# Treadmill popping GFI



## GD Lee (Mar 19, 2011)

My treadmill just started popping the GFI breaker. The treadmill is only two months old and otherwise works fine. I used an extension cord and ran it to another circuit and it did not pop the breaker. I decided to try it with the extension cord to the original circuit and the breaker does not pop. Does that make any sense?


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## joed (Mar 13, 2005)

What is the ampacity of the circuit breaker? Is it popping the GFCI or the breaker overload? Electronics in speed control will often fool the GFCI into tripping for a fault.


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## GD Lee (Mar 19, 2011)

It's a 15 amp breaker and also has a computer on the circuit. I unplugged the computer and it made no difference. The GFI is the breaker type and it trips it. 
Thanks


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## PaliBob (Jun 11, 2008)

GD, Welcome to the Forum

Here is a little *GFI Tester* I made to help analyze nuisance trips.
.


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## secutanudu (Mar 15, 2009)

Like joed asked, you need to find out if the breaker portion is tripping from Ampacity overload, or the gfci portion is tripping due to a possible ground fault. 

Try using your extension cord to plug it into a gfci _outlet_, see if anything trips.


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## awdblazer (Dec 30, 2010)

if you read your manual on the treadmill i am sure it says to not use on a gfci circuit


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## GD Lee (Mar 19, 2011)

Andrew
I didn't understand joed comment until I did a little investigating. The breaker is a Sqaure D Homeline AFCI. The way I understand it is that a AFCI is a little different design than a GFCI however would give me the same problems. The manual *does *specify not to plug into a GFCI outlet. (good comment awdblazer).
As far as whether it's the breaker portion or the AFCI portion that is tripped, I assumed they were tied together. The breaker switch is tripped and needs to be reset. The blue push button does not need reset. Does that mean that its tripping on over amperage? It's actually my son's treadmill and he's 50 miles away so I can't do much much troubleshooting today. It does not make any sense to me why it trips without an extension cord however when I plugged one in it runs fine. Its a 12 gauge 25 foot extension cord. I guess in 2002 there was a new code that specified that all bedroom outlets have to be on a AFCI circuit. He (my son) says that's the only place they have to put the treadmill. I think he's going to have to come up with another plan for it.
Thanks,
Garry


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## joed (Mar 13, 2005)

What size circuit does it say to use? Many tread mills require a 20 amp circuit. They could work on a 15 amp circuit but if close to the limit it might or might not trip the breaker.


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## GD Lee (Mar 19, 2011)

It specifies in the manual that a 15 amp circuit with nothing else on it. Tried unplugging everything on the circuit and made no difference.


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## jbfan (Jul 1, 2004)

When you ran the ext. coed, did you plug into another afci circuit?
Have you been using it for 2 mionths and it just started tripping the breaker?


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## GD Lee (Mar 19, 2011)

It has been used since mid November and just started tripping breakers. I first used the extention cord to run it to another circuit in an adjacent room and it did not trip. I thought that I had it a bad breaker but decided to use the extension cord on the original gfi circuit and it did not trip. I found this odd so ran it again without the cord and it tripped within a minute. Put the cord back on and it ran for 20 minutes with me on it at about 6 MPH and did not trip. ??


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## GD Lee (Mar 19, 2011)

Does anyone know if there ia a device, a type of filter, that can be used between a treadmill and an outlet that will filter nuisance frequency spikes that are tripping a AFCI breaker. It sounds like this is somewhat of a common problem since it is now a requirement to use these breakers on circuits that feed bedrooms. Like I stated in an earlier blog, when using an extension cord plugged into the same outlet it does not trip. I assum it acts as an inductance filter.


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## PaliBob (Jun 11, 2008)

GD Lee said:


> Does anyone know if there ia a device, a type of filter, ........?


Not a pi filter but a good quality power *Isolation Transformer *with a low inter winding capacitance should do the trick. What are the treadmill power requirements?


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## Whitepower (Mar 13, 2011)

Ive seen this problem plenty of times. What else on the circuit with the gfi breaker. Anytime a homeowner had this problem they plugged their treadmill into an unknowingly maxed circuit. Find out what else is also on the circuit, you may need its own dedicated circuit.


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## GD Lee (Mar 19, 2011)

I'll try an isolation transformer. Any suggestion to make and model? That would be an easy fix. Its located upstairs and a dedicated circuit would be difficult and with the AFCI requirement I'm afraid a dedicated circuit may not fix the problem unless there are neutrals tied together somewhere in the circuit. Thats something I will look at. thanks


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## GD Lee (Mar 19, 2011)

If the "tool geek's" idea of using an isolation transformer does not work I will look into hiring an electrician to run a dedicated circuit. If I need to do that I have it ran with 12 gauge and add a 20 amp GFCI breaker. JUst not sure how they will get it to the 2nd floor bedroom. I'm sure there is a way. The garage and breaker box is below which helps.


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## PaliBob (Jun 11, 2008)

GD, A Power Isolation Transformer able to drive your treadmill would be *big bucks*.

But then pulling in a dedicated non-AFCI circuit would make you non-code compliant.
.

NOTE: HERE IS A CHEAPER SOURCE FOR THE TRIPP-LITE


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## joed (Mar 13, 2005)

PaliBob said:


> GD, A Power Isolation Transformer able to drive your treadmill would be *big bucks*.
> 
> But then pulling in a dedicated non-AFCI circuit would make you non-code compliant.
> .
> ...


The issue up until now has GFCI, not AFCI.


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## Whitepower (Mar 13, 2011)

The panel is right below your treadmill?


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## PaliBob (Jun 11, 2008)

joed said:


> The issue up until now has GFCI,* not AFCI*.


 *AFCI breakers* also act like *GFCI*, they look at current leakage.
.


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## joed (Mar 13, 2005)

PaliBob said:


> *AFCI breakers* also act like *GFCI*, they look at current leakage.
> .


Yes but the OP never mentioned AFCI. They are very prone to tripping on treadmills because the speed controllers and brush motors often look like arc faults. 
Perhaps the OP is wrong and actually has an AFCI. That would be a reason for it tripping. The long cord is acting like a filter and the AFCI is not seeing the waveform to trip.


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## PaliBob (Jun 11, 2008)

GD Lee;612564 (post #7) said:


> ......The breaker is a Sqaure D Homeline AFCI. .......Garry


The OP does have an AFCI Breaker
.


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## PaliBob (Jun 11, 2008)

GD Lee said:


> Does anyone know if there ia a device, a type of filter, that can be used between a treadmill and an outlet .........


 Tripplite makes a premium Surge Suppressor that has toroid chokes and ferrite rod-core inductors that by limiting the initial power on surge may solve your AFCI tripping. I do not agree that your problem is caused by _'frequency spikes'_ but are surge related.

Because of your treadmills high power requirements I think you should go ahead and pull in a new dedicated AFCI circuit for the treadmill only and use the primo suppressor. It has four outlets but don't plug the computer or anything else other than the treadmill into the surge suppressor because of its power limitation. 

also available at *Amazon*
.


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