Should I include a load neutral in my wiring for my double pole 240V GFCI Siemens breaker to prevent it from tripping immediately?
Asked by Lillian Silva 
2 months ago
Last Updated: October 27, 2024
So, I’ve got this pool, right? And it’s got these two pumps, each hooked up to a double pole 240V GFCI Siemens breaker. According to the manufacturer, I don’t necessarily need to run a load neutral, but I tried it both ways – with and without – and either way, both breakers trip right away. It’s weird, ’cause a regular double pole breaker doesn’t do that. Any ideas on what might be going on?
When dealing with 240 volt pumps, where exactly did you connect the neutral wire? I’ve wired many pool pumps and never had to use a neutral wire. Are you certain the hot wires are correctly paired for each pump?
Also, make sure your blower motor is connected to a FCI breaker.
Just a heads up, the load for a 240 volt pump is distributed across both hot leads. There is no need for a neutral connection. The ground wire should be connected to the case. Typically, there is a centrifugal switch, capacitor, and starter winding involved.
Instead of purchasing individual FIs, consider investing in an 80 amp FI to protect the entire panel.
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Could it be that your pump is experiencing a ground fault issue?
What kind of pool pump is it? I’ve had Pentair pumps with variable drives that keep tripping FI breakers. We’ve tried to figure out why it’s tripping multiple breakers, and they mentioned that the connection between the pump and drive may be faulty. Not sure if that information is helpful.
Hey Ben, you can also grab a 30 ma gfi. They’re for equipment.
Hey Ben! See if you can unplug the pumps and see if the breaker is still tripping. If it’s not, try plugging in just one pump at a time to see if there are any issues with the pumps or cables.
Does not follow the NEC regulations. The FCI standards for pools and outdoor outlets only allow for Class A FCI protection with a trip level of 6mA. The 30mA ground fault protectors, known as FPE in the NEC, are not approved for standard pool setups.
Are you an electrician? Can you explain why there is a connection to a pump motor? Are you certain that all the contactor wires are aligned correctly?
You don’t need to connect the neutral wire for the FCI breaker to function properly.
It’s not supposed to be a neutral. I work on 25 pools a year and never use a neutral.
I complete 100 tasks every year, never taking a break.
All that’s in the pool are a blower and some lights. None of the 240 volt motors have a neutral wire connected. Take a look at what’s inside the conduits and where they lead.
Make sure to see if the hots are connected between the two pumps. The hots from one breaker should both be connected to the same pump to avoid a current imbalance that could cause the FCI to trip (but not a regular breaker).
It might be the neutral wire causing the issue. Let’s try swapping it out quickly. If that doesn’t work, it could be due to the wiring setup. If you turn the breaker on and it trips after a moment, it’s likely because the breaker is detecting a problem with the neutral wire. Since it’s not receiving the proper return, the breaker trips.
Forget what I just mentioned. The problem lies with the incoming ground and neutral supplying that panel. They must be separated and wired independently.
Do the breakers trip when there are no load wires connected? If not, are the motor connections for 120 or 240 volts?
Where is the white wire that connects to the flex on your pumps? I can’t seem to find it. Just to clarify, the white pigtail on the breaker should be connected to the neutral bar, correct?
There seems to be a ground fault in the equipment.
Let’s check the motor amps and multiply it by 1.25. If it’s higher than the breaker rating, you’ll need to go up a size. This covers the starting amps.
Rab an amp probe, attach it to the incoming power panel, then start a motor to see how much current it draws.
I’ve been working on pools for years, and I believe I was the first person to install a FI on a pool light. It was a 15amp Zinsco, so I ended up needing to use a small double circuit sub panel. Do pool pumps require FIs now?
Pumps operating at 240V don’t require neutrals. The neutral on the breaker should be connected to the N bar, while the neutral on the load side is the issue.
It seems that most responses indicate the neutral connection is unnecessary. Simply use a regular breaker instead.
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You’re dealing with a classic ground fault. Track it down and repair it!
Make sure your feeder neutral is connected too. Certain FCIs might trip if the voltage is too high because of a missing neutral on the line side of a MWBC.
The pump might be the issue (causing FCI trips), or you might need a breaker with a higher rating. Many FCI breakers now trip at 3 milliamps, while older ones were set at 5 milliamps. Look into getting a breaker with a higher MA to see if that solves the problem.