Treadmill tripping electricity?

bloodline76

bloodline76

bloodline76

Soldato
Joined
7 Feb 2004
Posts
9,511
Hi there,

I put this in here as it's more of a question about electricity than treadmills. I have just got a treadmill but when I turn it on it trips the socket. After I turn the socket back on the socket doesnt trip anymore but I cant get the treadmill to start.

I have used it once for about 30 minutes as a test which seemed fine but even that tripped the socket once.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Ground Effects impact absorption system
Speed : 0.5 mph - 12 mph
Incline : -2% to - 12%
Dimensions : 32"W x 76"L x 50" H
Weight : 265 lb.

Power : 120Volts (20-amp circuit breaker recommended) Can be plugged into a conventional wall plug in a home. 240Volts (20-amp circuit breaker & dedicated circuit recommended)
Workout programs : Quick Start, Hill Profile, Random Course, Interval Course, 10 Pre-programmed courses, 2 Custom Courses & Manual. Consol Readouts : Segment Time Left, Minutes Per Mile / km, Watts, Pacer Distance, Pacer Speed, Calories Per Minute, Total Calories,
Incline & Mets

I am using it in the garage? Is it under powered?
 
Sounds like someone sold you a dodgy treadmill on evilBay! Hope you held some of the money back....!! :p

Check the fuse board (consumer unit) and see what rating the MCB (Minature Circuit Breaker) for what rating the garage is covered by (might well be share with the downstairs MCB which will be 32 AMP.

Is the circuit breaker tripping or the RCD (the big switch which you have to push down then back up again)

If it's the MCB it could be drawing too much current
If it's the RCD then it's more than likely a fault inside the machine - an earth leak somewhere in it and you'll need an electrician to check it out.

Either way, this is a classic example of buyer beware, if it looks too good to be true, then it probably is, lol
 
It's recommending 20 amps, what's the circuit that feeds the garage ? It's likely on its own breaker on the distribution board.
 
bloodline76 said:
Yes. The seller says that it has a safety setting that triggers if it gets damp. Could it just be that it is the cold? As it is in the garage.
Click to expand...

It would have to be quite a damp atmosphere to be tripping it to be honest. Could always drag that 150kg bad boy in to the house and try it in the living room for a bit?!
 
It just trips a single switch not the whole thing. I have the meter details but the form is not very clear. What am I looking for on the sheet?

Has a overcurrent protective device side, and then a cable and circuit details side
 
bloodline76 said:
It just trips a single switch not the whole thing. I have the meter details but the form is not very clear. What am I looking for on the sheet?

Has a overcurrent protective device side, and then a cable and circuit details side
Click to expand...

You're looking for the Watts on the rating plate on the tread mill
 
Our brand new life fitness one used to do the same when it was in the garage if you had the lights on. The breaker on our board was 20a but that was everything, light, garage door, pond pump.

Typically when they first power on they spike and if you've got other stuff drawing power it will trip.

Since moving it into the house its never done it once
 
There should be a small 'plate' or sticker on the treadmill with the input electricity and usage specifications. It will have voltage required, serial numbers etc somewhere. Usually on the back, near the cable, or underneath.
 
If it asks for a 20amp breaker on a dedicated circuit it tells you that it could be drawing up to 5 kw before it will trip breaker! I would say this means it runs at around 4kw in 'normal' use. As a household circuit is usually 32amp this means approx 16amp for usual treadmill use and 16amp for the rest of the circuit.16amp only gives you 4 kw to run all of your other appliances! given that your kettle could be 3kw, microwave 1.2kw, telly 0.6 kw,pc 1kw(if a beast) you can see that you wouldn,t need to use much of anything else at the same time to trip the breaker!.I the garage has it's own circuit this could be as low as 16amp therefore borderline.What is the rating on the breaker that trips? what else goes 'off' when that breaker trips?.
Sorry for 'wall' of text
The power rating should be on a little silver plate/label normally near the power cable entry/plug at machine end
 
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If it is meant for home use it shouldn't be tripping the circuit breaker. If it is it is almost certainly the motor/inverter that is causing the issue.
I presume you have checked the flex for any damage, obvious I know, but easily missed.

Like I said, let me know the make and model and I can give you a better idea of where and what to look for.
 
If it's nearly 4kw then it's going to cost a fortune to run, might want to think about running on the spot instead - it'll be cheaper!

4,000 watts - 40, 100 watt bulbs!
Or like running the oven full pelt the whole time....
 
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