My contractor has wired one GFCI receptacle in the main bathroom on the same circuit as a normal receptacle in our en-suite bathroom (it is less than a foot from the sink). he says that since they are on the same circuit that the GFCI in the en-suite is not needed. Is this correct? Do I still have the same protection – say if I dropped a running hairdryer into the en-suite sink – as I would if there was a GFCI receptacle in the en-suite?
Can a GFCI receptacle protect other receptacles
bathroomgfcireceptacle
Related Solutions
You should never chain two GFCI circuits together. When you install a GFCI circuit, you should only ever chain standard outlets off of them. Multiple GFCI on the same circuit can cause each other to trip.
So yes, what you want to do is actually what you should do.
What you do need to do, however, is make sure you connect the new outlet to the LOAD terminals on the GFCI outlet. That will put the new outlet on GFCI protection.
You should also sticker the new outlets as GFCI protected.
See in the above how the duplex (standard) outlet is fed from the GFCI, NOT the main line.
And in case it's unclear- the 3 gfci in the pic are not chained - they are connected in parallel. Only the standard outlet is "chained" - or connected in serial.
Based on the description you've provided in your comment. You should be able to install a combination GFCI switch device in the first bathroom (electrically closest to the breaker box), which will provide GFCI protection to the light and the rest of the circuit. Install the GFCI switch combo as follows:
All grounding conductors left off for simplicity. Make sure all devices are properly grounded.
- Connect the grounded "neutral" (white) conductor from the feeding cable, to the silver
LINEterminal of the GFCI. - Connect the ungrounded "hot" (black) conductor from the feeding cable, to the brass
LINEterminal of the GFCI. - Connect the grounded "neutral" (white) conductor from the cable going to the light, to the silver
LOADterminal of the GFCI. - Connect the switched (red) conductor from the cable going to the light, to one of the switch wires of the GFCI using a twist-on wire connector.
- Using a twist-on wire connector, connect the other switch lead from the GFCI to the ungrounded "hot" (black) conductor from the cable leading to the light, and a short bit of black wire.
- Connect the other end of the short bit of black wire (from the previous step), to the brass
LOADterminal on the GFCI. - Appropriately connect all grounding conductors.
Related Topic
- Electrical – How to add a GFCI receptacle on a circuit with split receptacles
- Electrical – Adding a standard receptacle to a standard receptacle on a GFCI Circuit
- Electrical – outdoor GFCI tripping at the breaker box and not the receptacle
- Electrical – Are outdoor receptacles required to be GFCI receptacles in the US
- Help me interpret the results of an outlet tester on some GFCI receptacles
- Are the GFCI outlets tripping each other
- Electrical – Problem with GFCI at start of circuit with both lights and two receptacles
- Electrical – Do I need both GFCI receptacle and GFCI breaker
Best Answer
If wired correctly, this is fine.
GFCI outlets typically have line terminals (power input) and load terminals (power to other outlets, which will be protected by the GFCI.)
Your contractor will have wired the outlet in the second bathroom to the load terminals of the GFCI in the main bathroom. There should also be a sticker on the outlet stating that it is GFCI protected, as it can be less obvious when the outlet stops working but no breakers are blown what's going on. However, these stickers don't last well, so they may not have bothered (or may have stuck it on the inside of the outlet plate so it would be found early in troubleshooting)
If you have concerns, you should purchase (not too expensively) an outlet tester that includes a GFCI test function, plug it in to verify correct wiring and then press the test button to verify that the GFCI trips as it should.