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Bought a house a while back and the builder recommended that we purchase a "surge trap" as he said that homes in our community were having problems with vaccuuming causing the breakers to trip. He also referred to it as a "noise filter". Any idea what this item is? Is this common?
Bought a house a while back and the builder recommended that we purchase a "surge trap" as he said that homes in our community were having problems with vaccuuming causing the breakers to trip. He also referred to it as a "noise filter". Any idea what this item is? Is this common?
Sounds like a crock of crap to me. There is absolutely no excuse for a vacuum to be tripping breakers, unless they cut corners everywhere available - including installing only 15 amp breakers (or less) in the whole house.
15Amp circuits are fine for nearly everything...
so long as you don't overload them.
As to the vacuum issue...
the problem is with the sensitivity of AFCI breakers vs vacuum internal wiring.
Sometimes it is related to the house wiring too (if poorly done or otherwise faulty).
If any of these conditions exist (aka "excuses") then yeah the breakers will trip
Not really.
AFCI (Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter) are only required IN bedrooms (NEC code). What is happening is the AFCI is detecting the arc made by the electric motor (the brushes to be specific) and thus trips the breaker.
Just avoid plugging into receptacles in the bedrooms.
Not really.
AFCI (Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter) are only required IN bedrooms (NEC code). What is happening is the AFCI is detecting the arc made by the electric motor (the brushes to be specific) and thus trips the breaker.
Just avoid plugging into receptacles in the bedrooms.
Overall I agree (the motor issue), any motor startup amp draw, but I have never had a vacuum trip a breaker. Maybe I need to stop yelling suck baby suck and get a stronger vacuum....LOL
Not really.
AFCI (Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter) are only required IN bedrooms (NEC code). What is happening is the AFCI is detecting the arc made by the electric motor (the brushes to be specific) and thus trips the breaker.
Just avoid plugging into receptacles in the bedrooms.
This isn't entirely accurate. The new combination style AFCI breakers (that are now required by code) can detect the difference between a normal arc (turning on a light switch) and a fault. I've never had a vacuum trip an AFCI under normal operating conditions.
AFCI breakers are slowly becoming required on all lighting circuits in the home. One city near where I live is already doing this. It's already in the NEC, some municipalities haven't adopted it yet is all.
What is most likely happening with the vacuum's is the amp draw. If you have a 1500 watt vacuum it doesn't take much more than a few lights on to overload the breaker. Most vacuum's I've seen are labeled as "12 amp" and on a 15 amp circuit there isn't a lot of room left. There is nothing wrong with 15 amp circuits and it's not "cutting corners."
Bought a house a while back and the builder recommended that we purchase a "surge trap" as he said that homes in our community were having problems with vaccuuming causing the breakers to trip. He also referred to it as a "noise filter". Any idea what this item is? Is this common?
I do residential electrical and from my understanding a "surge trap" is basically the same thing as a surge suppressor. A noise filter is something else entirely and nothing I've ever seen needed in a home. I've only ever installed one surge suppressor and it was in my own home and that was only because I could get one cheap and install it myself.
I know this is a sales type website, but it has some good information on it about surge suppressors. Home - Power Surge Protection FAQ
I don't know why vacuums specifically would be causing a problem and a surge wouldn't necessarily cause a breaker to trip. Something doesn't sound right with what he told you, perhaps the electrician could explain it to you better.
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