Reply With QuoteYou could use a pigtailed light socket with a low-wattage light and just touch the pigtails to the live circuit to make an arc. Dunno if this qualifies as a high-tolerance test, but I doubt it.
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Arc fault testing
Hello all,
I have my final electrical inspection this week and was wondering if there is a way to test arc fault circuts, other than using the test button? I've heard that the devices on the market for testing them (similar to the gfci circuit testers) do not work as advertized.
Any replys will be greatly appreciated.
You could use a pigtailed light socket with a low-wattage light and just touch the pigtails to the live circuit to make an arc. Dunno if this qualifies as a high-tolerance test, but I doubt it.
Why do you need a test other than the test button?
May not work, they should be design to avoid nuisence tripping...this would be a lot like plugging in a lamp that is on and seeing a little arc-it wouldn't trip.Originally Posted by Mikey
All,
thanks for the reply's
I just wanted to make sure they trip before the inspection, for the GFCI's I used a plug in device to check that the wiring is correct, and it has a button to trip the GFCI. I was just wondering if there was a similar way to check the AF.
Apparently not
This article is a couple or 3 years old, but may still be relevant. Bottom line: there's no such thing as an AFCI tester like the common GFCI tester.
http://www.iaei.org/subscriber/magazine/05_c/pauley.htm
There is no such thing as a GFCI plugin tester either. Does that item that you plug in and push the button give you a reading of what amount of current caused the GFCI to trip?
NO, then it is not a GFCI tester but instead it is a GFCI tripper.
I agree and stand corrected. Now we've got to get the vendor(s) to agree.
http://www.professionalequipment.com...ltage-testers/
http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com/(cs...px?SKU=3231974
etc.
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