Monaco Cayman 2006, Manual

Page: 203 / 300

Cayman 2006 Electrical Systems - House • Section 8 — 195
When using outlets, care should be considered when applying loads such as electric motors, heaters, coffee
makers, toasters, hair dryers or other large current consuming loads. The current rating is usually stated on most
electrical items. The current rating will either be rated in amps or watts. Current ratings stated on electrical items
will change slightly with voltage fl uctuations. As voltage increases, current consumption decreases. As voltage
decreases, current consumption increases. This may explain why in some instances items operated at borderline
voltage to current tolerances may seem fi ne in one location but problematic in another.
NOTE:
To calculate watts to amps simply divide the watt figure by the voltage of which the item
operates from. For example: The electrical item is rated at 1370 watts. Divide that by the
operating voltage of 115 Volts which equals 11.913 Amps. Use this formula to calculate the
amount of load to the available power supply.
GFCI Outlets
A ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) is incorporated in an outlet.
The
GFCI
offers two types of protection. One type of protection is from over-current
or shorts to guard against hazardous ground fault currents that can result in injury or death.
Ground fault currents fl ow from the power terminal through a person to the ground. For
example: touching a faulty appliance while standing on, or making contact with, an electrical
ground such as a water fi xture, bath tub or the earth. The
GFCI
will offer protection against the
type of shock that can result from faulty insulation, wet wiring from inside an appliance, or any
device or equipment plugged in or wired to that circuit. The ground fault portion of the outlet
uses sensitive electronics inside the outlet to detect a ground fault problem. The electronics
monitor the normal current of power, fl owing to the hot or black wire through the load (eg. a
light bulb or appliance) and coming back on the neutral, or white wire. If just a small amount of
the current comes back on the safety ground wire, the electronics will trip the outlet, stopping
the fl ow of electricity. The amount of current it takes to trip the device from a ground fault
varies slightly from the different outlet manufacturers (approximately 30 milliamps or less).
Electrical shocks resulting from ground faults can be felt, but such a shock is considerably
less than one without ground fault protection. People with heart conditions, or other conditions
that make them susceptible to shocks, can still be seriously injured. A
GFCI outlet will not
protect against shock from a normal current fl ow. For example, a shock from touching both
metal prongs of an electrical cord or appliance while plugging it in.
WARNING:
If an outlet continually trips, DO NOT continue to reset the outlet until the problem has
been identified and corrected.
NOTE:
The ground fault outlet should be tested once a month to ensure it is operating. Use the
TEST button on the outlet. It should trip with an audible “click.” The outlet will not trip
if AC power is not present at the device. If power is present and the device will not trip,
replace it before using that circuit.
NOTE:
One milliamp is 1/1000 of one amp.
060072
GFCI Outlet