OT: Tracing an electrical line

I need your advice on solving an electrical problem. I have an outside GFCI outlet that quit working on me. I was going to move it, so I pulled the line and traced it all the way up the wall the header. At that point it goes across the ceiling.

This is in the mobile home. Last time I had a similar problem the breaker was getting tripped and I found a nail through the wire. No breakers are getting tripped this time and everything else electrical works.

Is there a device that will let me connect to one end of the line and "buzz" it so that I can tell where it runs inside the wall. I already had to ruin a bunch of new drywall and would like to minimize further damage.

Any advice will be sincerely appreciated.

wirehair

http://www.lashen.com/vendors/triplett/fox_hound.asp

If you know what circuit that receptacle is on fed from you breaker box you could disconnect it there and ohm out the conductors to see if any wires are showing high (or low even) resistance continuity to other conductors. Even a high resistance short should cause the GFCI to trip out as I think they drop out at something like only 5 milliamps of current imbalance between the hot and neutral. However, the GFCI should also drop out even if there were no hot to neutral shorts discussed above but a short to the trailers metal frame as the result would still be an imbalance in the hot and neutral current flows.

I would ohm out the conductors as thats cheap n easy (but even if they pass there may still be a short elsewhere) and then purchase one of those AC Voltage detectors if you need to locate where the wire is.

Have you checked the GFCI elsewhere to be sure its okay and dont trip out any old place????? ???

John T, retired electrical engineer

Therefore I agree with your statements and appreciate someone actually reads these posts n thinks about them plus takes the time n cares enough to reply. If the posters feeder wires (to that GFI receptacle) had a fault it may or may not be sufficient to clear his protective device and wouldnt necessarily cause his GFI "Receptacle" to trip out as it wouldnt see the unbalanced flow upstream of it HOWEVER if he had a GFI "Circuit Breaker" feeding n protecting that feeder wire, it would.

I never consider a GFI "Receptacle" as an overcurrent protrctive safety device, only as protection if the line current flowing out of it isnt balanced by the returned Neutral current. The GFO "Circuit Breaker" however serevs as BOTH overcurrrent protection PLUS GFI.

I love this Sparky chit chat even if we bore others lol

Thanks again, John T retired engineer

There is no power on that line. I removed the GFCI and pulled the wire inside (it was outside surface mount). If I know which breaker it was on I would just re-route everything else that is on that breaker.

I need to trace the wire to find the breaker.

wirehair

Hate the thought of burning the place down with electrical fire.

wirehair