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Thread: lamp dimmer on GFI outlet

  1. #1
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    lamp dimmer on GFI outlet

    I plugged my Lutron Credenza TTCL-100, with a lamp holding a 6 watt LED bulb, into the GFI outlet in my bathroom. The outlet soon stopped working. Can a lamp dimmer be used on a GFI outlet? I also have an electric toothbrush and 2 other electric gadgets on that outlet. The handyman guesses that the GFI is faulty. I want a dim light for when I get up at night, as bright lights wake you up too much. Any help?
    Thanks.

  2. #2
    Senior Member
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    It is unlikely that the dimmer caused the outlet to fail. You say you have 4 things plugged into the outlet? Whatever you are using for the splitter may be the cause.

    Depending on the age of your house, the GFCI outlet may be linked to outlets in other bathrooms. It could be a combination of things.
    Convergence Technologies Raleigh, North Carolina
    www.convergenceusa.com

  3. Likes Julia K. liked this post
  4. #3
    Senior Member
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    Hello joanfred,

    Thank you for your post!

    I reached out directly to our engineering team and they confirmed: A dimmer should not cause a GFCI to fail. We test our dimmers in engineering on GFCI protected circuits with no issues. Overall, it appears it could have been an issue with age or the number of devices plugged into the GFCI.

    Hope this helps!

    Julia K.

  5. #4
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    Using a Leviton Dimmer DSL06 600W INC /300W LED / 300W CFL for the voltage source:


    The Push to trip operated, but the device would not reset at full voltage.
    Full voltage out for the dimmer was around 108 volts.


    Reconnected the unit to normal line & reset (by-passed the dimmer). Reset at 78 volts as before.


    The unit tripped down to 50 volts on a ground fault as before.


    The above tests do not prove the GFCI could or should be operated in this manner. They only prove the GFCI can operate for a short period of time in this manner & you only get one trip, because it will not reset while powered by the dimmer.


    The shape of the input wave form did not matter to the trip circuit so long as the RMS value of the voltage was present.
    The shape of the wave form did matter to the reset circuit.

    I tested one of the old, not self testing, models made by P&S https://besttoolexpert.com/gfci-outlet/ The GFCI stopped working at 103 volts with the external plug in type recp. tester.

    I presumed that at 103 volts the test circuit was not passing the required 4-6 mA.

    I did not try to simulate an actual fault at low voltage or use the built in push to test. Maybe later this evening.

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