[PS Staff - Sheila]

The knob that I am referring to is not something that you turn by hand like a normal knob this one has to be turned with a large flat blade screwdriver.

Here is the defrost timer. The knob is the black piece in the center.

[apollos]

Sheila,

Found it. Right in front of my eyes. I turned it until the compressor shutoff. A few minutes later I could see the glowing element way back in the lower part of the freezer. It is still plugged into a non-GFCI plug. I'll try it again tomorrow after plugging it into the GFCI plug and see what happens.

[apollos]

Sheila,

This morning I plugged the unit directly into the GFCI outlet located on the splashblock. This outlet feeds the outlet behind the fridge. I then advanced the defrost timer to shutoff the compressor and engaged the defroster which began glowing almost immediately. Obviously, it didn't trip the GFCI. I'm beginning to wonder whether or not I have a faulty plug behind the fridge. I'll replace that and see what happens.

[PS Staff - Sheila]

Let me know how you make out.

[apollos]

Sheila,

It's been running for 24 hours now. I hope to check the outlet tonight. The big ext. cord is a bit of a nuisance in the kitchen. I may put the fridge on a circuit of its own. Should it be GFCI protected?

Tim

[PS Staff - Sheila]

That would depend on the electrical codes in your area.

[apollos]

The GFCI tripped this weekend after running nicely all week. It seems to be related to the temperature outside. We had nice weather most of last week and then we had to turn on the A/C which is about the time it tripped. It was tripping when the A/C was on when I first started this thread a few weeks ago but figured it was coincidence. Anyway, I have run a separate non-GFCI circuit for the fridge. It's working fine but I am a bit concerned that I may be masking a problem by circumventing the GFCI.

[Icehouse]

Originally Posted by apollos

The GFCI tripped this weekend after running nicely all week. It seems to be related to the temperature outside. We had nice weather most of last week and then we had to turn on the A/C which is about the time it tripped. It was tripping when the A/C was on when I first started this thread a few weeks ago but figured it was coincidence. Anyway, I have run a separate non-GFCI circuit for the fridge. It's working fine but I am a bit concerned that I may be masking a problem by circumventing the GFCI.

Change the outlet to a GFCI outlet available at Home Depot and Lowes.
Remember NEC states Appliances on a "single" outlet 12/3 wire with a 20 Amp breaker.