Mr Heater MHU50 - trips breaker immediately

[Woody325]

Got everything installed and connected in a nice professional-looking manner, and threw the breaker with anticipation of warmth and got nothing but an immediate 'pop'.

I verified my wiring is correct. Noticed that the hot and neutral on the unit have continuity, which doesn't seem correct ... so it seems there is a short in the unit out of the box.

Still waiting for someone from Mr Heater to return my call but thought I'd ask if anyone has experienced the same?

 

[The Cobbler]

just curious if the circuit stays on without the heater installed?

 

[Woody325]

Thanks, yes. So when I say that I verified my wiring I tested it to make sure H&N weren't swapped (wouldn't likely cause a short), and tested it with other devices that work just fine, etc. And to put any other doubts to rest I'm an electrical engineer so I know enough to be dangerous

There appears to be a short in the unit (duh), and so I was 'hoping' this happened to someone else and was a 'simple fix' ... although I know better. At this point I'm looking to commiserate with someone that had this happen, and blow off steam!

 

[Woody325]

Okay so a knowledgeable and communicative Mr Heater service tech called me back after hours - two stars for Mr Heater. It turns out the transformer is bad out of the box, and they're shipping me one via FedEx no questions asked (even though it was just pulled out of the box today) - another two stars for Mr Heater.

However, the tech seemed to know exactly what was wrong before we even got into it so it seems this is a common problem, with another potential problem lurking with the over temp switch - so minus one star.

So we're at 3 stars so far Mr Heater. Don't disappoint me, and bring me heat!

 

[The Cobbler]

that's good news