wiring ok light shows bad

[bdog]

I have a "wiring ok" light on my ups that was always green before. I just moved into a different house, and now the light is red. I know that this means something is wrong with the wiring, but I am unsure what. Does this light mean that there is a poor ground or what? I just spent a lot on the move and really can't afford to have an electrician come check it out, so I was wondering if one you could tell me what to check or how to remedy the problem.

[Mntsnow]

Yep you have a wiring problem /forum/frown.gif if it is an older home the problem is most likely a faulty or missing ground. a quick question for you ...do the outlets have only 2 "blade" connections or is there 2 "blades and 1 "hole" (where the grounding plug goes)?

also if they do have the 3 "connectors" on the outlets you will need to check the grounding wire and also the polarity of the outlet. (you can get a pushin/plugin tester from any "home improvment" store for a couple of bucks and it will tell you if you have a bad ground or if you have reversed polarity or even both!

Mntsnow

[bdog]

Thanks for the reply Mntsnow. It is an older home (probably built in 60's), but it has been renovated. All the outlets are three prong and they are very abundant. It is a 2 bedroom house and it has probably 20+ outlets, 7 phone jacks, and 5 cable outlets. They have definitely done a lot of extra wiring, but now I am beginning to wonder if it is done correctly. I will get a tester after I finish unpacking and check it out, but in the mean time, is this a serious problem? Do I need to worry about all the outlets, or just the ones with computer and tv/vcr/stereo?

[Mntsnow]

Well if the home was built in the 60's then it would have came standard with only a 2 wire power (hot and nuetral). It maybe that the prior owner changed the outlets to the "grounded" type but never changed the "wiring" (this is what happened in my home) and the reason my computer room is in the basement...My basement was unfinished and so very easy to install new wiring.....You can continue to use the outlets but you lose the "safety" of having a grounded system. (your UPS might not correctly handle a massive powersurge due to its inablity to shunt the excessive power to "ground"

Do get a tester and check it out soon!

Mntsnow

[bdog]

I just bought a tester and as you said it was open ground. I tested all the outlets in the house and all but about five had the open ground condition. Unfortunatly it is not practical to put my computer on one of the good outlets. Do I just need to run a wire from the ground on one of the good outlets to the one my computer is on, or is there more to it than that?

[800XL]

Sometimes the ground wire is already at the outlet, but it is connected to the metal outlet box instead of the ground terminal on the outlet itself. Now I don't condone opening up the outlet yourself and I won't be responsible for injury, death or any hairdo changes, but there may be a wire there for you to hook up. Steer clear of it unless you are completely sure about your electrical skills and have a healthy dose of paranoia about getting shocked. If you do decide to go for it, make absolutely sure that you get the breaker for that outlet turned off before doing anything. The ground wire is usually an uninsulated copper wire that will be screwed to the metal box the outlet is in, or sometimes even just sitting in there loose. A couple of the places I've lived have had ground to the outlets, but it was not connected or 3 prong outlets were not used. A little careful rewiring and the outlets work as they should.

One last word of caution. Be very careful. It is a good idea to have someone around in case of accidents and be sure to tell everyone in the house not to screw with the breaker box while you are working. If you feel at all sqeemish about any of this, don't do it. talk to the owner/manager/whatever of the house you live in. If you are renting, a lot of times they don't mind fixing or having things like this fixed. If it makes the place better or safer, it is not too bad for them.