ReverseApacheMaster
Well-Known Member
Ok so I brew stove top but I wanted to build a heatstick to assist the stove element in reaching boil. I followed instructions I obtained online plus some words from HBT. The basic construction is the pipe/pvc/heating element design. I used JB weld to seal the element and pipe.
Following information given here I set out to build a circuit that would run inside my kitchen. I purchased a 16 gauge electrical wire and a 1500W heating element. I hooked up two wires to the terminals on the heating element and according to the instructions I followed, I connected the ground on the wire to the pipe and secured it with JB Weld where the pipe and PVC meets.
I put it all together and tested the electrical work dry (only for a minute!!!) on a single GFCI outlet that has no other circuits downstream. The heating element heated up and the GFCI outlet was not tripped. That was yesterday.
Today, after making sure there were no holes in the weld and it had all dried (I waited over 24 hours) I filled a pot of water, placed the heatstick in the water and plugged it in. Within a second I got a loud pop and the GFCI outlet flipped off. I unplugged the heatstick and tried to reset the outlet. There was some sparking in the socket holes but it wouldn't reset. Now nothing happens when I hit the reset button. Additionally, the GFCI outlets downstream also do not work.
I realized after all this happened the coffee maker was plugged into a GFCI outlet downstream from this one and it was turned on.
I tried flipping off the circuit and leaving it off for a while and then flipping it back on to no avail. I also waited about 15 minutes to try to reset the circuit and still nothing.
Ok electrical geniuses of HBT (and you all are, seriously) what did I do? Where did I go wrong? Should I make another attempt to run the heatstick or curse it to hell?
(I did call an electrician to come out and fix the outlet. Hopefully I did not completely screw up the house but I don't want to make matters worse by screwing around with the wiring in the house.)
Following information given here I set out to build a circuit that would run inside my kitchen. I purchased a 16 gauge electrical wire and a 1500W heating element. I hooked up two wires to the terminals on the heating element and according to the instructions I followed, I connected the ground on the wire to the pipe and secured it with JB Weld where the pipe and PVC meets.
I put it all together and tested the electrical work dry (only for a minute!!!) on a single GFCI outlet that has no other circuits downstream. The heating element heated up and the GFCI outlet was not tripped. That was yesterday.
Today, after making sure there were no holes in the weld and it had all dried (I waited over 24 hours) I filled a pot of water, placed the heatstick in the water and plugged it in. Within a second I got a loud pop and the GFCI outlet flipped off. I unplugged the heatstick and tried to reset the outlet. There was some sparking in the socket holes but it wouldn't reset. Now nothing happens when I hit the reset button. Additionally, the GFCI outlets downstream also do not work.
I realized after all this happened the coffee maker was plugged into a GFCI outlet downstream from this one and it was turned on.
I tried flipping off the circuit and leaving it off for a while and then flipping it back on to no avail. I also waited about 15 minutes to try to reset the circuit and still nothing.
Ok electrical geniuses of HBT (and you all are, seriously) what did I do? Where did I go wrong? Should I make another attempt to run the heatstick or curse it to hell?
(I did call an electrician to come out and fix the outlet. Hopefully I did not completely screw up the house but I don't want to make matters worse by screwing around with the wiring in the house.)