles things on it, cut that off too and put a better one on.

[snonut12]

GFCI equipment is your friend, they are there for a very good reason: to protect you from electrical shock. Anytime when a GFCI equipment detect an imbalance in current load, even the slightest leak to ground, the GFCI will trip which cut off the power to whatever the equipment you have plugged in. It will trip within 1/20,000th of a second after it detect any amount of current leakage. A circuit breaker will not always trip depending on the amount of current leakage, but if there is a signifcant short, the breaker will trip, but only within one or two seconds, which is way TOO LATE to protect you from electrical shock.

So if your GFCI is tripping, it is telling you that there is a problem with the equipment you have plugged in. Simply ignoring them is just plain stupidity in my opinion. It would be the same as if your CO2 detector going off but ignoring them and resetting it. Yes, some people have done that. :eek: These are the reason why you have them, which is to protect your life.

For those who are having problems with GFCI tripping when your engine block heater is being plugged in, I would suggest you to get a better plug like the one CPSS has. It probably would not hurt to replace the factory cord if it is old or cracking. Just make sure that the new cord is rated for marine use (outdoor) and suitable for high temperature. 14 gauge should be sufficient (1000watts equipment will draw around 8.33amps at 120VAC). It would not hurt to use 12 gauge either, but it will take a little more space and a bit more difficult to work on (like connecting it to the inside of plug).

[John DiMartino]

Stephen , IMO all it takes is a little snow/water in the plug to trip the gfci ,simply drying it out usually does the trick,in my case. the ends on mine are industrial quality and plenty rugged.

[BWhite]

Sufficent moisture frozen or not will trip the ground fault even if all the wiring is in perfect condition and correct . The ground fault will be a hassle in this application . It's hard to imagine we survived before they became required

[snonut12]

John, what I meant by the phase I said earlier is that when a GFCI trips, it tell you that there is a problem from between the GFCI to the other end it is connected to (the equipment). I did not meant just the equipment itself, sorry for the confusion. That does include the cord/plug and with them itself having a small amount of moisture in contact which would be a simple explaination why GFCI was tripping.

[CPSS]

The MARINCO power inlet is available at many boating stores such as West Marine, Bass pro Shops, and Overtons. It's designed for the on board battery chargers of small fishing boats. It's around $20, and is rated at 15 amps, which is plenty for our block heaters.

[Mark Oomkes]

I'm with Bill on this one. GFI's are a pain for block heaters.

It's just the government protecting us from ourselves again. Just like the auto reverse sensors on garage doors. It's amazing all of us survived wihtout them for so long.

PS Stephen, it's a CO detector, not CO2.

[cat320]

I like that set up on cpss truck with plug.MY truck the cord just barely makes it out from under the hood