HP OMEN 30L Tripping GFCI Circuits

[zbakez]

I recently purchased the HP OMEN 30L and shortly after we noticed GFCI circuits in our house starting to frequently trip. We live in a new build home and the house is still under warranty, so we've had electricians sent out twice to check grounding of the house, replace breakers, etc. I have now realized that the issue only occurs in the house when the computer is on. Each time I boot the computer all the circuits in the house immediately trip. I have tried moving the computer to outlets in different rooms and the issue is still present. I suspect there is a problem with the power supply on the computer or a short circuit to the case . 

[NonSequitur777]

@zbakez,

Welcome to our HP User Forum!

It seems unusual that a desktop with a modest 500 watt power supply would cause this sort of ruckus...

Since it is advisable to protect your electronic equipment anyway AND at the same time to buffer any power surges to your desktop, I would strongly recommend using a UPS (uninterruptable power supply), such as this example: Amazon.com: APC Back-UPS Pro 700VA UPS Battery Backup & Surge Protector (BR700G) : Everything Else. 

You could, of course, also initiate an HP warranty claim.

Hope this was helpful.

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[WyreNut]

A circuit breaker tripping indicates an overload of electricity, i.e. 24 amps will trip a 20 amp breaker.   Do you have GFCI breakers installed, or GFCI receptacles?

A GFCI  detects leakage of current to ground, >5milliamps  (5mA).

When you connect the pc to a non-GFCI protected circuit, does it run normally?

I would take the computer to another house, and plug it into a GFCI outlet.  If the outlet trips (and not the circuit breaker) then I would highly suspect the computer/PSU is at fault and causing a short to ground.  Look for any obvious damage to the cord, or the plug at the end of the cord.

WyreNut

[zbakez]

@NonSequitur777 Thank you for the reply!

My computer has been running on a typical power strip. That was one of the first things I suspected, and I tried swapping it out and it did not resolve the issue. I have not tried a true UPS / surge protector, so I will give that a try.

Thank you for the suggestion. 

[zbakez]

@WyreNut to provide more details the computer is set up in the spare bedroom that acts as my office. It is not a GFCI protected circuit. The issue is GFCI receptacles tripping in the bathroom, kitchen, garage, and attic simultaneously when the computer is turned on. Based on the troubleshooting so far, I suspect there is a short to ground that the GFCI's are picking up on and tripping. I can try taking it to another location to test it out. Thank you for the suggestion. 

[WyreNut]

Just an FYI-

I have purchased some very cheaply made "power strips" in the past that were disastrously designed!  One had the hot and neutral wired backwards...

Bring the power strip with you when you do the test!  And I would also suggest you invest in a simple "receptacle checker" available from any home supply store.  It plugs into any receptacle and has several LED's on it.  They will show you if the receptacle is wired correctly, and some offer a "test" button for the GFCI function.  Approx. $10 US.

WyreNut  (Electrician for 40+ years)

[Prométhée · Accepted solution]

hi

@zbakez The computer is new, and it seems to have a problem, not insignificant
You should not do anything in particular, no matter how it is connected, if it trips, it is that it is defective, and in the long run, you risk a breakdown, or even worse if there is a short circuit
just return it to where you bought it, don't waste your time with this thing

[zbakez]

It turns out the computer was the problem after all. I had electricians come by the house 3 times to verify wiring was correct throughout the house. Finally I took the computer back to Best Buy for Geek Squad to try to repair it. They shipped the computer to their test center, then told me they could not test if it would trip a GFCI circuit. They claimed there was nothing wrong with it even though they couldn't test for the issue at hand. 

I got a store credit and bought an ASUS ROG instead. Its working great and hasn't tripped any circuits. Problem solved.