Hello all, I have a 2004 house that I just changed the outlets out on. I have a handful of three prong outlets now showing “open ground” on my outlet tester. Ground wires are connected on all outlets. Any ideas?
Are those outlets all on the same circuit?
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BTW, welcome David! Did you retest the ones that were showing “good”? The reason I ask is that I have had a 3 prong tester go bad from testing upstairs to downstairs. I noted in my report that all the receptacles in the basement showed faulty grounds. It was the next inspection that all receptacles did the same. That’s when I realized I had bad tester. All was good because I went back and retested both homes. I now have 2 or 3 testers with me when I inspect.
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Were there 3 prong receptacles in these open ground locations before you replaced them?
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Have you tried googling “electrician near me”? This isn’t a DIY forum.
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I will check that next, thank you!
@rbleich I googled the problem I had and was led to this page. So, if professional inspectors have the same question I do, what does that make them but people trying to find a solution for something puzzling them.
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@rmeier2 they were already three prong outlets but I didn’t check for open ground prior to replacing them unfortunately
This might seem like a stupid question, but just to be sure, there was definitely a bare (or green) ground conductor that you attached to the ground screw on the receptacle? Picture below shows where the ground screw is.
Also, how old is the home and the electrical system?
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I gave you the same advice that I would give a client. You could have a broken or loose ground upstream. My advice is the same.
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What other means of testing have you used? The “tester” may be defective.
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@dwigger I just bought a circuit finder and confirmed they are all on the same circuit. They are marked “lights” in the panel interestingly enough.
- Could the open ground be on a ceiling light?
- If so, would that cause the outlets to test as open ground?
@mwilles I just purchased a new tester and it reads the same only on the outlets on this particular circuit.
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@ruecker not a stupid question! Yes, there was a bare copper wire in each outlet and they are all properly attached. The wiring and house are 2004
Assuming your tester is good, somewhere between the open ground outlets and your service panel, there is lack of continuity of your grounding conductor. If you can’t find it, you should hire a licensed electrician to locate the problem. Somewhere there is a failed connection that is creating an open circuit on your grounding conductor.
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You need to test with a multi-meter and not a 3-light tester, it will provide you with the correct information. It could be that the grounding conductor for that circuit has been compramised, either in the panel or somewhere along the circuit.
One of the benifits of being a home insepctor is that we do not need to always find the why/cause but just find the problem and punt it to the expert(eletrican in this case) to troubleshoot and make the repair or correction.
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What was the reason for replacing the outlets? Were all outlets replaced, or just a select few, and again… why?
Updating the home from beige to white devices.
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Well if you’re sure that the tester is good then you’ll need to trace out the circuit and find the point where the EGC no longer continues on to the next receptacle.
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@rmeier2 is it possible that it is a light fixture with a loose ground? I need to check to see what (if any) lights are also on this circuit as that breaker is labeled “lights” at the panel. Would the lights affect the reading on the outlets if they are on the same circuit?